The State’s Contribution to the Development of Brazil’s Internal Economy, 1850–1930
E XPORTS were the lifeblood of Latin America until at least the 1930S. The world economy provided consumers, capital, labor, and machinery, which eventually spurred export-led growth. Consequently, a great deal of research has focused on the external sector. This understandable interest has led, however, to the relative neglect of the internal sector, where the majority of the population labored. It has generally been assumed that export producers, such as planters, ranchers, and mine owners, together with their commercial and financial allies, dominated the economies of Latin America up to the Great Depression. They translated economic might into political power, employing the state apparatus to favor the export sector. Many scholars agree with Theotonio dos Santos that in Brazil the coffee planter class was "capable of overcoming all opposition to its dominance.' The resultant overreliance on exports retarded production by the farmers, ranchers, industrialists, and artisans who supplied the domestic market.2 This had serious consequences for Brazil, as well as for the rest of Latin America. The weak internal sector has been blamed for contrib-