The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-11-21

administer the countryS affairs in that
they are going to manage all the work of
government in the collection Of revenues,
the protection of commerce and the
operation Of railroads. while the native Off
Gals are spending their days in taking sizes
tas on board the verandas Of the white
one-story adobe houses Of Tegucigalpa or
are gambling at monte in the shade of
cocoanut palms are smoking Havana
cigars and drinking champagne at some
snug plaza resort.
The dons and mesitos are satisfied. For
the dons have money now, and when they
nave nave It a few pennies find their way to
mescal. So all classes are apparently
happy over the doings of the yellow haired
AImterIcanos, with the exception probably,
Of the professional revouOionist who sees
the custom house, his one chance to make
a fortune quickly, gone into the hands of
the cool-blooded and cordially hated north
erner. There is, to his mind, after he
sees the changes, no way to retrieve the
loss, Tor he can only understand an argu-
ment or force that ends in murder; and
there Is too much determination in the
Dlue eye OF the Americana as it chances
along the barrel of Colts revolver. and
his hand is too steady to make such a
about.
PLENTY OF REVENUE.
Millions of dollars of income are re-
ceived annually by the republic for the
soil. Hundreds of thousands of dollars in
export and import taxes go to the govern
ment, and it is this gold that enables the
Americana to administer the government,
earn a profit for his employers and keep
the comic opera bouffe generals and Presi-
dents in pleasant state of exhiaration
with champagne and other luxuries
Inc man VINO conceived the idea of pur-
chasing the country, who organized the
EVn0lQatR w Aod In hi
endeavor after several years of clever
diplomatic work, is William S. Valentine of
the hrm OF brokers, w. s. Valentine & Co.,
whose offices are in the Produce Exchange
building. This gentleman made the offer
to the generals of the various political par
ties, Marcelio lie Paiz, Jose Garcia and
Arturo Morello, and they after a long con-
ference with prominent politicians accepted
It, as 1t seemed to be an easy fashion to
earn money. 1t meant that even the exer-
ton Of frightening the timid natives by
dlscharging gas pipe muskets at them and
pretending to fight a revolution, so that
the custom house might be seized and all
of the money accumulated there be con-
verified to other than governmental uses
would not be needed in the future.
Mr.. valentine has known of the rich re-
sources of the country and the natives lack
Of progress in developing them for years.
He saw that fortunes could be made by the
administration of affairs for the benefit of
the industries of the country instead of the
reYOlutiOniStS, and he had no difficulty in
securing the cooperation of other wealthy
men in forming syndicate These men are
Chauneey M. Depew, John Jacob Aston, w.
Seward Webb, Gen. Benjamin f. Tracy, j.
G. Mccullough, +. b. Jennings, eX-law part
ner of former President Grover Cleveland.
George S. Scott, N. A. Prentiss, Charles
of the Big Four Railroad. The combined
wealth of the members of the syndicate and
the capital represented is more than $780,
600 600. These are the men who have bought
the right to rule the luxurious land with its
brown mesito natives, half-breed Spaniards
and mongrels of all races, it's rich forests
where nr0niQ1l nature
coffee and sugar plantations that are
equaled on earth, and to work gold and sill
yer mines unopened since they were de-
serted by the Aztecs when Cortez con-
quered the then new country that included
all Of Central America and Mexico and
what is now that part of the United States
which is situated west of the Mississippi
river
BEHIND THE SCENES.
OF course there are to continue to be a
President and House of Congress in Hon
duras, but their actions and deliberations
are very likely, in the future to be more
or less like Gilbert & Sullivan opera
bouffe. Before a black-bearded and pirat-
zeal looking deputy can have measure of
Importance passed through the House he
must consult Mr. Depew, or the latter's
representative in Honduras. The Presi-
dent will not think of signing bill until
he hears from headquarters. The wheels
of the government are not to revolve with
out the consent of the syndicate. But the
natives do not worry. Patriotism, unless
there is money to be obtained through it,
IS an unknown quantity among them Hon
nothing that can be put off until Tomorrow
is ever done to-day.
These characteristics make the task of
the syndicate easy. The members have in
vestigated matters thoroughly, most of
them personally. and they know of these
characteristics. Mr.. Depew spent a winter
Honduras .I0hn IAc0h
Aston visited the country not long after.
Gen. Tracy and Mr.. Jennings are as fami-
great mountains, valleys, rivers. lakes and
riches as they are with this city. The
syndicates investment was based on this
knowledge.
The negotiations were begun by Mr. Val
entine in 1893. They were not allowed to
slumber until the contracts and concessions
virtually giving the control of the country
to the Americans were ratified last month
by the Honduras House Of Congress-
The concessions are remarkable in
their scope, even for Americans to secure.
The first provision is that the custom
houses in Porto CorteZ and in Tegucigalpa,
the capital, and all the public buildings, be
turned over to the representatives Of the
syndicate.
This same provision secures for the syndi-
cate the control of the Honduras Railroad
Company, for which some general in the
past obtained S25 000 600 to build He had
several miles of the road constructed and
had spent 81 900, coo when work was stopped
Just how he escaped Dedng hanged or shot
no one seems to know One explanation is
that after he and his associates had OBJ
tanned the money they found themselves
richer than the government and therefore
they were not interfered with. Concessions
for steamship lines along the Atlantic and
Pacific coasts and the exclusive right to
establish system of banks that are to
possess more than ordinary power were also
granted. The syndicate also secures no less
than five hundred thousand acres of the
best coffee and general plantation land in
the little republic. Judging from the mag
nitude of these gifts, the only reason why
the syndicate has not received greater con-
ceSSiOnS is because there are none to be
had. If there were the natives would glad
ly have granted them, providing the ex-
traordinary Americans would only leave
them to smoke in peace and idleness on
their verandas.
A BIG DEAL.
Just how much the syndicate paid for the
concessions is not ascertainable. The syn
dictate has agreed to undertake some very
heavy financial tasks, the first Of which is
TO pay to the government $500000 a year
for the customs privilege 1t is also to pay
the expenses of the government which
amount to about 100000 a year. Besides
supporting this majority of the natives by
paying this $1.5OO,0OO the syndicate binds
itself TO complete the railroad and to pass
the debt Of $4,000 900 contracted to build the