COMMERCE. Brazil has a larger foreign com merce than any of the South American lics. In LSO the exports from Brazil were valued at about 820.000.000; in 1890 they rose to 8140,000.000: and in 1900 were estimated at $170,000,000. The imports amounted to 8115.000, 000 in 1890 and $122,000,000 in 1898. Coffee is the staple article of commerce. meaning more to the exports and to the prosperity of Brazil than wheat does to the United States. It constitutes about 60 per cent. of the total exports of the country. More than two-thirds of the coffee goes to the United States, and the remainder to Eu rope. Sugar is next in importance among the exports, and is followed by rubber, cotton, cotton seed. hides, tobacco, cacao. mate (or Paraguay tea), dye and cabinet woods, gold, diamonds, etc.
The imports consist of all kinds of manufac tured goods, cotton and woolen fabrics, machin ery, ironware, coal, petroleum, and foodstuffs, including flour, corn, dressed beef, pork, butter, lord, olive-oil, wines, etc. Great Britain con
trols the largest share (41 per cent.) of the import trade. Germany has recently out stripped France, having hrought in 11 per cent. of Brazil's imports in 1899, as against France's 10 per cent. The United States is next in im portance. In the foreign commerce of the Unit ed States, Brazil is occupying a place of great, though steadily declining, importance. In 1890 the imports from Brazil to the United States were next only to those of Great Britain and Germany in value. In 1900 they were behind those from the two countries mentioned, as well as France, declining from $83,000,000 in the former year to $55.000.000 in the latter. The exports from the United States to Brazil de clined from $14,000,000 to 811.500.000 during the same period. In 1890 the exports to Brazil were five times as large as those to Argentina: in 1900 they were nearly equal.