Show papal error that coat spain much territory king solomon offered to divide a small boy to whom two women laid dalm and won a great reputation for wisdom by so doing pope alex ander VI born borgia actually did divide the world and got no special credit for it even in his own day he was an abler administrator a more versatile politician a more far sighted statesman a greater patron of the arts and sciences and a much better friend to the common people than was the hebrew monarch and about all the good it did him vasco da gama had rounded the cape of good hope to give portugal a foothold in india columbus had sailed west to discover what might prove to be a new continent and he represented spain it was inevitable that there should be conflicting claims and perfectly natural that the rival rulers should turn to the pope as the umpire alexander did not find the lem difficult for the portuguese had been sailing southward along the west african coast and their claims were obviously to be preferred along the routes they followed the spaniards through their genoese agent had found land in the est what was easier than to draw a line from north to south on the map and let the broad atlan tic separate the new dominions of the rivals every one was happy it was seven years before the por discovered that brazil out so far to eastward that it crossed the popes line and that the holy father had given them far more than they had dreamed of they were to colonize and that Is bow brazil speaks portuguese to this day although every other larlu american land prefers spanish cleveland plain dealer |