1911 Encyclopædia Britannica/Parahyba do Sul

37415261911 Encyclopædia Britannica, Volume 20 — Parahyba do Sul

PARAHYBA DO SUL, a river of Brazil, having its source on the campos of Bocaina, on the northern slope of the Serra do Mar in the western part of the state of Sao Paulo, and flowing at first south-westerly and then after a horse-shoe curve in the vicinity of Jacarehy in a general E.N.E. direction to the Atlantic in lat. 21° 38′ S. Its upper course for a distance of 80 m., or to the confluence of the Parahybuna, is known as the Parahytinga. The navigable channel from São Fidelis to the Atlantic is 54 m. long, and the total length of the river, including the Parabytinga, is 540 m. Its source is about 4920 ft. above sea-level. The Parahyba passes through a fertile, long-settled country, a part of which was for many years the principal coffee-producing region of Brazil. Its lower course passes through the rich alluvial sugar-producing district of Campos. Among the towns on the Parahyba are Campos, São Fidelis, Parahyba do Sul, Juiz de Fora, Barra do Pirahy (railway junction), Rezende, Queluz and Lorena.