Evening star., 1927-11-17
BACKGROUND OF EVENTS
BY PAUL Y. COLLINS.

better advised, will see to it that the
film Is either suppressed or at least
that the title, as we'll as the environ
ment, with the accompanying screen
literature. are changed to a place
more suitable to a Spanish village
moving picture tale
On par with the artists confusion
of Spanish with Portuguese as the
language of Brazil is the story by
the Minister from Greece, who was
rather taken aback by the naive query
of an American tourist as to what
language the Greek people used.
Americans often resent the toe
ready willingness of foreigners to be
gin criticizing America as soon as
they land in New York. but here ap
pears a situation. according to the
diplomats, which would call for a little
more willingness for Americans
thanks to Chief Censor Will Hays to
censor their own motion pictures and
tourist interpretations Of foreign peo
pies. How not to be narrowly ''pro
vincial" is a theme for American in
veStigation.
Ambassador Amaral found some
comfort in an editorial criticism of
the Objectionable picture of Rio de ia.
neiro. The editorial said:
Rio de Janeiro is a modern city
Of million and half Inhabitants
1t enjoys the most advanced sani
tation and the most exquisite clean'
liness. 1t boasts superb hotels, boule.
wards and parks, and a setting of SUI
preme natural beauty. It's language
is Portuguese. For our
movie impresarios to picture Rio de
Janeiro as Spanish village Is as
ludicrous as to have Europeans insist
that wild Indians still go whoopine
down our city streets and that all
Americans eat pie for breakfast
The blunder of the movie is not
isolated as to American general lack
of knowledge concerning South Amer
ica. There is Brazil, republic
whose constitution is almost identical
with our own, though giving more in
dependent powers to the states; a
country thousands of square miles
larger than continental United States
of America; country having a
greater popula ton t33.000,000) than
did our own Nation at the time of
our Civil War, and even now with a
quarter as large as our present popu-
lation. Brazils ideals of liberty and
independence are similar to our own,
though she, like most Latins, has per-
haps finer conceptions of sentiment,
Of art and of beauty for beauty S
sake than we may boast.
When Brazil exiled Dom Pedro ii
and proclaimed her republican gov
ernment. November Is, 1889. she had
less direct cause Of complaint than the
abuses which drove our Revolutionary
forefathers to proclaim the Declara-
ton of Independence. yet she dreamed
of republican liberty and equality, and
determined to rid herself of mOnar-
chicai pretenses of superiority, as she
had previously thrown off all al
legiance to her mother country OF
Portugal September Z, lS22.
IT is a unique sentiment which Am
bassador Amaral expressed when he
said in his New York speech:
"RraziI commentaries today the
procIamation and establishment of the
republican form of government. We
are republic nowadays united in u
great reverence to the memory OF the
Emperor we dethroned 3S years ago.
Every year we associate our repub-
lican ioy with the praise of the great
man we were forced to discard in the
hour of our need, for a government
more suitable to our growth and to
our role in America"
Could any American couple his 100
per cent Americani-in with such words
of praise of George III? At least 1t
would he outside of Mayor ThOmp-
sons bailiwick, il such were expressed.
u
Brazil was one Of the first to follow
the United States in support of the
allies against the Kaiser In the Great
War, in spite of the fact that she
holds millions of German citizens. She
withdrew from the LeAE't -r Nations
when the Lessu gave the German re-