Every thing now appeared to proceed in quiet. The preparations for His Majesty's departure went on, and he resolved to take the opportunity of the assembling of the electors on the 21st of April, to choose the deputies to the Cortes, to submit to them the plan for the government of Brazil which he had laid down, in order to receive their sanction. These electors were assembled in the exchange, a handsome new building on the shore, and thither a great concourse of people had flocked, some purely from curiosity, some from a desire, imagining they had a right, to express their opinion on so important a subject. The result of that meeting was a deputation sent to the king, insisting on the adoption of the entire Spanish constitution. The decree of the assembly received the signature of the King. But the members of that assembly met again on the 22d, many of whom had no legal title to be present, and proceeded to propose to stop the ships prepared for the King's return to Portugal. Some went so far as to propose an examination of the vessels, in order to stop the exportation of the quantity of wealth known to be on board of them, and the meeting at length assumed so alarming an aspect, that His Majesty revoked his royal consent to the act passed on the 21st, and sent a body of soldiers to intimidate the assembly. Unhappily, an order proceeding from some quarter, never known or never acknowledged, caused the soldiers to fire into the exchange, where the unarmed and innocent electors, as well as the others who had crowded thither, it might be, with less pure motives, were assembled, but all were there on the faith of the royal invitation given through the judge of the district. About thirty persons were killed, many more were wounded: and the whole city was filled with an indescribable consternation. The sudden stop that was put to this strange, unwise and cruel attack, has always been attributed to the Prince Don Pedro, who, on this as on other occasions, has well merited the title of perpetual defender of Brazil. The attack itself, perhaps unjustly, was imputed to the Conde dos Arcos by some, to other individuals by others, according as passion or party directed the suspicion: the truth is, that it seems to have been the result of ill-understood orders, given hastily in a moment of alarm, for it is impossible to think, for an instant, that any man could wantonly have so cruelly irritated the people at the very time when so much depended on their tranquillity. This shocking event, however, seems to have quickened the King's resolution to leave Brazil. That very day he made over the government of that country to the Prince, with a council to be composed of The Conde dos Arcos, Prime Minister. Conda da Louça, Minister of Interior. Brigadier Caula, Minister of War. And in case of the prince's death, the regency to remain in the hands of the Princess Maria Leopoldina.