Alejo Peyret

Alejo Peyret (in French Alexis Pierre Louis Edouard Peyret; December 11, 1826 - August 27, 1902) was a French-born Argentine writer, agronomist, colonial administrator, and historian. He was a prominent figure in the history of Entre Ríos Province.

Youth in France

Peyret was born in Serres Castet, Canton Morlaàs, in the department of Basses-Pyrénées, today Pyrénées-Atlantiques, [Iglesia de Jesucristo de los Santos de los Últimos Días, film nº1813365.] , the son of Alexis Agustin Peyret and Cecile Angelique Vignancour. He entered the Royal College of Pau at the age of ten. In 1844, at the age of eighteen, he earned a bachelor's degree in science and letters. He avoided compulsory military service by hiring a paid substitute to serve in his place [The law of September 5 1798 establishing compulsory military service was reformed in 1802. Military substitution was permitted until 1855.] . He went on to study law at the Collège de France, where his professors included the philosopher Edgar Quinet and the historian Jules Michelet. He became involved with political radicalism, writing editorials in support of republicanism, democracy, anticlericalism, and socialism, and of the Revolutions of 1848 in particular. He was tried for his activities, but acquitted of wrongdoing [Alexis Peyret, de Serres Castet à Buenos Aires, Centre Social Alexis Peyret, Orthez, France, Ed. Gascogne, 2002, p. 21.] .

In the 1852 election, Peyret stood as a candidate for the Department of Basses-Pyrénées. Following the electoral landslide of the Bonapartists and the establishment of the Second Empire under Napoleon III, Peyret left the country [APAPP, Copybook, p. 13. Alejo Peyret to his cousin Louis Casamajor Salenave, Colón, June 21 1871:"I would rather leave France than see her humiliated, debased, disgraced".]

Arrival in Argentina

Peyret arrived in Montevideo on November 4, 1852. Here, he wrote for "El Comercio del Plata", a periodical edited by José María Cantilo. Alberto Larroque, president of the College of Uruguay (in Concepción del Uruguay) offered him a professorship [MHRSJ,AAP, Notes 1881, 1891, 1892, Buenos Aires, 16 diciembre 1891, sin nº de pp.] . The minister of Justice, Worship, and Public Instruction, Juan María Gutiérrez, designated him head of the French and Geography departments beginning June 5, 1855 [Parliamentary Archive, National Senate of Argentina, Expte. jubilatorio P-1563 - 98, fjs. 4; also in the National Registry of the Argentine Republic, 1853-1857, decree 183 of July 11, 1855.] . He remained in this position until September 4, 1856 [Ibid. pp. 1563 - 98] . He served as an editor of the biweekly "El Uruguay" under the direction of Benjamín Victorica [General Archive of the Nation (abbrev. AGN), Victorica Archive, volume 3129, #323.] . He spearheaded the creation of "La Cosmopolita" Society of Mutual Aid [Revista Voces Entrerrianas, Buenos Aires, June 1969, publication of the Asociación Entrerriana of General Urquiza, directed by Domingo Canale.] on August 31, 1856 in Concepción del Uruguay. In September of that year, Peyret relocated to Paraná to assume control of "El Nacional Argentino", an organization in support of the Confederation. He remained in Paraná until July 1857 "except for one month's interruption (May - June) which I spent in Uruguay [Concepción del Uruguay] to see Euristela" [MHRSJ, AAP, Notes, 1891- 1892, December 16 1892] . "Euristela" is a reference to Josefa Auristela Caraballo, with whom Peyret had his first two sons, Nieves Emilia and Luis Alejo.

Colonialism and agriculture

On July 11, 1857, he was appointed administrator and director of San José Colony by President Justo José de Urquiza [Manuel Machi, "Urquiza colonizador", Buenos Aires, 1949, p. 56.] . In fulfillment of his instructions, he published a series of articles in "El Uruguay" during April, May, and June 1860 in which he called upon the colonists to be hardworking, "whatever may be their religious opinions or the beliefs to which they subscribe" [Beatriz Bosch, Alejo Peyret, Administrador de la Colonia San José, Buenos Aires, National Academy of History, offprint of the Third Congress of Argentine and Regional History, Santa Fe - Paraná, 1977, p. 60.] . The notes were translated into French and collected in a pamphlet entitled "Emigration et Colonisation: La Colonie San José" ["Emigration et Colonisation: La Colonie San José", Concepción del Uruguay, Imprimerie du Journal L’Uruguay, 1860, 60 pp.] .

Under his direction, the colony began cultivating peanuts, potatoes, sweet potatoes, beans, onions, sugar beets, maize, and tobacco. Peyret also introduced superior techniques for growing wheat and he lobbied Urquiza for new land on which to establish an experimental station for growing cotton. He experimented with caper spurge and the adaptability of silkworms to the local climate. He built a factory for the manufacture of peanut oil. For his work with potato farming, he received an honorable mention [Bulletin, Official Publication, Vol. 3, p. 405.] at the National Exposition of Córdoba [Bulletin, Official Publication, Vol. 1, Buenos Aires., 1869, pp. 62 and 74.] held between October 15 and January 21 1872. On January 3 he sent the chief commissioner of the Exposition a report on the state of Colonia San José and Villa de Colón and the prospect of future colonization of Entre Ríos Province [Alejo Peyret, "Consideraciones sobre la colonia, Villa Colón y la provincia de Entre Ríos" in the official bulletin of the National Exposition of Córdoba of 1871, Vol. 7, Buenos Aires, 1873, pp. 269 -308; available by request at El Porvenir Library in Concepción del Uruguay.] .

Over the course of thirteen years Peyret served as administrator, director, justice of the peace, commissioner, president of the municipality of San José and officer of the first civil registry, which was created in 1873 in Colón to settle disputes between brides belonging to different religions [Godofredo Daireaux, et al, "Alejo Peyret, 1826-1902", Buenos Aires, 1902, p.16.] . Beginning in 1865 he was a member of the Public Works Commission of Colón, whose function was to oversee the construction of the church, collecting funds and reporting to the government on their investment [Report presented by the General Ministry to the Legislative Chamber of the Province of Entre Ríos, Concepción del Uruguay, Imprenta de El Uruguay, 1868, Anexo F, Acuerdo, pp. 49-50.] . Peyret resigned from the commission on December 31, 1872 [Recopilación de Leyes... cit, 1872, p. 663] . When President Domingo Faustino Sarmiento made a visit to Colón and San José on February 6 1870, it fell to Peyret, as chief of the "party committee", to arrange the official welcome [Oscar F. Urquiza Almandoz, History of Concepción del Uruguay, Santa Fe, Ed. de Entre Ríos, 2002, Book II, p. 346.] .

Peyret was married on July 7, 1866 to María Celerina Pinget, born in Vinzier, Haute-Savoie, the daughter of Gabriel Pinget and Luisa Viollaz [Parish of San José, Book I. vol. 47.] .

Freemasonry

Initiated into Freemasonry in France, Peyret became an active member of George Washington Lodge #44 in Concepción del Uruguay [Alcibiades Lappas, "La masonería argentina a través de sus hombres", Buenos Aires, Offset Difo S.H., Third Ed., 2000, p. 343.] , which he joined in 1864 [Id., "La logia masónica Jorge Washington de Concepción del Uruguay", in the Revista de Historia Entrerriana, Buenos Aires, 1969, #4 - 5, p. 366.] . In 1868 he received the third degree and became a master mason [Ibid., p. 368.] . He served two consecutive terms as Orator, from 1877 to 1878 and 1878 to 1879. On October 25 he inaugurated the public conferences of the lodge [Discursos: Alejo Peyret, Buenos Aires, 1907, pp. 373-385.] . In Buenos Aires he had already assisted, on January 16 1887, in inaugurating the Lodge L'Amie des Naufrages, and had been named an honorary member [MHRSJ., AAP., Notes quotidiennes, avril 1884- mars 1887] .

Political activism

In August 1871 he drafted [Letter to his brother Emile, August 14 1871 in APAPP, Copybook, p. 220.] a plan for a Constitution for the French Republic, dedicated to president Louis-Adolphe Thiers and with a preface founded in his juridico-political theory [Ibid., p. 45.] . The preface was later published in "La República" in November 1871 [MHRSJ., AAP., notebook 7, pp. 82-85.] .

Beginning on June 9 1873, he sent a series of unsigned letters to the Buenos Aires daily "La República" in which he denounced the assassination of Urquiza on April 11 1870, and condemned the federal intervention against the Province of Entre Ríos, arguing that it violated the principles of federalism and provincial autonomy. He declared that Ricardo López Jordán had embodied the hopes of the people of Entre Ríos, at the same time maintaining that the true aim of the armed intervention ordered by Domingo F. Sarmiento [Law #587 passed May 21 1873 approved the decree of executive power in declaring an intervention against the Province of Entre Ríos (2nd Jordanist Rebellion). Cf. The Legislative Power of the Argentine Nation, Historical Institute of the Argentine Parliament, Buenos Aires, Book VIII, 1996, p. 771.] had been to assure the success of the presidential candidacy of Nicolás Avellaneda. He argued that although Dr. Leónidas Echagüe could not have remained in control of the government of Entre Ríos, Ricardo López Jordán should not have replaced him so soon after Urquiza's violent death [As well as against Urquiza, the criticism had been leveled at Sarmiento in no uncertain terms. Cf.: M. Macchi, Formation and Development of an Argentine colony, Paraná, official imprint of the Province of Entre Ríos, 1977, p. 15.] . Peyret used this argument in response to accusations of crypto-Jordanism [He said of the uprising: "This damn rebellion has done a lot of damage. Many refugees remain in Montevideo and Brazil." PSJ., Archive, box 13, folder 109. Cf.: Letter from Rodolfo Siegrist to José Balestrin, in which he transcribes one by Alejo Peyret, December 4, 1874.] .

As only six of the fifteen letters sent were published, Peyret collected them into "Letters on the Intervention against the Province of Entre Ríos", which he published under the pseudonym "A foreigner" [Buenos Aires, 1873, 105 pp. The copy may be found in the Alberto Larroque Library, at the National College of Uruguay, Concepción del Uruguay.] . The author's identity did not stay secret to his contemporaries, and this error in judgment cost him the job of administrator of San José and forced him to leave the province where he had spent eighteen years [G. Daireaux, in "Introducción": Cf. A. Peyret, "The Evolution of ..." , p.19.] . In a letter to Benjamín Victorica written in Buenos Aires on March 3 1874, he wrote "...It would have been better not to concern myself with politics. I don't know how I forgot the advice of Mr. Pedro de Angelis. I gave in to a moment of irritation and impatience, seeing that we had been thrown into yet another war which was to last an entire year. I am always at your service and believe you will remain always at mine, despite my recklessness" [AGN., Victorica Archive, volume. 3149.] . In March 1874 he resigned his position as head of the colony and was replaced temporarily by Rodolfo Siegrist until April 30 [PSJ., Archive, cabinet 106, folder 403.] ; in June, in Buenos Aires, Dolores Costa de Urquiza designated him the agent in charge of selecting and transporting colonists to the colony of Caseros [Idem, cabinet 57, folder 463, letter of July 27 1874.] .

Academic and literary career

Peyret published "Bearnese Stories" in Concepción del Uruguay in 1870. The work was translated into French and Occitan in Paris in 1890 [A. Peyret, "Countes Biarnés", Paris, Ed. Félix Lajouane, 1890.] . He did as much as he could to preserve the language of his native region [The language of Béarn is a dialect of Gascon which is, like Provençal, a variety of Occitan. Cf: Dominique Bidot, et al, "Histoire de Béarn", Denguin, France, 1992, p. 87] and his "Bearnese Stories" won the praise of Pierre-Jean de Béranger [The College of History, 45th Anniversary, First Edition, 1894, pp. 27-29.] .

On July 13 1874 he was nominated by Dr. Vicente Fidel López, president of the University of Buenos Aires, to occupy the vacant chief professorship of the French department, in the Faculty of Humanities and Philosophy [University of Buenos Aires, Historical Archive, files.] ; dean Andrés Lamas expressed his agreement and communicated with Peyret [Idem, cabinet 54-1-46.] . On April 13 1876, Peyret sent his resignation from Concepción del Uruguay. On March 31 1876 he was named professor of world history for all six grades of the National College of Uruguay, and was subsequently appointed - in 1879 - to teach a special course on the history of free universities. He continued at the college until August 17 1883, when he resigned in order to relocate to Buenos Aires [Parliamentary Archive, National Senate, Expte. jubilatorio P-1563-98, p. 10. ] .

The George Washington Lodge agreed in 1877 - at Peyret's proposal - to form a commission headed by Peyret to study "the situation afflicting numerous students who cannot pursue their studies due to lack of resources". This led to the establishment of the educational society La Fraternidad, which sought to protect and provide housing for students of the College of Urugay [A. Lappas, "La logia masónica Jorge Washington" ... p. 378.] . On August 23 1880, he was named president of the provisional directive commission of the French Mutual Aid Society of Concepción del Uruguay and in 1882 was named its honorary president [Oscar F. Urquiza ALmandoz, "History of Concepción del ..." Vol. III, p. 249.] . The Office of Territories and Colonies commissioned him in 1881 to make a study of the possibilities of the territory of Misiones, a study which inspired him to write thirty letters published in the daily "La Tribuna Nacional" under the title "Letters on Misiones" [Imprint of La Tribuna Nacional, Buenos Aires, 1881.] .

A decree signed by president Julio Argentino Roca on August 18 1883 authorized Peyret, having relocated to Buenos Aires, to teach the history of the free universities at the National College of Buenos Aires. He served this role until February 11 1887 [Archivo Parlamentario, Senado de la Nación, Expte. jubilatorio P-1563/98, set 17] . He wrote "Contemporary History" [Buenos Aires, Félix Lajouane, 1885.] , a textbook which would be used in normal schools and national colleges. In 1885 his book "The Origins of Christianity" was serialized in the "Buenos Aires University Review", and the following year his work "The American Thinker" was published. At the same time he published "History of Religions", which comprised a history and philosophical critique of prehistoric and historical religions and of Christianity. Another work on the subject was "The Evolution of Christianity".

Colonial administration

He was named Inspector of Colonies by a decree of president Miguel Juárez Celman on February 12 1887 [National Registry, 1887, p.131.] . As a consequence of this role, he wrote "A visit to the colonies of the Argentine Republic" [Buenos Aires, 1889, with an introduction by Andrés Lamas.] , written in Spanish in two volumes and submitted by the government to the Exposition Universelle in Paris. It was simultaneously published in French as "Une visite aux colonies de la République Argentine" [Paris, 1889.] .

On May 10 1889, the national government commissioned Peyret to study the agricultural machinery displayed at the Exposition. He received six thousand pesos to cover his expenses and was to present a descriptive report before the end of the Exposition [National Registry, 1889, Volume XII, p.109, decree of May 10 1889.] . His report was titled "The Agricultural Machines at the Universal Exposition of Paris."

He left for France on June 5 1889 aboard the "Río Negro" with his wife Celerina Pinget and daughter Alfonsina. Thirty-seven years had passed since his self-imposed exile to Argentina. The International Socialist Congress met in Paris between July 14 and 21, during which it established the Second International. Peyret reported his activities during these days in a letter addressed to the governor of Entre Ríos, Clemente Basavilbaso, published on July 28 in a Paraná daily. According to his letter, he spent only the 20th at the Socialist Congress, whose sessions lasted the entire day. He left a more detailed account in his personal diary: on July 20, Saturday, he went to the congress, at the salon de Folies Parisiennes on the Boulevard Rochechouart. "I was announced as a delegate from the Argentine Republic, there was applause, but at that very moment I was leaving the room." The day's speaker was a member of the House of Commons, who spoke on the eight-hour workday [Notes de voyage en Europe 1889-1891, part 79. There is no evidence to suggest that Peyret had gone to the Congress on the behalf of any socialist organization in Argentina. His attendance was evidently due to his personal interest.] On behalf of the Italian republicans of Buenos Aires, Peyret delivered a plaque commemorating the French Revolution to the Paris city council ["Diario de Paraná", Peyret to the Governor of Entre Ríos Clemente Basavilbaso, November 8 1889.] .

On April 1 1892 he recorded: "I would have liked to have had the money I spent without reason in Concepción del Uruguay and Colonia San José. Had I put that money in a bank, I would be able to live off those savings. And my father: what he spent in Serres Castet! When I came to France the current owner of the property proposed to sell it to me, and I told him that no, he had taken me for a millionaire" [MHRSJ, AAP, Notes quotidiennes, 1892, vol. 215. Peyret refers to the house of his birth in Serres Castet, which had come to be owned by the De Stampa family.] .

Peyret was named the representative of the Province of Entre Ríos to the 1st Provincial Agricultural Congress held in Esperanza, Santa Fe from May 24 to June 2 1892 [Manuel Cervera, Historical outline of Argentine colonization and the foundation of Esperanza, Buenos Aires, 1906, p. 81] . He was commissioned on June 1892 to write the history of Argentine colonization and was for a year granted a monthly salary of $500 "including his salary as Inspector of Colonies" [National Registry, 1892, pp. 719-720] . In 1898 he decided that he had collected the necessary research to write the history and had begun the work, "to be completed when my health permits" [Parliamentary Archive, National Senate, Expte. jubilatorio P- 1563-98, set 1] . He served as Inspector General of Colonies from early 1895 until January 16 1900, when he retired [Ibid., set 17] .

Retirement and death

On June 13 1893, he was unanimously elected the first president of the French Alliance of Buenos Aires, whose committee met at the French Club ["La Nación", Buenos Aires, Wednesday, June 14 1893. ] . On December 13 1885, in the presence of the federal judge Juan del Campillo, he swore the oath of citizenship on the Constitution [Parliamentary Archive, National Senate, Expte. jubilatorio P- 1563-98, certificado nº 265. ] . He requested retirement benefits on October 14 1889, on the justification of his advanced age and poor health, naturalized Argentine citizenship, and physical infirmity after thirty-one years of service. President Julio Argentino Roca granted his request with a decree signed on February 19 1900 [Ibid., 19-20.] .

In his final year of life, he recorded his agronomic reminiscences in an article, "Colonia San José - How it was Founded", written in October 1901 and published in the review "Urquiza" [Número Único, 1801-1901, 1st Centenary of the Birth of Urquiza, Buenos Aires, 1901. Available on request at the Martiniano Leguizamón Museum, Paraná.] . He died at his home at 176 General Urquiza Street in Buenos Aires on August 27 1902, of chronic myocarditis [Civil Registry Archive, Buenos Aires, Book of the deceased, Section 5, draft of 1685.] . His internment in the Western Cemetery was attended by Julio Argentino Roca, his aide-de-camp Colonel David Marambio Catán, and a large audience.

The Masonic Review, an independent organ of international freemasonry, published "In memoriam, the Illustrious and Honorable Dr. Alejo Peyret: this Republic and more immediately Argentine freemasonry have lost one of their greatest thinkers, an indefatigable apostle of liberalism. By special decree, the Argentine Orient elects the Powerful and Honorable Francisco F. Fernandez to speak in the name of national freemasonry. The name of the Honorable Peyret is engraved in the memory of those he has taught to cultivate knowledge and love justice and truth" [Archive of the Grand Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons, Masonic Review, founded and directed by Salvador Ingegnieros, year IX, July - August 1902, #13-16, p. 105.] .

At the request of his heirs, Peyret's ashes were moved to the cemetery of San José on November 26 1995 [C. Vernaz, "Alejo Peyret, Administrator of the Colony of San José", Concepción del Uruguay, 2002, p. 47.] . The only items in his will were a plot of land in San José and a fraction of the homestead zone at the same colony [ATC, 1938, "Sucesorios", volume 14.466.] .

References