From his headquarters in Argentina, the future Marshal Rondon orders tons of goods for a mysterious destination.
- Telegram from General Rondon to Paulo Demoro, Brazilian consul in the city of Posadas, in the province of Missiones, Argentina.
- One page.
- 22 cm x 22.5 cm.
- In Portuguese and Spanish.
- Guarapuava (Paraná), April 15, 1925.
- Average state conservation, some finger marks, a fold in the middle.
- Single document.
(...) I need to purchase two thousand kilos of rice, two thousand kilos of sugar, five hundred kilos of lard, six hundred kilos of coffee, three thousand kilos of dried meat, six hundred kilos of onions, two thousand kilos of beans, three thousand kilos of flour, five hundred kilos of salt, two hundred kilos of soap, six hundred liters of vinegar... Five thousand kilos of alfalfa, one hundred thousand cigarettes, seven thousand boxes of matches and two thousand kilos of biscuits, and I will indicate the destination port in due course, but I ask you to tell me when I will be able to dispose of these supplies. Gal Rondon
Born in 1865, in the state of Mato Grosso, the man who would go down in history as a peacemaker and great defender of Brazilian Indians, began his military career at the age of sixteen, as a simple soldier. Cândido Rondon (1865-1958), however, did not owe his success to any military exploit. For half a century he brought to fruition in his country a revolution based on a single slogan: "Die if necessary, kill never! "
In 1890, after leaving the Military Academy where he taught as a mathematics professor, Rondon had embarked on the construction of a telegraph line, linking the east coast to the western border of Brazil. At the head of a handful of officers and soldiers entirely devoted to him, he managed to carry out his task of exploration and construction in the heart of the hostile jungle of Mato Grosso, in addition to having dealt with the Indians, until then the object of an almost systematic massacre, in a peaceful manner.
In 1910, thanks to the intervention of Rondon , the Brazilian government created the Indian protection service and entrusted it to his direction. Having indigenous blood in his veins himself, Rondon , a faithful disciple of Augusto Comte, swore to serve the cause of the Indians and also “to the cause of humanity wherever and whenever he could.” He kept his word.
Rondon , who recommended that the Indians gradually adapt to modern ways of life, sought above all to safeguard that without which "primitive" peoples often lost their zest for life: their traditions and their social and religious organization. He never intervened in disputes between rival tribes, except when asked to do so, knowing that to side with one or the other was to lose his trust.
Since 1919, Rondon worked in the cartography of Mato Grosso. During this time, he discovered rivers and made contact with certain indigenous tribes. He was appointed head of the engineering corps in Brazil and was assigned to the position of head of the Telegraph Commission.
Precisely in that 1925 telegram, Rondon orders large quantities of food - and lots of cigarettes and matches! - from Argentina, near the border with Brazil and Paraguay, without explaining the destination or the reason for this order.
Theodore Roosevelt, who participated with Rondon in the 1913-1914 scientific expedition, said: “he is a brave officer, a true gentleman, an intrepid explorer.”
In fact, Rondon was more than that. The services he set up in the central and northern regions of Brazil were designed to protect the Indians from hunger and poverty, exploitation by whites, and diseases brought by the arrival of "strangers". Almost 100 years ago, he was one of the first environmentalists in Brazil and the world.
This document shows Rondon's important work and legacy for Brazil. The signature is typographed: GAL RONDON.
