Modern Traveller, Vol. 13 of 30

Excerpt from The Modern Traveller, Vol. 13 of 30: A Description, Geographical, Historical, and Topographical, of the Various Countries of the Globe We now enter upon one of the most important provinces of Brazil, the auriferous regions of Minas Geraes (General Mines), in the heart of which the Marquis Pombal would have placed the new capital of the Portuguese empire, which he projected to transfer to the western hemisphere. In some respects, St. Jao d'el Rey would be a more advantageous position for the capital of Brazil, than Rio. It is more central, and, in the event of foreign invasion or attacks, more secure. Guarded by the mountains which form a natural barrier, its elevated plains would seem to be the very place for the King of Diamonds to hold his court. One prominent objection is the want of good roads; but, perhaps, there is another objection more insuperable behind. Good roads would make the forbidden districts too accessible, and the residence of the court in any part of the province would attract too large a population to the neighbourhood. Minas Geraes is the most mountainous province in the empire. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.