Archivo Portuguez-Oriental VOL-5

He excelled as a scholar of the history of the Portuguese presence in India and as a champion of the Konkani language. However, he was not attracted to clinical practice and therefore chose an administrative career in the Civil Government of Évora, which he joined in 1837 as administrative officer of its secretariat. In October of that year he was appointed Professor of Rational and Moral Philosophy of the Liceu de Évora, where he could indulge his taste for the humanities and his love for books. In 1838 he was appointed by the government of Queen Maria II of Portugal as Director of the Public Library of Évora, the first director of the institution appointed by the state and the first layman to occupy the position. Over the more than 15 years of his service (1838–1855), he distinguished himself as a librarian and bibliophile, reorganized the library and published its catalogue