ngth
entered into something approximating peaceful relations with the
Portuguese settlements. Trade took the place of warfare, although fear
of the overgrown _quilombo_ was perhaps as much the motive on the part
of the whites as the desire for profits. A rustic republic of an
admirable type was formed for the maintenance of internal order and
external safety. Combining republican and monarchical features, they
elected a chief, or king, called the _Zombe_, who ruled with absolute
authority during the term of his life. The right of candidacy was
restricted to a group recognized as composing the bravest men of the
community. Any man in the state might aspire to this dignity, provided
he had Negro blood in his veins. There were other officials, both of a
military and of a civil character. In the interests of good order,
the _Zombes_ made laws imposing the death penalty for murder,
adultery, and robbery. Slavery existed, and in this respect there was
a curious custom. Every Negro who had won his freedom from the white
man, by whatever method, as for example by a successful flight to
Palmares, remained a free man. Those who were captured while in a
state of slavery, however, became slaves in Palmares. Thus the reward
of freedom was offered to those who should escape from the planters,
and a punishment was held out to those who would not, or could not, do
so. In course of time, the Negro republic expanded until it included a
number of towns. Palmares alone is said to have had a population of
20,000, and the number of fighting men in the whole republic was some
10,000. The capital city, Palmares, was surrounded by wooden walls,
made of the trunks of large trees. The city was entered by means of
three huge gates, on the tops of which were great platforms, always
well guarded.

For nearly half a century the little republic prospered. It was
perhaps only natural that the Portuguese settlers should wish to
destroy it, for it represented an alien force and an ever present
danger, certainly so far as their profits from the use of slave labor
went. At any rate, in the year 1696, Governor Caetano de Mello of
Pernambuco decided upon an expedition against Palmares. A strong force
was sent, but it was met by the Negroes and totally defeated. A
veritable army of some 7,000 men was now gathered, and placed under
the command of a competent soldier named Bernardo Vieira. This time,
the Portuguese troops were well provided with artillery, wit