North of Rio de Janeiro there has not been so much or so systematic railway development, as there has been south of the federal capital. The principal company operating in that direction, the Leopoldina Railway, is also the company having the greatest mileage of any road in the republic. Its lines traverse the states of Rio de Janeiro, Espirito Santo and Minas Geraes, and have a total mileage of over eighteen hundred miles. This system has been made up by the consolidation of a number of different lines. Hitherto it has not been able to run its track into the city of Rio de Janeiro, because of the opposition of the Central, which road claimed a monopoly. Its terminals have been at Nictheroy across the bay, and at Mauá. At last the right was granted, a depot constructed, and, by this time, the trains of the Leopoldina Railway will be running into the capital city. They promise service from that city to Petropolis in a little over an hour, instead of two hours by the present combination of rail and boat. This line taps rich coffee and sugar lands, reaches back into the mineral section of Minas Geraes, and passes near lands where fine timbers, such as rosewood, abound. It also connects with the port of Victoria, which is destined to be an important port for the products of this district. One of the lines is gradually being pushed up toward Bahia, and will eventually connect with the lines of that state, of which there are three or four spurs that spread inland in different directions from the city of Bahia. The state of Espirito Santo (Holy Spirit) tapped by the Leopoldina system, stretches along the Atlantic coast for nearly three hundred miles. With an area of twenty thousand square miles it has a population of less than twelve to the square mile. It is a tropical state with much rain and dense vegetation along the coast lowlands. The capital city, Victoria, has a good harbour which is now being improved by the national government. In coffee shipments this port ranks third in importance. A railroad is also being constructed from Victoria to Diamantina, but progress up to date has been rather slow. The next largest system in northern Brazil is the Great Western Railway, whose lines run from Maceio, in the state of Alagoas, through Recife, or Pernambuco, capital of the state of that name, Parahyba, capital of the state of Parahyba, and ending at Natal, capital and chief seaport of the state of Rio Grande do Norte. A number of branches wind their tortuous way inland, and each year extensions are being made. The total length of the lines of this company now exceed nine hundred miles, upon all of which a government guarantee of at least six per cent. exists. These lines were formerly operated under several different names, but have recently been consolidated.