66 



BRAZIL. 



tion of the Government and prevent the work of 

 Nov. 15, 1889, from lapsing into general anarchy 

 by ordering a speedy election of a President in 

 accordance with the requirements of the Con- 

 stitution and the last electoral law, free from all 

 military pressure. This declaration was treated 

 by the Government as evidence of a military 

 conspiracy, and the signers, excepting two who 

 recanted, were banished to Amazonas. A num- 

 ber of other military men were imprisoned. In 

 Minas Geraes a movement for the division of the 

 State was fostered and encouraged from Rio 

 Janeiro, and on this account Gen. Cesario Alvim, 

 the Governor, resigned. 



Revolt of Matto Grosso. The vast State of 

 Matto Grosso, covered with great forests and very 

 rich in agricultural, forest, and mineral resources, 

 having gold in every part of the province, abun- 

 dant deposits of iron, and diamond mines in 

 successful operation, stretches along the borders 

 of Bolivia, and is separated by many hundred 

 miles of impracticable country from the seaboard 

 States, with which it has few commercial or eco- 

 nomical interests in common. The most valua- 

 ble products are medicinal plants, fine woods, 

 cinchona bark, India-rubber, hides, and meat ex- 

 tract. The State has an area of 532,708 square 

 miles, one seventh of the total area of Brazil. 

 The Paraguay river, which is navigable for 

 steamers, affords communication with the out- 

 side world. The population does not exceed 90,- 

 000, but the people were strongly imbued with 

 the State-rights doctrine, which caused many con- 

 flicts in the time of the empire, and has gained 

 in force since the revolution. In the beginning 

 of April Matto Grosso, by the action of the State 

 Legislature, proclaimed itself an independent 

 nation under the name of Republica Transat- 

 lantica. A force of 1,200 men under the com- 

 mand of Col. Barbosa was raised to defend the 

 independence of the new State, which raised its 

 standard of blue and green with a yellow star in 

 the center. The cause of the revolt was an at- 

 tempt of the central authorities in Rio Janeiro 

 to remove the Governor and to put a man named 

 Eubank in his place. Ever since the overthrow 

 of Fonseca there had been constant interferences 

 in the politics of the State, and one governor 

 after another had been deposed. The revolu- 

 tionists were well supplied with food, money, 

 small arms, and torpedoes, but their improvised 

 army lacked training and discipline. With the 

 exception of one battalion the troops that manned 

 the Brazilian river squadron were in their favor. 

 The Central Government took active steps imme- 

 diately to re-establish its authority. A flotilla 

 of six war ships accompanied by a transport car- 

 rying a strong body of troops was sent out to 

 suppress the uprising. The ' SalimOes," which 

 was ordered to convoy the flotilla, was wrecked 

 on a dangerous shoal off the Uruguayan coast. 

 While the boats ascended the Paraguay river a 

 land force was sent by rail to the end of the ex- 

 isting line, whence it was to march into Matto 

 Grosso and form a junction with the troops sent 

 by water, after which the combined forces were 

 to attack Cuyaba. the capital. On May 7 the 

 Government troops, imder Col. Ponce, invested 

 Cuyaba. On May 13 the garrison surrendered. 

 In the bombardment much damage was done to 

 the town. The commanders of the battalions of 



infantry and artillery that had joined the rebel- 

 lion were killed after they had surrendered. The 

 gunboat " Iniciadora," which floated the flag of 

 the new republic and had gone to Asuncion to 

 carry dispatches, one of which was addressed to 

 the Brazilian minister to Paraguay, there surren- 

 dered to the Brazilian authorities. The minister 

 had gone aboard and asked the commander to 

 return to his allegiance to the Federal Govern- 

 ment. He was disposed to comply, but the sec- 

 ond in command spoke against it, and oi'dered 

 the crew to fire. Instead of that they cheered 

 the Federal Government, and the commander 

 and lieutenant were arrested. Col. Barbosa and 

 Major Hannibal, the revolutionary leaders, kept 

 up the struggle, having to contend not only 

 against the better organization and greater re- 

 sources of the military forces of the Government, 

 but against the numerous hostile faction among 

 the people of Matto Grosso which extended aid 

 to the Federal troops. When people were caught 

 in the act of furnishing supplies to the troops 

 they were barbarously maltreated. In conse- 

 quence of the civil war, food became scarce and 

 dear. One position after another fell into the 

 hands of the Government party, led by Eubank 

 and the forces of Col. Ponce. About July 1 they 

 captured Corumba, and afterward the two forces 

 joined and swept the rebels from their remaining 

 positions. Most of the insurgent leaders escaped 

 into Bolivia, orders having gone forth to kill 

 them when caught. 



Conflict in Rio Grande. In Rio Grande do 

 Sul the contest between rival factions led to the 

 revival of the movement for the secession of the 

 southern provinces and the organization of a 

 new republic. The first republican Governor of 

 Rio Grande was Gen. Camara, Visconde de Pelo- 

 tas, one of the commanders in the Paraguayan 

 war and one of the leaders of the Liberal party. 

 The chief of the Liberals, Silveira Martins, had 

 been called to Rio Janeiro with the object of 

 making him Minister-President, and there he 

 was arrested at the instance of Minister Boca- 

 yuva. This greatly increased his popularity in 

 Rio Grande. On his release he went to Europe, 

 and meanwhile Julio de Castilhos, who was sec- 

 retary to the Governor, came to the front in the 

 southern province. He was one of the old Re- 

 publicans and Comtists, and was the author of 

 the Constitution adopted on July 14. 1891, an 

 impracticable instrument that conferred the 

 legislative as well as the executive powers upon 

 the President of the State and gave him the 

 right to nominate the Vice-President, while the 

 Assembly had little left to it to do besides vot- 

 ing the appropriations. This opened the door 

 to corruption and converted the officials of the 

 state, even the school teachers, into an army of 

 electioneering retainers for the chief of the state 

 and his clique. On July 15, 1891, the Constitu- 

 ent Assembly elected Castilhos for the first 

 President of the State. He remained in the 

 office till on Nov. 12 a revolution, prepared long 

 beforehand, but precipitated by the coup d'etat 

 of Marshal Fonseca, drove him out and at the 

 same time swept away his Constitution. Gen. 

 Barreto Leite succeeded him as chief executive, 

 but the leaders of the revolution were Dr. Silva 

 Tavares, his brother, Gen. Joao Nunez da Silva 

 Tavares, Gen. Pereira da Costa. Lieut.-Col. Ono- 



