human
N-I-L-E, spelled Affonzo as they passed a huge steamer anchored outside the harbour.
gpt
What kind of a boat is that?
human
English, said his father.
gpt
The English run a line of steamers from Southampton to Lisbon, and thence to Rio Janeiro. These boats carry a thousand passengers, and are so large that they cannot go through the cut in the breakwater.
human
Oh, papa! What a queer building! What is it?
gpt
That is a relic of Dutch days in Brazil, said the Senhor.
human
You know the Dutch once laid claim to all this part of the country.
gpt
Did they? asked Lola in surprise.
human
How did they get here and what became of them?
gpt
It is a long story, little one, but quite an interesting one, said her father.
human
You know Brazil was discovered by a Portuguese, Pedro Alvarez Cabral, who sailed into the Bay of Porto Seguro at Bahia, April 25, 1500, and took possession of the land in the name of the Portuguese crown, naming it Vera Cruz. The Spaniards had made discoveries in the north of South America, the English and French had come in along the Amazon and within the next few years the Dutch entered the river and built forts on the Xingu. Then came a long struggle between the Dutch and the Portuguese as to who should possess the land. In 1624, a Dutch admiral took possession of Bahia, but a handful of Portuguese recaptured the place the next year; then came a succession of battles, first the Dutch being victorious, then the Portuguese. At last the Dutch sent Prince Maurice of Nassau as Governor General of their possessions in Brazil, but he returned to Holland in 1644 and from that time on the Portuguese were successful. They laid siege to Pernambuco (then called Recife) and blockaded the port with sea forces while the land army assaulted it on the other side. The Dutch surrendered in 1654 and Brazil became a Portuguese colony.
gpt
Then I suppose everything was peaceful,