Extensive article in the magazine "Wieści z Polski", treating of new settlements in Brazil. It recalls the history of emigration to Brazil, describes extensively the work of the Colonisation Society and the issue of creating the most important settlements of Polish provenance. The text is accompanied by illustrations and photographs of, among others, Polish families (Source: "Wieści z Polski", Warsaw 1930, R: 3, no. 6, pp. 173-179, after: Jagiellonian Digital Library).

A modernised reading of the text

Recent Polish settlements in Brazil.

The most serious and dangerous deficiency of our emigration is the dispersion of Polish emigrants all over the world - there is hardly a country on the globe where our compatriots cannot be found! And no wonder - during the long years of slavery, it was not only economic reasons that drove Poles to seek better living conditions outside their own country - they were also driven out into the distant world by political persecution, to mention only our uprisings, and religious persecution, to mention only the so-called Kulturkampf in the Prussian partition and the conversion of Uniates to Orthodoxy in the Russian partition.

So Poles fled their own country, most often unprepared, without a programme, without a plan - they went wherever their eyes would take them. Although the partitioning governments were generally opposed to emigration and did not issue passports, they did not prevent it, and were even willing to see the bravest Polish element leave the country.

The Pole, known for his honesty, diligence and modest demands, was welcomed in countries where, with strong industrial development, there was a shortage of manpower, or where the population was small, and where, with frantic work and incalculable effort, new areas had to be gained in the virgin forest for civilisation - the abolition of slavery in these countries further increased the demand.

Therefore, throughout the Polish territory, regardless of the partition, agents of German shipping lines, paid solicitors of various overseas countries, were prowling with impunity, telling tales of easy wealth without work, of comfortable travel conditions, facilitating passage across the green border without documents, exploiting and robbing the stupefied poor.

It also happened that unauthorised Polish activists, not necessarily dishonest, but reckless and inexperienced, added to the chaos and fever of the exodus by going along with criminal agents and solicitors. A glaring example of this is described by Mr Kazimierz Głuchowski in his work "Wśród pionierów polskich na antpodach 11." (Published by the Scientific Institute of Emigration 1927) On page 24 we read:

"The latest Brazilian fever (years 1910 to 1912, editor's note), which covered the Polish lands, is coming. This time, it is started by the Brazilian government with the help of Poles, in Chełmszczyzna, siedleckie, and lubelskie. The Polish people are once again moving overseas... The influx of colonists is too great. The administration is unprepared, the plots are unmeasured, the barracks are shabby, so children in particular, as well as adults, populate the cemetery of the now almost completely depopulated "1st Sede", the Cruz Machado estate". .

The World War interrupted mass emigration temporarily, but the resurrected homeland already found nearly a quarter of its sons scattered in all countries of the world. In the first years of the creation of the Polish state, neither the Polish people nor the government, occupied with establishing the borders, organising the country's internal affairs, rebuilding workplaces destroyed by the war, finally repelling the Bolshevik invasion and repatriating hundreds of thousands of Polish families displaced deep into Russia during the world war, had the opportunity to think about and care for the fate of Polish emigrants. Unfortunately, each year brought new losses, both for the Polish nation and the state.

Not to mention the masses of Poles living individually or in small groups in various parts of the world, who, in a foreign environment and culture, lost all connection with their homeland and perished for the Polish nation. Even in those countries where the number of Polish exiles was very high, only some of them were able to stay together and preserve the language, customs and traditions of their homeland, while the rest, scattered here among strangers over vast areas, were forced to become transnationals and lost for Poland.

Unfortunately, with few exceptions, this renationalisation also entailed a moral decline, since experience shows that a person in a foreign environment, who does not know the language and does not have the support of his own people, takes on most of all the negative traits of his environment. Therefore, as soon as the possibility of a planned exodus arose, the only thought of the Polish Government and society was to salvage what could still be salvaged for the Polish nation and state! A momentous task, but a very difficult one.

The Polish state, hitherto having no colonies of its own, and being forced to direct its surplus population to foreign countries and under foreign rule, cannot even dream of concentrating in one country the Polish exiles scattered singly or in small groups in various countries - these, unfortunately, must be regarded as almost lost for the Polish nation.

On the other hand, the whole effort of the Polish state and society should go in two directions: 1) to prevent the further dispersion of exiles who are now leaving the country and who are for the most part farmers, by creating large, compact agricultural settlements in countries where there are already large numbers of Poles, or even in countries which are new to Polish exiles; and 2) in countries where a considerable part of Polish exiles already live in compact settlements, to create new ones and to concentrate in them individual or small groups of exiles scattered throughout the country.

In this way, existing larger settlements can be interconnected through the appropriate selection of sites. Here a great deal can still be salvaged, as, in spite of their acclimatisation to their new environment, their indifference, and even their almost hostile and critical attitude to Poland, there is still in these people a spontaneous love of their homeland, which any spark will reignite. During my visit to Paraná last year, I met a Pole, Mr K., in one of the more remote municipalities from Polish circles; he is an elderly man, long established in Paraná, married to a Brazilian woman; Portuguese is spoken at home; he has reached prosperity, owns the best inn and is a member of the municipal council; for many years, he was almost the only Pole in the town; at present, several Polish families have settled in the town and its vicinity and Mr K. gathers them around him.

The conversation naturally turned to Poland. Mr. K. is very disgusted with Poland - he lost out on a loan, it is not worth returning to Poland, because it is poor and dictatorial - he is used to freedom here, and supposedly you cannot even move freely there - after all, he has nothing from Poland, so why should he love it. I tried to correct his notion, to no avail it seemed, and that was the end of that day's conversation. The next day in the evening we returned to the conversation we had started. Mr K. was less bitter now, and listened more indulgently and sympathetically to my arguments, until he suddenly exclaimed with a laugh: "And yet I would like to die in Poland"! - and tears came to his eyes.

I would like to share with the readers of "Wieści" some other impressions from my stay in Brazil, namely to tell them about the work that is already going on there, in the two directions indicated above, and which is aimed at bringing together the individually dispersed refugees, uniting the larger Polish centres and planning the creation of new, serious Polish settlements. The initiative in this important matter was taken even before the rebirth of the Polish state, during the war, by the missionary Father Jan Kominek, pastor of the Polish parish of Itayopolis, formerly Luceny, in the state of Santa Catharina.

The Lucena colony, one of the former Polish colonies, comprising about 1,200 families in a compact mass, originally belonged to Parana. As a result of long and sometimes bloody border disputes between the states of Parana and Santa Catharina, the Lucena colony, with a significant area of land to the north, up to the Rio Negro and Rio Igussu rivers, left for the state of Santa Catharina, where it is the only major Polish centre.

Population conditions in Santa Catharina are different from those in Paraná - Poles, who in Paraná make up more than 16% and together with the Russians more than 20% of the total population, in Santa Catharina represent only less than 3%. The state of Santa Catharina is populated mostly by Germans, and the colony of Lucena was in serious danger of being completely cut off from the Polish community in Paraná, to which all efforts of the Germans were directed. Fr. Jan Kominek opposed these efforts, taking advantage of the considerable decline in German influence during the World War. He had already begun his action then and is still carrying it out.

Thanks to Fr Kominek's energy, outstanding organisational and propaganda skills and indefatigable work, as well as the trust placed in him by the local owners of large estates, it was possible to avert the imminent danger of Lucena being cut off from Polish centres.

Even today, through the villages of São Thomás, Queimados, Colonia Viciva, Rio dos Pavões, Pulados, Rio Novo and Vallões on the Santa Catharina side, Itayopolis is connected to the large Polish settlements on the Parana side: Antonio Olintho, Águia Branca, São Matheus, Rio Claro.

Naturally, there can as yet be no question of a dense Polish population in this area - without money, this cannot be achieved quickly - but Fr Kominek does not stop working. The number of Polish settlements in the area is increasing year by year, and one can confidently predict that in time the entire space separating Itayopolis from the settlements in Paraná will become a purely Polish possession. The untiring and ideological work of Fr Kominek deserves the warmest support of Polish society and the government.

Fr Kominek also has great merits as a missionary - he reached one of the most warlike Indian tribes, the Botokud, the terror of the whole area. He converted them to Christianity and made them the best friends of the Poles. All previous attempts by other missionaries had been unsuccessful.

The second major step in the same direction was the founding of the new Polish settlement of Amolafaca in the municipium of Guarapuava. The colony, officially called Colonia Coronel Queivoz, was established on the initiative of the first Polish consul in Curitiba, Kazimierz Głuchowski. Two objectives were combined here:
1. to group together individually scattered Polish colonists from the three southern states of Brazil.
2. to open the way to new settlement areas in western Paraná.

The Municipium of Guarapuava - the largest in Paraná, covering about 54,000 km² - presented all the characteristics of an excellent settlement area: fertile soil, healthy climate, vast space, very low population (less than 1 inhabitant per km²). In the north it was possible to grow coffee, sugar cane and cotton, in the south cereals and temperate zone grasses. The only disadvantage was the lack of railways and a very limited network of vehicular and motorised roads.

For this reason, the region was neglected and little known. Only the bravest Polish pioneers ventured here alone or in small groups. The beginnings were difficult. In 1921, on the basis of a contract, the owner of the Amolafaca fazenda, Mr Queivoz, gave the property to Wladyslaw Radecki for parceling out for five years. However, the promised funds from Polish capitalists in Curitiba completely failed. The situation was rescued by a wealthy Pole from Guarapuava, Mr Kaminski, borrowing 10,000 milreis with the guarantee of Consul Gluchowski.

Colonisation in the first two years went well. Dozens of plots of land were sold, partly for cash. After a year, the loan could be returned. However, in 1923/24, due to false rumours of an alleged Indian attack and murder of colonists, and because of the Paraná revolution, the flow of settlers stopped. Funds ran out.

The consulate maintained the administration of the colony on its own for a while, but eventually Consul Gluchowski instructed Radecki to sell plots of land to non-Poles as well. Radecki refused, and the crisis was survived by extraordinary efforts. On 1 January 1927, the parceling out of 6600 alqueires was happily completed. The whole was divided among 204 Polish colonists, and more families joined later. Settlements ranging from 15 to 375 hectares were created, and the original price - 55-105 milreis per alqueire - has today risen to 450-500 milreis.

The development of Amolafac has been astonishing.
The population of the colony is around 1,300 and growing rapidly. Families are numerous (Owsiany - 18 children, Chabowski - 14, Bugaj - 11). The health rate is excellent: in 1928 there were only 10 deaths out of 83 births.

The colony has a church (albeit without a permanent priest), three schools built jointly at a cost of over 30,000 milreis, an educational and agricultural society, experimental fields and a steam sawmill. The economy is thriving: excellent yields of wheat, oats, alfalfa, maize and cassava.

Amolafac's successes determined the further Polish colonisation of Parana. The Warsaw Colonisation Society began the campaign by purchasing land in the municipium of Guarapuava, 15-20 km from Amolafaca. The total area is about 80,000 hectares, with the possibility of expansion. The land is, according to the local Poles, even better than Amolafaca - the further west, the more fertile the land.

The new settlement has been given the name: Presidente Affonso Camargo Industrial

Aim:
- to settle new farming families from Poland on plots of 25-50 hectares,
- to bring together dispersed Poles from the three southern states of Brazil,
- to create several urban centres: industrial and commercial.

The Society has already begun surveying, marking out plots of land, building roads, barracks, warehouses, and clearing half-hectare plots for houses and the first sowings, so that the first batch of settlers from Poland can set out as early as September this year.