Part 3

As far back as 1680, Uruguay had been a bone of contention between Portugal and Spain, but at the outbreak of the Revolution in 1810, the country was Spanish and was an integral part of the Viceroyalty of the Plata. Montevideo became, as we have seen, the center of Spanish resistance to the movement of independence, and following Artigas' victory at Las Piedras, was besieged by his troops and the Argentine forces under Rondeau. The city would have fallen, but news of the defeat at Huaquí reached Buenos Aires, and the besiegers were recalled to protect the Argentine soil. Civil strife between Buenos Aires and Artigas ensued because the latter stood for a federal republic, while Buenos Aires, of course, was unitarian, and wished to retain her supremacy over the provinces. In 1817, Artigas became embroiled with the Portuguese, who routed him and captured Montevideo. Rivera, Oribe, and Lavalleja, lieutenants of Artigas, and later famous in the history of Uruguay, had to take refuge in the interior. Artigas himself retired to Paraguay and died there of old age in 1850. By 1821 all resistance to Brazil was at an end. Rivera and many of the other _caudillos_ had accepted commissions in the Brazilian army of occupation. Uruguay itself had become the cisplatine province of Brazil, and so matters stood until the 19th of April, 1825, when Lavalleja gathered the famous "Treinta y Tres", a band of thirty-three Uruguayan patriots, and landed in Uruguay from the Argentine province of Entre Ríos. So great was their success that by May of that year, the whole country was in revolt against the Brazilians, and the forces of the Empire were confined within Montevideo and La Colonia. The patriot victory at Sarandí under Lavalleja and Rivera caused Argentina to declare formally that Uruguay was again a part of the Argentine Confederation. War between Argentina and Brazil was declared and at Ituzaingó, far within the Brazilian territory, the Brazilians suffered a terrible defeat in 1827. This, as we saw above, happened during Rivadavia's presidency, and led to his resignation because of the peace signed by his envoy. The upshot of the whole matter was that both Brazil and Argentina gave up all claims to Uruguay and guaranteed its independence as a separate republic for five years. Argentina was being torn by federalist and unitarian dissensions, and could not press her claim. In Uruguay itself there were rival factions led by Rivera and Lavalleja, who held the presidency in turn, Rivera becoming the first official head of the nation in 1830.

In Argentina, after Rivadavia's resignation, Dorrego, leader of the federalists in Buenos Aires, became Director. The chief names until 1829, date of the advent of Rosas, are La Paz and Lavalle, as unitarians; Dorrego and the _caudillos_ from the various provinces, as federalists. Lavalle, who had been the hero of Ituzaingó, put himself at the head of the unitarians and forced Dorrego to flee, capturing him later and putting him to death. It is now that Rosas comes to the fore, although Quiroga and the other _caudillos_ all joined forces to help defeat Lavalle, who retired to Uruguay. La Paz, however, more than managed to hold his own in the provinces of the interior, defeating Quiroga twice with terrific slaughter. But he, too, was finally defeated and taken prisoner in 1831. Since 1829, Rosas had become the provisional governor of Buenos Aires, that is, the head, in so far as there was any head, of the Argentine government. One of his first acts as governor of Buenos Aires was to carry on an expedition against the Indians to the south of Buenos Aires, and extend the frontiers of the whites down to the Río Negro.

And now for a few words on Rosas himself. He is referred to as the Argentine tyrant and has been compared to Nero for his wanton cruelty. True it is that he committed many deeds of cruelty, yet the times and conditions in which he lived were such that stern measures were necessary. He was of noble family and one of the wealthiest men in Argentina. From his own _estancias_ he could raise a cavalry corps of _gauchos_ and keep it in the field. He made it a point to afford shelter to outlaw _gauchos_, and gathered about him a band of adventurous spirits ready to dare anything. His victories against the Indians increased his prestige, and in 1835 he was given supreme power by the Legislature in Buenos Aires. His control of the supreme power lasted until 1852. Immediately upon his assuming command, federalists were put in office everywhere instead of unitarians, who were forced to flee into exile. In the course of his long career, Rosas waged war for the re-annexation of Uruguay, which had become independent in 1827, after the battle of Ituzaingó. He incurred the enmity of France and England, and had to put down many revolts against his power. Lavalle played an important part in one of these and met his death at the hands of Oribe, who had aligned himself with Rosas. Throughout Rosas' reign, for such was his administration, Argentine exiles kept alive the hope of overthrowing the tyrant. Sarmiento founded a newspaper, _El Progreso_, in Copiapó, Chile, which had for its object a campaign against Rosas. In it Sarmiento published for the first time in serial form his _Facundo_, selections from which are given in this book.

Rosas' attempt to re-annex Uruguay deserves special mention. The five-year period of Uruguayan independence agreed upon by Argentina and Brazil had come to an end when Rosas came into power. Argentina was free to solicit the incorporation of Uruguay into the Argentine Confederation. Oribe, whom we remember as one of Artigas' lieutenants, had become president of Uruguay after Rivera, and allied himself to Rosas against the Rivera faction, which had the support of the Argentine unitarian exiles. Oribe had to abandon Montevideo, which fell into Rivera's hands only to be besieged by Rosas and Oribe. The war that ensued has been called the Great War. It lasted for eight years, from 1843 to 1851, and the entire burden of the struggle centered around the siege of Montevideo, one of the longest in history. During this long eight-year siege, Montevideo received the help of many adventurers and lovers of liberty, as Rosas and Oribe were regarded as oppressors who sought to dominate a weaker country. Garibaldi, famous in Italian history, played a prominent part in the defense of the beleaguered city as leader of a famous foreign legion composed of Italians and Frenchmen.

Eventually Rosas brought about his own downfall. Although a federalist, he slowly centralized all power in himself, thereby gaining the distrust of the other _caudillos_. Urquiza, the _caudillo_ from Entre Ríos, led the revolt against Rosas, and at the battle of Caseros, in 1851, completely routed the forces of the tyrant. Flight was Rosas' only resource, and he took refuge, with his daughter Manuela, on board the English frigate _Centaur_. He ended his days in England.

But not yet were discords at an end. The victor of Caseros convened a constituent congress at Santa Fé, to which Buenos Aires failed to send delegates, remaining a sovereign state in the same manner that Rhode Island did when she refused to become a party to the Constitution of the United States. Naturally, Urquiza became president, and the provinces prospered under his administration. Such a situation, however, could not endure for long.

Buenos Aires chafed under certain customs restrictions on her exports to the rest of the nation, and in 1859, under the leadership of Mitre, Buenos Aires attacked the confederation of provinces established by the congress at Santa Fé. As in 1820, Cepeda again marked the defeat of Buenos Aires at the hands of the federalists, although Mitre managed to save the army of Buenos Aires. With the mediation of Paraguay, a peace was patched up between the warring elements. Buenos Aires became a member of the Confederation, and her customs houses were put in the control of the federal government, and in 1860, Derqui succeeded Urquiza as president. In the meanwhile, troubles in the province of San Luis led to friction once more between Buenos Aires and the federalists. The rupture became open when Buenos Aires sent deputies elected according to local law and not according to the Constitution, and sent them to the congress convened by Derqui. Buenos Aires was declared in state of siege, and at Pavón, in 1861, Mitre led the forces of the capital to victory. The many wars had tired the nation, and all the provinces willingly gave Mitre the power to convoke a congress to settle all differences. This congress met on the 2d of May, 1862, and it was agreed that the city of Buenos Aires should be the seat of the federal government, as well as of the province of Buenos Aires itself. The election of Mitre to the presidency marked the beginning of a period of prosperity and solidarity for the country.

BIOGRAPHICAL NOTES

=López y Planes= (=Vicente=), an Argentine poet, was born in Buenos Aires in 1784. He served as a volunteer during the English invasions and wrote a rhymed chronicle of the events of that stirring period. In 1810 he was attached to the Army of the North as secretary to its general, Ortiz de Ocampo, and took an active part in all the great movements of the Revolutionary Era. At the foundation of the University of Buenos Aires, he became the organizer and director of classical studies. He was the founder of the Bureau of Statistics and President of the Republic in 1827. Until 1852 he was the president of the Supreme Court. After the battle of Caseros, General Urquiza intrusted to him the organization of a provisional government, and he became governor of the province of Buenos Aires. Though he is best known as the author of the Argentine National Hymn, he is hardly less to be remembered for the many services he rendered his country in various official capacities from the time of the founding of the Republic to his death in 1856.

=López= (=Vicente Fidel=), Argentine jurisconsult, writer, and orator, was born in Buenos Aires in 1814. He was the son of the famous author of the Argentine National Hymn, López y Planes. Like many other Argentineans, he left his country during Rosas' reign, returning in 1852 to devote himself untiringly to the work of regeneration. Among his works are to be found both purely literary and historical writings, such as: _La Novia del Hereje o la Inquisición_, his monumental work on the _Conquista_, an erudite and scientific work, and his _Tratado del Derecho Romano_. He also wrote a series of articles on the Argentine Revolution for the _Revista del Río de la Plata_. In 1874 he succeeded Gutiérrez as president of the University of Buenos Aires. He died in 1903 after a life devoted to the service of his country.

=Sarmiento= (=Domingo F.=) was born in San Juan in 1811 of humble parents. His father fought under San Martín in Chile. From early childhood he was left to his own resources, and has very often been called the Lincoln of Argentina. His love of books, his keen habits of observation, and a brilliant mind raised him from the humble position of clerk in a country store to the presidency of the Republic. During Rosas' rule, he joined the great army of Argentine refugees in Chile, founding schools there and taking an active part in the political life of the country as the editor of _El Mercurio_ and _El Nacional_, two important organs of the press. His first book was a primer, and his _El Monitor de las Escuelas_ was the first educational periodical in South America. In 1842 he founded the first normal school on the Pacific coast, directing it for three years. Through the pages of _El Progreso_ and _El Heraldo Argentino_ he carried on a tireless campaign against the tyrant Rosas. His impetuous character and the violence of his attacks made him many enemies, and, on the advice of President Montt of Chile, he undertook a series of travels through Europe, northern Africa, and the United States. He became a great admirer of the institutions and government of the United States, and particularly of the educational ideas of Horace Mann, with whom he came into close contact. Together with Mitre he returned to Argentina on the eve of the battle of Caseros, in which he fought under the orders of Urquiza. During the years that Buenos Aires was separated from the rest of the Confederation, he was director of public instruction. After the battle of Pavón, he was ambassador to Chile and Peru, and later to the United States, where he wrote _Las Escuelas, base de la prosperidad de los Estados Unidos_, and published an educational review entitled _Ambas Américas_. Upon the completion of Mitre's term of office in 1868, and while still an ambassador to the United States, he was elected to the presidency of Argentina. His administration was free from civil discord, and he carried out great reforms that made for the prosperity and progress of Argentina. He is especially remembered for the great impetus he gave to public education in Argentina. It can be said of him that he is one of Argentina's greatest writers, and South America's greatest educator. Among his most important works are: _Facundo o Civilización y Barbarie_, _Recuerdos de Provincia_, _Ambas Américas_, and _Viajes en Europa, África y América_. His death in 1888 was mourned all over South America, and was felt as a distinct loss among intellectual circles the world over.

=Bunge= (=Carlos Octavio=) is a very modern Argentine writer. Among his works may be mentioned: _Nuestra América_, _Ensayo de Psicología Individual y Social_, _La Novela de la Sangre_, _La Poesía Popular Argentina_, and _Nuestra Patria_, an anthology for use in the Argentine schools, containing, besides extracts from other Argentine authors, many episodes written by Bunge himself. Of him, Blasco Ibáñez, in his _La Argentina y sus grandezas_, says: "_Carlos Octavio Bunge es el más fecundo de los escritores jóvenes. Tiene un talento proteico que se ejercita con facilidad en todos los géneros.... Ha escrito un cuento, =La Sirena=, de una originalidad sólo comparable a la de Poë, y que basta para la reputación de un autor_." Bunge died May 22, 1918.

=Gorriti= (=Manuela=), an Argentine writer of note, was born in Salta in 1819. She was married to General Manuel Isidro Belzú, one time president of Bolivia. Her life was full of misfortunes, but she never ceased to write. She displays in her writings unusual power of imagination. In 1865 her complete works appeared in Buenos Aires in two volumes, entitled _Sueños y Realidades_. In the later years of her life until 1874, the date of her death, she devoted herself to education, being directress of a college in Lima.

=Sastre= (=Marcos=), an Argentine educator and didactic author, was born in Montevideo in 1809. Among his more important works are _Anagnosia_, _Guía del Preceptor_, and specially, _El Temple Argentino_, a vivid and graphic description of the enchanting islands of the Paraná, their scenery, flora, and fauna.

=Gutiérrez= (=Juan María=) was born in Buenos Aires. He was a lawyer by profession, but is best known for his writings. Like Sarmiento, he fled to Chile to escape the tyranny of Rosas, and devoted himself to journalism, public education, and the publication of didactic works. In 1846 he was appointed director of the Naval Academy of Valparaíso, introducing during his term very important reforms. From 1845 to 1849 he edited a collection of poems by José Joaquín Olmedo, another collection, entitled _América Poética, El Arauco Domado_ by Pedro de Ona, and textbooks such as _El Lector Americano_, _La Vida de Franklin_, _Elementos de Geometría_. He returned to Argentina in 1852, after Rosas' defeat at the battle of Caseros, lending his efforts to the advancement of education, as he had done in Chile. He was appointed president of the University of Buenos Aires, and entirely revised its obsolete curriculum and faculty. In addition to being one of Argentina's foremost educators, he has the distinction of being her first literary critic of note. Among his works on literary criticism may be mentioned the following: _Artículos Críticos y Literarios_ (1860); _Estudios Biográficos y Críticos sobre Algunos Poetas Sur Americanos Anteriores al Siglo XIX_ (1865); _Apuntes Biográficos de Escritores, Oradores, y Hombres de Estado de la República Argentina_. His style is characterized by correctness and precision. In 1873 he was made president emeritus of the University of Buenos Aires. He died the following year.

=Lacasa= (=Pedro=) was born in Buenos Aires in 1810. Early in life he gave up his studies to devote himself to agriculture. When the revolution of 1839 broke out, he took part in it, and rose to the rank of colonel. In 1865 he took part in the war against Paraguay. He died in Jujuy in 1869. His son, Pedro Lacasa, published in 1870 a volume containing his poems, a biography of General Lavalle, and one of General Miguel Soler.

=Mitre= (=Bartolomé=) was born in Buenos Aires in 1821. In 1838, when hardly seventeen years old, he became known as a soldier and poet by taking part in the siege of Montevideo as a captain, and by publishing a collection of poems. In the second siege of Montevideo he rose to the rank of lieutenant-colonel. When the campaign in Uruguay was ended, he went first to Bolivia and then to Chile, where he was editor of _El Mercurio_. This was not his first experience in journalism, for he had already been the director of _La Nueva Era_ and _El Nacional_ in Montevideo, and _La Época_ in Bolivia. His articles in _El Mercurio_ were a bitter attack against the government, and he was forced to leave the country, living in Peru for a time. In 1852 he returned to Chile, but, hearing of the revolt against the tyrant Rosas, he hastened back to his native country, and took an active part in the battle of Caseros, being in command of the Uruguayan artillery. From that time dates the rise of his political power in Argentina. As we have seen, he was defeated at Cepeda (1859) in his fight against Urquiza, but in 1861, at Pavón, he led the force of Buenos Aire to victory, becoming president of Argentina from 1862 to 1868. The rapid strides Argentina has made in the last fifty years date from Mitre's presidency. He encouraged the construction of railroads, the establishment of telegraphic communication throughout the republic, and the founding of schools. During the war against Paraguay (1865-1870), which rendered difficult the carrying out of Mitre's beneficial plans to the fullest measure, he distinguished himself as the commander-in-chief of the allied armies, that is, those of Argentina, Brazil, and Uruguay. He was editor of _La Nación_, which shares with the famous _La Prensa_ the distinction of being the leading newspaper of South America.

When we consider the political and military events in Mitre's life, the quantity and quality of his literary work are really astonishing. We wonder where he found time to write his remarkable histories of San Martín and Belgrano (in nine octavo volumes), his various volumes of poems, his translations from Longfellow and Dante, and his extensive correspondence. As a poet and orator, he ranks among the first in Argentina; and, as an historian, he remains to this day the great fountain source to which all those who desire to know the history of Argentina must turn. He is perhaps the greatest man of letters Argentina has produced. As versatile as Sarmiento, though not so voluminous, he displays in general a juster appreciation of facts and a greater equipoise and a more even excellence in literary form.

=Goyena= (=Pedro=), an Argentine lawyer and publicist, was born in Buenos Aires in 1841. He was the editor of _La Revista Argentina_ and professor of Roman law at the University of Buenos Aires. His style, both as writer and orator, is known for its purity and brilliancy.

=Nelson= (=Ernesto=) is a man well known in Argentina in educational circles. He was born in Buenos Aires in 1875 and was educated there. He has spent ten years in this country studying educational movements. He was recently _Director General de Enseñanza Secundaria y Especial_ in Argentina. Among his publications are _Recopilaciones de Correspondencia de la Nación_, _Hacia la Universidad Futura_, and numerous articles. He represented his country at the St. Louis Exposition in 1904; took his doctor's degree at Columbia University, after four years of residence; and was a member of the Argentine Commission at the Panama-Pacific Exposition, San Francisco, in 1915, and a delegate to the Second Pan-American Scientific Congress in Washington in 1915-16. He has edited for use in this country a _Spanish-American Reader_, the first book of its kind, dealing, as it does, with all phases of South American life and customs.

=López= (=Lucio V.=), the son of Vicente Fidel López, is a contemporary Argentine political writer and critic. He was born in 1857, and was professor of political law in the University of Buenos Aires in 1890, when President Juárez Celmán was turned out of office. He was among the leaders of that movement. He enjoys a great reputation as a keen observer and writer on political events in Argentina.

=Blasco Ibáñez= (=Vicente=) was born in Valencia in 1867. He is one of the leaders among contemporary Spanish novelists. Prior to the recent war, he resided in Argentina, where he received a tract of land from the Argentine government as a compensation, in part, for his book, written at the request of the Argentine government, _La Argentina y sus grandezas_. At present (1919), he is in France, occupied in writing a history of the war. His book _Los Cuatro Jinetes del Apocalipsis_, published during the recent war, deals in the first part with life on the Pampas, in the last with the war. It is considered one of the best books brought out by the war in any language. Among his works, these are best known: _La Barraca_, _Cañas y Barro_, _La Horda_, _Sangre y Arena_, _Los Muertos Mandan_, and _El Intruso_. His works have been translated into practically every European language.

=Drago= (=Luis María=) is a contemporary Argentine jurist and writer on international affairs. He has given his name to the _Drago_ doctrine, a corollary to the Monroe doctrine. One of his earliest works, _Hombres de Presa_, a study on criminology, was translated into Italian by Lombroso, the famous Italian criminologist. In 1902 he was elected to the Argentine Congress, and shortly after he was appointed minister of foreign affairs by the then President of the Republic, Julio Roca. In December of that year he sent his famous note to the government of the United States, protesting against the use of force on the part of England, Germany, and Italy for the collection of debts the Venezuelan government had incurred with private subjects of those nations. He was the Argentine delegate to the Second Peace Conference, and is a member of the Permanent Court of Arbitration at The Hague. In 1912, Columbia University conferred upon him the degree of Doctor of Laws, _honoris causa_. That he is interested not only in legal matters is shown by his publication _La Literatura del =Slang=_.

ARGENTINA

LEGEND AND HISTORY

ARGENTINA

LEGEND AND HISTORY

HIMNO NACIONAL ARGENTINO

VICENTE LÓPEZ Y PLANES

_Coro_

Sean eternos los laureles que supimos conseguir: coronados de gloria vivamos o juremos con gloria morir.

I. Oíd mortales el grito sagrado: ¡Libertad! ¡Libertad! ¡Libertad! ¡Oíd el ruido de rotas cadenas!... Ved en trono a la noble Igualdad. Se levanta a la faz de la tierra una nueva y gloriosa Nación, coronada su sien de laureles y a sus plantas rendido un León.[1]