The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1901-11-10

forms, shining with orders, and keeps his
state. Castro holds a regular court IN the
Casa Amarillo, or Yellow House, the Presi-
dents palace. Castro receives the repre-
sentatives OF foreign governments IN the
great hall OF ambassadors In the Gasa
Amdrllla, a room as large as the Last
room in the White House. The President,
wearing the uniform Of a general. with a
wide golden sash, is seated on a gnded
throne, while standing on either side OF
are his Cabinet ministers, also in full
uniform. The ambassadors are taken 10 the
place Of reception in a gtlded coach, and
are introduced By a gOrgeous funcuonary
Of the presidential court. who has the Of
fetal title of introducer OF ambassadors.
When the folding doors Of the great room
are thrown open the person who Is being
granted an audience is expected to make a
profound bow 10 the President, seated on
his throne at the other end of the room
Half way across the intervening space he
must stop and bow again, and then, ad-
vancing to the foot Of the throne, he makes
a third bow and is formally presented TO
his Excellency. The audience over, the per-
son who has been received bows as low as
he can without breaking his back, turns
and walks TO the middle OF the room, where
ne wheels around and makes q second DOW.
Again resuming his march. he reaches the
door, where he wheels a second time and
makes a third bow. backing out of the
room as he does so. Great public receptions
and balls in former administration were
held I'm the PalaciO Federal, where there
was an eliptical ballroom 200 feet long and
from 40 TO 100 feet wide. This used to be
called the finest ballroom in the world. The
gilt furniture was upholstered with costly
brocades and satins and the floor beauti-
fully inlaid with various kinds of wood.
POPULATIONS AFFECTED.
In Venezuela Castro has under his sway
about two and a half millions of people,
scattered over an area Of 500, 943 square
miles. The population is of the same char
acter as in Colombia and Ecuador-a mix
ture OF Indians. Spanish. half-breeds and
naOrnaG though the nnfxtrrro af TnHion
blood with the Spanish is not so great as it
is in Colombia. In the latter country the
Indian blood is very prominent, and it's pos
SCISSORS. so far from seeking TO conceal the
fact, are rather proud of it. The people of
these countries are fighters in their irregu-
lar way, but the most sturdy and the best
soldiers III Venezuela are the cow-punchers
OF the LlanOS. great plains like the plains
of our West, and in Colombia the little In
dians from Cauca are as brave and as fond
OF tumult and battle as they are undiscip-
lined and hard to control. Colombia has
about the same area as Venezuela, but a
larger population, there being about four
million Inhabitants in that country. Ecua-
dor, with an area of 10000 square miles,
has a mixed population of 1,270, 900. So the
whole territory Of the old Colombian re-
public of Bolivar has now a population Of
CastrO's ambition once attained, and this
nation re-established and consolidated, he
would be in a position to invite Peru. with
AltA OfVVDfVOV BOpQAdNlOls " lltI liz ltuti a.
ton, and in case she did not come quietly,
could offer of force. 1t would
not be the first time that Colombian troops
have overrun Peru. In the days of Bolivar
they helped drive the Spanish out of the
country, and they stayed there for a con-
siderable time as supporters OF the power
OF the Liberator in the nation. Bolivia, with
an area between that of Colombia and
Venezuela, having a population of $500, 900,
in which the native Indian element is inn
mensely in the preponderance, would find
ii immensely to her interests to join the
federation, for she has now no seacoast.
Chile took what little she had away from
her as a punishment for joining Peru in the
last Chile-Peruvian war, and Brazil on the
east and the Argentine and Paraguay on
the south dispute her boundaries. But the
republic of Greater Colombia" would have
to be on a firm foundation before it would
dare to take in Peru and Bolivia, for that
act would be sure 10 bring on a collision
with Chile. That country arrOgateS to itself
a dominance among the Spanish-American
countries of South America, and has time
and time again invaded Peru and interfered
with the Internal affairs of that nation. 1t
regards Bolivia and Peru as being under it's
tutelage, and looks to the eventual absOrp-
ton OF those nations as its manifest des-
tiny"
Enough small in population, Chile is
proud and powerful for its size, and to
contend successfully with il the Republic
or Colombia would have first 10 shake off
its old habits. Its people would have to
give up their laziness and go to work, and
would have to abandon the gentle and joy
Jus HAoNAAht VI QOAAltSllC IGNOluLlOns III
which they are. by nature, so fond of in
dulging. and prepare their energies for for
eign war. Armies would have to take the
place of the armed mObs which now mas
querade as soldiers, and a maritime force
would have to be created and maintained.
To those acquainted with the character of
the people of the countries which it is pro-
posed to form into the re-established ma
ton such a condition Of affairs seems i'm
possible of being brought about, but in
these days OF the rapid decay of old ma
tiOnalities and the springing TO life of new
ones. who shall say what can and cannot
be accomplished?
Leaving out Of consideration entirely the
question of Peru and Bolivia, the reuniting
of the other three countries does not seem
difficult of accomplishment and, in fact,
would seem, from the growing sentiment in
favor of il. to be a fact which is bound TO
become an accomplished one before very
long. though whether Castro will be able TO
bring it about by his present course of
what practically amounts to armed inter-
ventiOn in favor OF the Colombian revOlu-
tionists is another question. Should Castro
fail in his ambitious plans 1t is probable
that before long an attempt to unite the
countries by peaceful means would be
made. This sudden outbreak of and rapid
growth of a sentiment for u%nihcation i'm the
republics of Venezuela, Colombo and Ecua-
dor is a singular evidence of the trend of
the times toward consolidation. Not many
years ago the tendency was for large ma
lions TO break UP into smaller ones; now
it is the other way; and in everything, from
natiOnalities to the department stores and
the trusts" the movement is toward uni
hcation and consolidation. The world force.
from being centrifugal, has become CEN
tripetal.
POWERS OF A NAME.
Bolivar died seventy-one years ago, and
from the day of his death until now the
unifcation idea has slumbered and slept in
the nations which formed the Republic OF
Colombia. 1t was, in fact, supposed to be
dead. and a politician who had dared to
advocate the reuniting of the three coun-
tries at any time during the past seventy
years would nave been laughed at as a
crazy man. 1t was only the prestige of
Bolivar's name and deeds which kept the
Republic OF Colombo together while he
lived, and the three nations hardly could
wait for the death of the great Liberator Ia
disunite. The name of Colombia was hate
full TO the politicians of the time, and disap-
peared from the maps and from the speech
OF men. The country now known as ColOm-
bta originally was known as New Granada.
II resumed that name upon the dissolution
OF the union, and remained New Granada
until 1863, when the name of Colombia was
adopted. This was an evidence that the
ghost Of the old republic had not beer
laid, though no man realized the sieni6.
canoe of ii at the time; least of all. prob-
ably, those who advocated the reversion n
the old name.
William L. Scruggs, formerly minister 70