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The Secretary General may serve as a bridge between the two... ... ... If this proposal is accepted, ipso facto the following shall be appointed: Manoel Paulo Mereia, President; Count of Tovar, Vice-President; A. Botelho da Costa Veiga, Damião Peres, [ voting members]; Ruy de Azevedo, secretary". The appointment was immediately communicated to the illustrious academics. It should be noted that the Brazilian academics, who were equally enthusiastic about the celebrations, were always included throughout this entire process. On behalf of all, Pedro Calmon wrote on 3 December, "... within the same plan of work, the Brazilian academics shall decide on the collaboration with which they intend to honour the centennial celebrations". Moreover, relations with Brazil had been fostered since the inception of the re-founded Academy, and the objectives were reciprocal. An example of this is the Official Notice from the Brazilian government which, on 22 September, invited the President to take part in the ceremony commemorating the first centennial of the foundation of the Historical and Geographical Institute in Rio de Janeiro.
It may be said that in 1939 the Academy was cruising steadily. The academics met systematically, both in Council and in ordinary sessions. In the case of the former, there were 12 meetings, at which the progress of the publications to which the Academy had committed for the commemorations was always analysed. On 21 March, the Council approved the cover design for the respective publications. As for the 13 ordinary sessions, all of which were chaired by António Baião, and with Afonso de Dornelas as secretary, they are a prime illustration of the debate of ideas that has characterised the Academy's work since its inception. It would be extremely interesting to analyse the clashes between Ruy de Azevedo and Alfredo Pimenta, for example, which were evident at several of these meetings, however they are beyond the scope of this essay. In short, other aspects of the Academy's life have been portrayed, and all that matters now is to note the list of publications that was prepared and announced at the session on 15 November.
