The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1886-01-20
Slavery in Brazil.

1t is probable that at the close of the
century slavery will have passed away
from all civilized nations. 1t may still
linger in certain portions of Africa,
but the work of universal emancipation,
though slow, is sure, and it is but
question of time-perhaps not more
than fifty years-when the world will be
wholly free from the curse of human
bondage. The Empire of Brazil is now
the only stronghold of the slave-power
in the civilized world, and even there a
method of gradual emancipation is in
progress. Every form of slavery in
Spain and Portugal is being abolished,
but in Brazil the work of emancipation
has long been INSTRUCTED by the slave
owners, and until recently they have
been able to evade the laws that had
been passed through the efforts of the
abolitionists. An interesting history
of the emancipation movement in Bra
I'll has recently been furnished our gov
eminent by the secretary of legation at
Rio de Janeiro. A law was passed in
1881 which declared free all negroes
and their children who should be i'm
ported into the empire after that date,
but it was never executed. The slave
trade continued to increase, prior to
1851, and fifty thousand negro slaves
were imported in single year. In
1851 the slave-trade was broken up by
the active Intervention of the British
government. In 1871 the abolitionists
secured the passage of law declaring
that children born of slave mothers af-
ter that date should be free. 1t pro-
yided for the reimbursement of the
masters at certain rate, and also
"that there shall be annually freed in
every province Of the empire as many
slaves as shall correspond to the quota
allowed to each province out of the
fund destined for that purpose" The
emancipation fund is derived from
'the tax on slaves, subscriptions, lega-
cies,n etc., " six annual lotteries, fines
from the violation of this law" etc
The abolitionists continued to gain in
numbers after the passage of the law
of 1871, and a few years ago they di
rected their efforts to the enfranchise
ment of single parish in the Province
of Ceara, which was accomplished with
out difficulty. Parish after parish il
this province was attacked and con
quered, and on March 25th, 1884, the
enfranchisement of the last parish il
the province was publicly celebrated
When the work was begun, in 1873, thu
province contained $4,000 slaves. II
1881 the number had been reduced t.
10000. In Rio there are 400 900 slave
to 200 freemen, in San Paulo tn
slaves outnumber the whites four t
one, and there is about the same pro
portion of slave to white population il
other districts. The successful evasion
of the gradual emancipation act by tn
shareholders has developed an ugl
feeling among the slaves, and assassina
tons of masters and overseers by slave
are of frequent occurrence. In vieN
of the grave situation, and probably t
pacate the abolitionists, who are dc
handing the unconditional and imme
date freedom of the slaves, neN
emancipation act has been passed &
the request of the emperor, which is
sequence to the act of 1871, which free
slave children born after that date upo
reaching the age of twenty-one years
Is also provides redemption fund ft
the purchase of the freedom of slaves
The new act just passed determines tn
price at which masters may value the
slaves, and sets aside five per cent {
all the revenues of the empire, excel
the export taxes, as an emancipatio
fund. All slaves are made free at I'll
age of sixty, although required to rel
/ der three years of subsequent serviC