displayed. Portugal and Algarve, Africa and India, China and Brazil, all
appeared to do homage to the illustrious stranger. Music, in which the
taste of the king was unrivalled, formed a great part of the
entertainment, and never perhaps had Brazil witnessed so magnificent a
festival.

On the 6th of February the coronation of his majesty, John VI., took
place, and these peaceful festivities gave a character to the year,
which was remarkably quiet, the only public acts of note being the
farther prosecution of the plans for civilising the interior, by
facilitating the communications from place to place, and reclaiming the
border tribes of Indians.

The following year was not less tranquil. The birth of the young
princess, Donna Maria da Gloria, was an event to gratify both the court
and the people of Brazil. They had now the heir of their kingdom born
among them, a circumstance which they were disposed to hail as a pledge
that the seat of government would not be removed from among them.

The early part of 1820 was disturbed by some irruptions of the Spanish
Americans under Artigas, on the eastern side of the Plata. The
Portuguese troops, however, soon repulsed him, and strengthened their
line by the occupation of Taquarembo, Simar, and the Arroyo Grande.

Meantime the peace in Europe had not brought back all the tranquillity
that was expected from it. In vain did the old governments expect to step
back into exactly the same places they had occupied before the
revolutionary war. The Cortes had assembled in Spain. Naples had been
convulsed by an attempt to obtain a constitution similar to that
promulgated by the Spanish Cortes; and now Portugal began to feel the
universal impulse. Lisbon and Oporto were both the seats of juntas of
provisional government, and both assembled Cortes to take into
consideration the framing of a new constitution, and the reformation of
ancient abuses. On the 21st of August the Cortes of Lisbon had sworn to
adopt in part the constitution of the Spanish Cortes, but it was not
until the month of November that the government of Brazil made public
the recent occurrences in the mother country. Indeed it was not to be
expected that Brazil should remain unconscious of the proceedings of
Europe. The provinces were all more or less agitated. Pernambuco was as
usual foremost in feeling, and in the expression of feeling. A
considerable party had assembled at about thirty-six leagues from
Olinda. They de