LATIN MIND OVER MATTER

Between the United States and South America lies a wider gulf than can be bridged merely by diplomatic "good neighbor" overtures. Long have we valued Latin imports and found their mines and plantations a profitable spot for investments. But our interest has progressed little beyond the clink of finance. Our schools and colleges have been too concerned with falling Romes and Virgin Queens to feed upon the rich historical and cultural life of our neighbors.

To Harvard has come Brazil's first appeal for intellectual friendship. Through its consul in Boston, it has offered to establish an institute for the study of Brazilian art, literature, music and Portugese. The professors and the library will be supplied from abroad, but the University will have complete control of administration.

In a petition signed by over three hundred undergraduates, Harvard has signified its eagerness to make America's "good neighbor" niceties more than diplomatic syrup. Harvard's curriculum cannot fill the demand. Its catalogue boasts only one half-course in Brazilian history, shared with Argentina and Chile, and one course in Portugese, given in alternate years and in old Portugese at that.

To ignore this first spark of interest would be damaging to Latin American relations so vital in an era of Nazi economic penetration. America's "hands across the seas" must be supplemented by American minds. By offering to establish an institute at Harvard, the Brazilian government is making a step, important not only in itself, but as a custom that may find favor with the rest of South America. It has wisely offered to bear most of the financial burden, leaving to Harvard the sole responsibility of providing a few rooms for the library and for lectures. The hand is extended, and by shaking it warmly Harvard will serve its undergraduate body, but even more striking, it will establish a precedent valuable to the whole of South America.