The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1893-12-30
THE STORY OF BRAZIL
The People Show a Decadence
from Portuguese Parent Stock.
Their independence the Result of Causes
Outside Their Love of Liberty
Dangers That Menace Them.
Harper's Weekly.

Harpers Weekly.
The revolution In the Brazils. which has
now been in progress for some months.
appears 10 be conducted upon warlike
plane that is at once easy going, pleasant
and devoid Of those unseemly horrors that
mark the contests of their more pugnacious
and energetic Spanish-American neighbors
The contest in Rio Janeiro seems TO be as
gay and spectacular as a militia sham
battle, and though the guns are shotted,
the casualties appear to be no more nu-
merous. The literary features of the revo-
luton are the most bloodthirsty, for the
rival pronunciamentos of Peixoto and Mel
10 are full of the most dreadful language.
spicy with epithet and sonorous with APP
| peals to freedom and to country.
BY no stretch of Imagination can the Bra
zilians be termed a warlike race. War
seems to reveal their military incapacity
and naval unfitness; and the events now In
progress at Rio only to emphasize
that negation of military virtues which
previous wars revealed. And yet the rul-
| ing race in this young republic are the de-
| scendants of a nation once famous for Its
| military valor, its naval skill and daring,
| it's fearless enterprise and commercial
| shrewdness.
When England lay wasted and exhausted
| I'm the throes of the War OF the Roses,
| Portugal was rich and famous; and before
| the crookback Richard slain on the
| field OF Bosworth her navigators were dis
| s'pating the terrors of unknown seas Her
seamen were following in the track OF the
| old Carthaginian voyagers on the African
| coast when Columbus was churning the
| mysterious western ocean with the prows
| of his caravels. And before the Spanish
navigators had touched the mainland OF
the Americas, Vasco da Cana had rounded
the Cape of Storms, and was spreading his
| sails In strange seas for the golden Indies.
the goal OF both.
| Yet of the magnificent empire these val
| liant spirits gave TO Portugal, in India and
China, in Africa, the islands of the Orient,
| and in the Brazlls, nothing remains In her
| hands to-day but shabby ruin In Goa,
spiriuess trading post in Macao. and a
| few wretched settlements on the African
coast. that are gradually slipping through
| her nerveess fingers into the grasp OF
| sturdier II no less greedy conquerors
| And Brazil has not escaped this decadence
of the parent stock. Freedom won by the
| the sword: freedom feeby wrested from a
| feeble power Is feebly held and feebly I'M
| derstood.
Brazilian independence was the result of
| causes outside herself. The invasion of
| Portugal by the legions Of Napoleon sent
her king seuttling for safety to his golden
Il
| transformed the colony 10 the kingdom,
| the Kingdom to the appanage. When Brit
ish arms restored to Portugal the pitiful
| independence she could neither hold nor
| win for herself. the jealousy and pride OF
| the decayed mother angered the big child
| and led TO a division of interests and a de-
| nsnd for independence. Portugal's attempt
| to hold the colony was feeble and bloodless
ana her troops were expelled almost with
| out the firing of cartridge. She did Law
| siege to Bahia with her fleet but IL was
| the courage OF others than Brazilians that
scattered 1t and sent 1t flying across the
| Atlantic, chased almost under the guns of
| Lisbon.
And since her independence she has shown
lew OF the characteristics of robust ma
uonahty by sea or land. Portugal before
| the maj separation. extended the boundaries
O OF brazil to the river Platte by the con-
| tai; yet within a few years of the estab-
nshment of the empire the hardy Uruguay
ans drove out the Brazilians and established
| an independent republic. In 1864 she en-
| tered into a confederacy with Argentine and
| Uruguay 10 crush the dictator Lopez and
the republic of Paraguay; yet Ii was only
after the expenditure Of $3.50, 900 900 and when
| Paraguay was utterly exhausted and her
armies were being recruited by women that
field of Aquidaban March /, 1870. when
Lopez was slain and his army destroyed.
the naval operations of the Paraguayan
war did not add to the glory of the empire
nor the fighting reputation of her seamen
When the ironclad fleet of Brazil was
blockading the Paraguay river below Asun-
cion its vessels were attacked by Para
| guayan soldiers in canoes, who succeeded
In capturing several and slaughtering the
crews. Having fooishly slain the engineers
| they were unable to get away with their
prizes, which were recaptured by the other
Gated incident, the story of which was re-
peated to me within six months by an Ar
gentlne naval officer who was an eyewit-
ness of the scene.
Perhaps this incident may serve as a. kew
10 proper understanding of the absurd yet
irritating condition OF affairs now existing
in the harbor of Rio Janeiro. To appre.
clate at their full worth the naval and mill
tary operations at the Brazilian capital
some knowledge OF the locality is necessary.
| BEAUTIFUL HARBOR
There IS probably no more magnificent
harbor in the continent than that of San
Sebastian de Rio de Janeiro-to give in
full the title Of the Brazilian capital. 1t is
almost land-locked, and contains fully fifty
miles OF anchorage-enough to float the
navies Of the civilized world Dominated
by the splendid Organ mountains, it is the
Ioveliest and most picturesque harbor In
the world. Broken into lovely bays and
exquisite inlets, its white strands are
fringed with the most beautiful tropic YER
dure. while its mrrorIike surface reflects
the lofty crests of Tijuca, Gava Corco-
vado, San Christoval and Santa Teresa
that rise majestically above the city built
at their feet. The harbor is gemmed with
| ISLANDS and lined with villas, and the ar
gosies OF the world float upon its bosom
The storms that lash the South Atlantic
| INTO Iury are seldom felt within the portals
OF this harbor so aptly named by its origi-
nal owners Nictheroy-the Hidden Water
| The natural conformation of it's entrance
and shores has made the harbor easily
| defensible, and were its splendid fortifica-
tons garrisoned by brave and weIl-trained
defenders, it would be practically impreg-
nable TO any invader. Upon the summit
| of the heights east of the entrance to the
harbor is the formidable work of Fort
Santa Cruz. while across the channel some
, LOO yards away, Is the equally formidable
water battery, Fort San Juan. In proper
hands these two Notifications could repcl
any attack from without or within Yet
they are supplemented by Fort Lage. which
is situated almost in the teeth Of the har.
boris mouth and relatively to the other
two as the apex of obtuse triangle tc
the base OF its legs. Sailing up the harbor
with Fort Lage on the left and Jurujuba
| point on the right and east the invader
VINO breaks through the forts at the en-
trance IS confronted by the guns OF the
FOrtaleZa of Niiegagnon and the batteries
of Fort Boa Wagon, browning the north
west point of Three Fathom bay. And
when these are passed and the foe
pushes past Calabouco (Prison) point
to come abreast of the olpital he must
still face the guns of the arsenal on the
Ilha de CObras (SerPent u. the batteries d
Fort Gravata on the southeast point o.
Nictheroy bay, and the fire In the rear o.
Nillegagnon. Running out of the harbor, n,
must face all these, besides the guns o
Fort Pico. around the point from Sants
Cruz and opposite Lage. Yet, despite thes
advantages, the garrisons OF Peixoto II
the forts have not only failed to sink tn
relR hVff hay 20.