to cover the purchase of these railways aggregated L16,619,320. All
but three of these lines had been leased in 1905.

The use of tramways for the transportation of passengers in cities
dates from 1868, when the first section of the Botanical Garden line
of Rio de Janeiro was opened to traffic. The line was completed with
its surplus earnings and continued under the control of the American
company which built it until 1882, when it was sold to a Brazilian
company. Subsequently the tramways of the city have been mostly
concentrated in the hands of a single Canadian company. All the large
cities of Brazil are liberally provided with tramways, those of the
city of Sao Paulo, where electric traction is used, being noticeably
good. The substitution of electricity for animal traction was begun in
Sao Salvador in 1906. Mules are universally employed for animal
traction, and narrow gauge lines with single-mule trams are generally
used where the traffic is light.

Brazil is lamentably deficient in steamship communication considering
its importance in a country where the centres of population are
separated by such distances of coasts and river. Previous to the
creation of the republic, the coastwise service was performed by two
national companies (now united), and partially by foreign lines
calling at two or more ports. A considerable number of foreign sailing
vessels also carried on an important coasting trade. The coastwise
service centres at Rio de Janeiro, from which port the Lloyd
Brazileiro sends steamers regularly south to Montevideo, and north to
Para and Manaos, calling at the more important intermediate ports.
From Montevideo river steamers are sent up the Parana and Paraguay
rivers to Corumba and Cuyaba, in the state of Matto Grosso. The
company receives a heavy subsidy from the national government. Parts
of this coastwise traffic are covered by other companies, two of which
receive subsidies. There were also six lines of river steamers
receiving subsidies from the national government in 1904, and the
aggregate paid to these and the coastwise lines was 2,830,061 milreis.
The largest of the river lines is the Amazon Steam Navigation Co. (an
English corporation), whose service covers the main river and several
of its principal tributaries. Two subsidized companies maintain
services on the Sao Francisco river--one below the Paulo Affonso
falls, a