BRAZIL
748
BRAZIL
time Brazil has a system of elementary, secondary, in the year following, by the Treaty of Tordesillas,
and higher education. Congress has the sole power to the dividing line was extended to 370 leagues west of
create institutions of higher instruction and second- the Cape Verde Islands, and Spain was thus barred
arj-, or high-school, education throughout the coun- from the eastern portion of South America. In order
try, as well as of primary education in the Federal to encourage colonization, grants, or "captaincies",
District. Tlie Constitution provides that instruction were given to prominent Portuguese who were willing
given in public institutions shall be secular, and that to settle in the country. The grants comprised not
primary education be free and at the expense of the less than fifty leagues of sea coast, with feudal powers
States and municipalities. In most of the States and the privilege of extending their possessions as far
primarj^ education is compulsory. The schools are inland as the grantees desired. Thus nearly the entire
generally well equipped with libraries, laboratories, Brazilian coast was before long dotted with Portu-
and appliances and furniture of different kinds, guese settlements more or less skilfully administered.
The primary schools are divided into first- and The first of these wasestablished in 1532, at S. Vicente,
second-grade schools. Secondary education is also within the present State of S. Paulo, by Martinho
organized on a good basis. At the head of these Affonso de Souza, and the others at intervals there-
secondary schools stands the Giimnasio Xacional at after. Cattle and sugarcane were imported from
Rio de Janeiro, which was formerly Pedro II College. Madeira, and the systematic cultivation of the latter
The national institutions devoted to the higher, or began.
university, education are: two law schools at Pernam- But these early settlers had great troubles — with
buco and Sao Paulo; two medical schools at Rio de the Spaniards, who sought to gain a foothold east of
Janeiro and Bahia; a polytechnic school at Rio de the line of demarcation; with the French, who were
Janeiro; a mining school at Ouro Preto, in the State trying to establish themselves on the coast; with the
of Minas Geraes; a school of fine arts at Rio de natives who were antagonistic to all Europeans. So
Janeiro. There are some excellent public libraries that, for their common protection, it was deemed
throughout the country, the largest being the Na- expedient that the "captains" should forego some of
tional Library at Rio de Janeiro, which contains their prerogatives, and concentrate all the Portu-
235,000 printed vol-
umes, 182,000 man-
uscripts, and 100,000
iconographical
pieces. This insti-
tution was begun
with the historical
library which King
John VI brought
from Portugal and
presented to Brazil,
and it was greatly
augmented by the
collection of the
great Portuguese
isTiter Barbosa Ma-
chado.
History. — Brazil was discovered on the 26th of Janu- arj', 1500, by Vi- cente Yanez Pinzon , a Spaniard who had been a companion of Columbus. Two
Public BuiLorNGS, Sao Pattlo
guese power mto
the hands of a
Governor General
appointed by the
Crown. The first
Governor General
was Thom6 de
Sousa, who came
over in 1547 and
placed his capital at
Bahia. The Col-
lege of Sao Paulo
was established in
Piratininga soon
after the arrival of
the first Bishop of
Brazil, in 1552, and
of a number of the
Jesuits in 1553.
Tliese first mission-
aries became friend-
ly with the na-
tives, and their col-
lege soon became a
centre of influence.
montlis later Dom Manoel, Iving of Portugal, fitted In 1555 Nicolas Durand de Villegaignon, aided by
out a squadron for a voyage around the southern end Coligny, the French Huguenot leader, settled with a
of Africa to the East Indies under command of few Frenchmen on a little island in the bay of Rio de
Pedro Alvares de Cabral. Contrary winds, however, Janeiro. But these French settlers were driven away
drove him far out of his coiu'se, and after drifting by the Portuguese in 1560, and France was ever after
about for some time he came upon an mikno«Ti land, unable to gain a foothold in Brazil. The settlement,
He cast anchor in a haven which he called Porto however, was made perm.anent by the Portuguese
Seguro, on Good Friday, 24 April, 1500. On Easter who gave it the name of Sao Sebastiao, and to this
Sunday an altar was erected, Mass was celebrated, day Rio de Janeiro is officially called Sao Sebastiao
and Cabral formally took possession of the country do Rio de Janeiro.
in the name of Portugal. He then continued on his From 1580 to 1640, Brazil, as a dependency of
way to India, but first dispatching one of his ships to Portugal, was in the hands of Spain, and during the
Portugal to report his discovery. Cabral named the latter part of this period Holland, being at war with
newly discovered land Vera Cruz (the land of the Spain, seized a good portion of the country. A long
True Cross), but the king in notifying the sovereigns struggle between Portugal and Holland for the pos-
called it Santa Cruz (Holy Cross). Verj' shortly session of the country followed later, lasting until
thereafter it began to be called Brazil, from the name 1654, when the Dutch surrendered the places they
of a wood which grew in that region, and the name held, and the Portuguese were rid of all European
has been retained ever since. ri\als. In 1763 the capital was changed to Rio de
Although the country had been discovered by a Janeiro, and the Governor was given the title of
Spaniard, Spain could make no claim. According to Viceroy of Portugal.
the Bull of Alexander VI (4 May, 1493) the dividing In 1807 Napoleon's troops invaded Portugal, with
line between Spanish and Portuguese possessions had the intention of seizing the royal family. The prince
been fLxed at a meridian 100 leagues west of Cape regent, Dom Joao, fled, with the royal family, and
Verde. All discoveries east of this line were to under an English escort set sail for Brazil, where he
belong to Portugal; those west of it to Spain. But was enthusiastically received. Here Dom Joao in-
