Evening star., 1917-03-14
GERMANS IN BRAZIL NOW
AT LEAST MILLION SOULS
Numerous and Energetic Enough to
Garry Out Any Policy Which
They May Choose.
Earliest Settlers Were Greatly Aided
by Generous Grants Of Land
From the Government.

THE naval engagement between the
British ship Amethyst and two German
raiders in the south Atlantic took place
near the Island Of Fernando de Moron
ha, off the south coast of Brazil, and
fairly contiguous to the largest segre-
cation of German population in that
republic-where it has been suspected
there have been maintained bases of
supplies for the German ships which
have operated SO extensively against
shipping in those waters" states a war
geography bulletin just issued by the
National Geographic Society from it's
headquarters in Washington.
The Germanic element in Brazil is
numerous enough and energetic enough
to carry out such policy II they
choose to do so They number at least
a million souls and they are practically
limited in residence to the four south
ernmost of the Brazilian maritime
states-Rio Grande do Sui, Santa
where they have thrust their national
roots far into foreign soil without los
ing any of their inborn Characters
tics.
of Sac Paulo, says, In this province l
met for the first time Germans born
in the country who could speak only
German
Colonization Since 1925.
German colonization in Brazil has
been going on since 1926, when the set
tlement of San Leopoldo in Rio Grande
do Sui was established. For ten years the
stream of immigration continued, when
it was interrupted by the sans-culotte
revolt in southern Brazil. This inter-
ruption lasted for nine years. In 1S4S
the flood of settlers was perceptibly
swollen by the families from Schles-
wig-Holstein and the other parts of
Germany which were affected by the
revolt of the duchies against Denmark
No less than thirteen important Ger
man colonies were established in south
earliest settlers being greatly aided by
generous grants of land from the Bra
lillian government, which allotted no
less than .174 acres to each immigrant
Owing to speculative abuses this
privilege was largely reduced-but
without noticeable effect upon the
movement-which was only checked by
the imperial edict of 1859 forbidding the
further migrations Of Germans to Bra
zil. This edict remained in vigor until
1896, when as Austin Harrison terms
him in the pan-Germanic doctrine, the
great sea emperor, William II, saw
early and clearly into the future, and
taught his subjects to see. too.
Hold on Activities of Country.
Under this teaching. the Germanic
flood swept in larger volume into
Brazil and now has spread over a terri
tory approximately as large as that Of
the American states Of Florida, Geor-
gia, Alabama, South Carolina, North
Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia and
Tennessee. Fully q quarter of a million
Germans are to be found in the state
Of Rio Grande do Sui, where, in the
upon the activities Of the country, and
have practically absorbed strong hold
upon the activities of the country. and
have practically absorbed commercial
and industrial enterprise. In Port
Allegro, the capital of the state, three
German publications indicate and ex-
pound the Germanic doctrine.
I'm Santa Catarina, the next state
north. conditions are analogous. Ger
man customs and the German idiom
prevail and in many towns one may
almost imagine himself in the father
land. The Germanic element here was
strong enough some years ago to elect
a German governor, and with the ex-
ception of the officers of the federal
court. the oficeholders are almost en-
tirely German. The anomaly Of Brazil
ian government reports written by Ger
mans is by no means unusual. The
German colony in this state owes no
little Of its strength to the fact that
here. or some time, was the residence
of the Prince do Joinville of Saxe-Co-
burg-Gotha, who married a daughter
of Dom Pedro. the first Emperor of
Brazil. and the city of Joinville, Ger
man to the marrow. is a monument to
his royal highness' efforts to form a
nucleus for German immigration.
Land Holdings IL, ,534 Square Miles.
''The land to which the Germans have
taken title in South Brazil now gives
them an area of holdings ot11 .534 square