I HAVE heard many discussions both in England and in Brazil, upon the merits and demerits of these Treaties; in such disputations Englishmen have appeared to suppose that their interests had not been sufficiently consulted; and the contrary opinion was maintained by the Portugueze, for they considered their nation to be aggrieved by them, and that great partiality had been shown to British subjects. I cannot avoid thinking that the Treaties are as impartial as possible, and that due regard has been paid to both parties. If British subjects have gained some advantages, one of considerable importance which they possessed before, has been given up; and the commercial intercourse between both parties has been placed in very favourable circumstances. Even the innovations which by these Treaties have been made in the laws of Brazil in favour of Englishmen, tend to the general advancement of that country,—to forward its progress towards a higher pitch of civilization. In the discussions which I have heard, Englishmen, by the arguments which they used, appeared to think that Brazil should have been treated overbearingly, as a country which had been humbled by misfortune, and that of this circumstance advantage should have been taken by Great Britain. The idea which is entertained of the weakness of Brazil, must proceed from the trifling defensive preparations which are to be seen upon her coasts. Her sea-ports might no doubt be much injured by attacks from a maritime enemy; but the country is impregnable, it possesses far stronger fortresses than any which can be raised by man; in its extent, in its woods, and in a hardy population, who are accustomed to live on very little food, and that of a poor kind. However, any ideas of conquest in South America by Europeans, against the wishes of the people, experience has proved to be fallacious; the Dutch war with Pernambuco, and our own errors at Buenos Ayres bear witness to this fact.
The Portugueze on the other hand seem to have imbibed the idea that Great Britain has taken undue advantage of the state of the Portugueze monarchy, and has imposed heavy terms, such as suited her own purposes. Many of the arguments which are made use of by the Portugueze, are brought forwards by them without any consideration of the state of Brazil;—of the relative situation of the two high contracting parties. The following plea for complaint, although it does not relate to the Treaties, may be mentioned in this place, for it is a favourite one with many persons. It is said, that the Regent of Brazil has made grants of land to British subjects, but that the Portugueze are not permitted to possess landed property in the dominions of His Britannic Majesty. A complaint of this kind would appear to denote that the two countries were in the same state with regard to population; that Brazil did not require an enormous increase of people, and that Great Britain possessed a superabundance of territory. Far from the grants of land to foreigners being urged as a breach of the declared reciprocity between the two nations, the government of Brazil ought to invite foreigners to purchase lands and establish themselves there; it ought to allow them to follow their own religion; it should naturalize them and fix them to the soil by the protection which the laws ought to afford them; and by the permission which should be given to them of having some share in the concerns of the society into which they had been adopted.
The Portugueze are continually pointing to the rapid advancement of the United States of America, and holding up that country as an example which ought to be followed in the introduction of minor improvements in Brazil; but they do not seek high enough for the sources of the prosperity of North America; the statesmen of that country receive every one who pleases to establish himself under their protection, and the laws of the republic tolerate all religions; these are the great fountains from which the increase of her power has been drawn. An impartial distribution of justice, and a mildness of government have acted in unison with the views of her rulers. Brazil however is totally unfit for a republican form of government; her people have been guided in a far different track from that of the inhabitants of the United States. The first settlers in North America left their native shores, because their ideas were too democratic for the mother country, and because their religious opinions did not coincide with those of their countrymen; therefore the minds of the descendants of parents like these were prepared for the declaration of republican principles. But the colonists of Brazil were regularly invited to settle under the direction of officers who had been appointed by the government of Portugal, and who were entrusted with despotic power; they were Roman Catholics too. Consequently the habits of their descendants lead them to quiet acquiescence in the mandates of those who govern them; to follow rather than to direct, to be guided rather than to be obliged all at once without any previous instruction, to think for themselves. Still, although a government which is established on principles of democracy is not suited to Brazil, that country would bear many degrees of advancement towards a state of freedom,—in religion, in personal security, and in legislative authority; this last might certainly be granted to a certain degree.[257]
However to return; I shall attempt to prove that the Treaties in question have been fairly drawn out, and that they exist for the benefit of both nations; that each has conceded in some points much to the well-being of both. Neither party should desire to have every thing, from whence, says a Brazilian writer, “arise conflicts, hatreds, and the pretences upon which complaints and wars are founded.”[258]
The Portugueze canvass the Treaties as if they were jealous of what had been granted to British subjects, without considering whether the advantages which had been conceded were or were not for the benefit of Brazil. They should consider what is for their own good, and not what Great Britain grants to them, or what their government grants to Great Britain.
I shall only mention those articles of the Treaties which are particularly interesting, and which may be liable to discussion, wishing to be as observant of conciseness as possible.
THE TREATY OF FRIENDSHIP AND ALLIANCE.
I pass over the primary articles as being unimportant, or from the interest of the subjects to which they relate having already subsided.
Article 6th. “His Britannic Majesty is allowed the privilege of causing timber, for the purpose of building ships of war, to be purchased and cut down in the woods of Brazil.”
This was supposed to afford to Great Britain an inexhaustible and inexpensive source of supplying her navy with timber; but I have understood that the expence which must be incurred in felling the trees, and bringing the timber to the water’s edge, would be too great to render the project feasible; and that the woods of Brazil were discovered to contain a less proportion of valuable timber than had been imagined. If the British government had thought proper to act upon this article,—if the plan had been judged worthy of being executed, the advantages which Brazil must have derived from it would have been considerable. The increased traffic which would have been experienced by the ports in which dock-yards would have been established, and the number of mechanics who would have gone over, many of whom would in all probability have remained ultimately in that country, must have been beneficial to it. The ship carpenters and caulkers of Brazil are fully as good as those of England, and if encouragement was given to the most necessary art of ship-building, no external aid would be requisite. But due encouragement is what is wanting.