Daily Ohio statesman. [volume] (Columbus, Ohio) 1855-1870, 1868-10-22
Oblo Statesman,
FROM SPAIN.
Correspondence of the Ohio statesman.l
MADRID, October 1, 1868.

Correspondence of the Ohio Statesman.l
+ .ssz MADRID, October l, 1868.
+ Ayoung Spanish friend, who possesses
in an eminent degree the virtues of a
patriot-faitb, hope, and charity-told
me when we shook hands at the close of
the "glorious 2ath," as last Tuesday is
already called, that +" all he wished was
tn at the whole history of the revelation
might be>written on so stainless page
as the one that contained the first chap
ter" Certainly no popular movement
ever began under happier auspices
Madrid hasSbeen for above twenty-four,
now we may say forty-eight, hours in
the hands of mob, and no excess what
yer has been perpetrated, The people
here express their wonder at the fact,
and are inexhaustible in their praises of
nation which, even in the very act of
recovering its sovereignty, exhibits such
undeniable symptoms of self-control and
temper, and already lays such lofty
claims to high rank among civilized
communities. All this, however, simply
shows inexperience of the common phases
of all revolutions. Bologna, Brussels
and Warsaw in 1881, Palermo, Milan,
Berlin and Vienna in 1910, have pre-
cisely the same tales to tell as Madrid
in 1868. For the three first days every
"mob let loose" is sure to behave like a
host of angels, especially if such an in
cessant downpour as we had for two
DAYS keeps it within doors. In Mad
rid, as in other places, the placard at
every street corner, threatening death to
assassins, has been no idle threat, for
more than one pickpocket has been shot,
but with the exception of this rough and
ready justice the people of Madrid have
had for two days no other employment
than exultation at their own deliverance.
But the task of governing must begin
now; it must devolve upon somebody,
and therein lies the great difficulty of
the nation. Serrano and Prim are said
to be within ninety-two English miles of
the capital and are expected this morning.
One of them, at least, will assume the
supreme command, even if the other be
obliged to march against Calonope and
another. the former of whom is still at
the head of considerable force in the
North, while the latter is said to have
shut himself up in Montjuirh, an almost
impregnable fortress, from which he can
nonades Barcelona, and declares that he
will neither take nor give quarter. One
steady hand will be necessary to reor-
ganize the ordinary force in Madrid, and
to prevent from doing harm that extra
ordinary force, the City Militia or Ma
tional Guard, which here, as elsewhere,
is the inevitable offspring of revolu-
tion, and which it has always been
found so difficult to turn to any useful
purpose. When public security has
been restored upon some surer basis
than the self-esteem of populace and
the love of a man to man. room will be
made for the institution of civil govern
ment. The Central Junta was not
elected yesterday, as the Official Ga
eette had led US to expect, the drawing
up of the electoral lists in so short a
time having been found an impossibility.
Probably the election will be held to-
day; but, in the meanwhile, we could not
be in better hands than in those of the
Provisional Junta, and it is extremely
likely that the popular vote will have
no other result than the continuance in
Office of the same men. The real des-
TIMES of the country do not lie in the
hands of-the Madrid Junta, but they
can easily, and indeed must necessarily
be prepared by them. Those thirty
gentlemen who turned up in the hour Of
need and went to work rather by mutual
consent and understanding, than by pop,
ular acclamation, will have in theil
hands the safety or the ruin of the Pen
insula. Most of them are men of char
acter and acknowledged ability they
belong to three different sections of po-
litical opinion; they are O'Donnellists
or Unionists, Progressists, and Demo
Gratis.
They profess to have waived al
party considerations, and to be fused in
one great patriotic association, from
which no man, except he be one of Mar
vaez's Moderators,or one of Novalische'
New Catholics, need be excluded. This
amalgamation of principles, hitherto an
tagonistic, and even openly hostile, ma j
be very practicable in Spain, although
it may ba unintelligible elsewhere; fol
here hitherto the conflict was not one o
theoretic views, but simply of practica
conclusions. Up TO very recent time!
the problem was not who would bes
govern Spain, but who would make th'
best of the Queen and her minions, 81
as to constitute the least endurable mis-
government. O'Donnell was the las
man who made the experiment, in 1865
He broke down partly through his owl
want of temper, partly through thu
Courts treachery and intrigue. HI
himself struck the first blow towards the
arbitrary measures of Gonzalez Brave
What he proposed was "Liberal Un
ion" with the Queen. Now that the
Queen has become ''impossible," the
Liberal Union must be reorganized, GER
tainly without the Queen, and either
with another Sovereign or without one
The Progressists, especially those of thu
Esparto and Prim school, were anti-dy
nastic, without knowing, or perhap:
without avowing it; but then there Were
other Progressists-those who had faitf
in Sabastiano Olozaga, and the Demo
Gratis, who had in their hearts, and ever
in open words, broken with the dynasty
forever. As the scattered members o
IO'Donnell's party, Surano, Dulce, sc.