Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1900-08-07
SPANISH MISREPRESENTATION.
Little Progress Made in National Adj
min tratiye Reform.

Madrid Correspondence London Times.
The last sittlugs of the cortes before adj
JnIrniug for the Christmas recess have
ended IN the triumph Of the national pol
ICY of mana na-the policy of never doing
today what can possibly be deferred until
tomorrow. To the evident relief OF all
concerned. IF the ministerial party we'll
of the opposition. the great work of
national regeneration. with all the painful
operations that it involves, has again been
indefinitely postponed. and Spain will enter
upon the new year still decided upon re-
form. but not vet decided upon the sacri-
tiCes It Will make to obtain it.
The result Of nearly years work Is
uledger, but, rneager as II is. even that re-
suit would hardly have been reached had 1t
not been fpr the logged perseverance of
the author 1T the budget, Senior Nillaverde
himself Whatever may be the wishes of
his Colleagues in The ministry. he at any
rate has proved himself sincere in his de-
termination To carry his measures through
intact. and 1t is chiefly owing to his energy
that the budget has Travelled as far as it
has done. II was hardly his fault that the
government put the cart before the horse
and made It's progress almost impossible
The country asked to make certain
sacrifices and was promised. in return,
ration Not unuaturally. II wished to
see some evidence of the latter before 1t
consented To make the sacrifices which
" ere required of it. but that evidence has
uOi been forthcoming.
Instead Of giving some earnest of future
economy ami reform in aduhniStra ton. the
government has chosen to postpone both
questions until the budget should be passed.
and has consequently engendered an utter
disbelief in the sincerity of Its promises
The debate upon the naval estimates re-
Vealed the continuance Of most of the
waste Of public money and many of the
abuses which led to the disasters of the
war with the -nited States. The military vote.
has already elected some questions the
subject OF pensions which will be difficult
to- answer. And when the turn of public
works. with which is included public In
Struction. is reached. il IS not likely that
there will be any less cause for hostile
criticism. indeed. the minister Of fOmento
will probably experience even greater
difficulty than his colleagues have done In
giving a satisfactory explanation of his
budget Certainly the economies that have
been effected by this last mentioned office
have not been Of kind to couciliate pub
lie opinion 1t has reduced the salaries of
h-paid professors in the universities. and
II has cut down the sCanty wages of the
half-Stary-d road members, but II has not
abolished the comfortable system of COM
missions which endows Its own clerks with
a round sum and again and sends
them 10 Paris for month OF two on the
Dretext of research The fight over the
expenditure IS not yet finished and that
over the taxes which are to produce the
1evenue has hardly begun. Two of the
bitter a least Will meet with strong oppo-
Sh1H- The new stamp duty will prove,
IS said. most yexatious in its working
and Will certainly have to undergo con-
siderable modification before Their. can be
any hope Of its becoming law. The tax
of utilidad-s. a graduated income tax
which Is framed to take In every class of
the community. from the wealthy land
owner To the street acrobat, will provoke
a mors general and more determined
struggle still
One can understand the feeling of re-
Hrt which the government must have ex-
per:euCed when IL found Itself permitted to
she!Te the question until next year. To-
morrow Is always better than TODAY in
Spain. In the meantime II has deftly
shifted the responsibilities of the DELAY
On TO the shoulders OF the opposition: and
as the Old budget of 1stsS-'G remains in
force indefinitely until the new budget Is
voted II can contemplate a series of re-
ceding tomorrows with more or less pa
tience and complacency.