Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1901-08-22
Inhabitants of Ecuador Are Begin
ming to Realize Their Condition.
ARE UNDER A LIBERAL GOVERNMENT
Normal Schools and Universities Es-
tabiishcd Recently by Progressive
Executives-Prof. William C. Rob-
inson Teaches School There.


of this city, entertained Prof. William
| C.Robinson, of Quito, Ecuador who was
| in Ottumwa for short visit prepar-
atory to trip to South America there
to make his home for at least four
| years. Mr.. Robinsons wife and chill
dren have for several months past
made their home with Mr.. and Mrs.
Vest, and Mr.. Robinson came to OF
tumwa in order to accompany his
family to South America
I Prof. Robinson is the son of the
late Rev. Anthony Robinson, who liv-
ed in this city for several years. and,
prior to his retirement, was a promi-
nent Methodist Episcopal preacher
! Prof. Robinson has travelled much in
South America and has done mission
airy work, so that when he last year
received an offer of position as ii,
rector of a new normal institute at
| Quito, he was well able to qualify
J Prof. Robinson was interviewed
while in the city by Courier report
Ell and impaired information which
will prove interesting to the readers
of the Courier, relative to his work
in Ecuador, the country and the peo-
| pie who inhabit it. The school over
which he has supervision is a result
of the change in the form of govern
ment from that of the Conservatives
to that of the Liberals. These names
designate two opposite political par,
ties in Ecuador whose rivalry does not
end with words or even blows, but
deals in blood in large quantities
The Liberals came into power as a
result of revolution which over
threw the primitive government in
/ Ecuador five years ago. Genera!
| Afaro was made president at THAI
time, and four years later, or one year
ago he was succeeded by General
I Plaza, who is now the chief executive
of the country The Liberals stand
/ for everything that denotes progress
while the Conservatives are radically
opposed to all that uplifts the intel!!.
gence of the natives The Conserva.
tive government had schools presided
over by the Catholic priests. and in
which nothing butreligio was taught
! When the Liberals came into power
these priest schools were abolished
and real schools We're established, in
which knowledge of the world and its
/ wisdom is taught, and the religion is
left severely alone
There are four normal schools in
Ecuador, all of them of recent origin.
Two are at Quito, one at Guayaquil
the main sea port, and one at Cuenca
an interior town. second in size 10
| Quito. Fifty thousand dollars in gold
was the amount required to establish
these institutions of learning, ami
they have existed one year. Now tina.
the people are beginning to see the
| benefit the applications for scholar.
ship are growing more and more.
The instruction is all in Spanish, the
language spoken in Ecuador, but as
time goes on the English language will
be taught more and more. until the
natives become as familiar with it as
they now are with the Spanish Prof
Robinson teachers English, and is
making very encouraging progress.
The priests who formerly had
charge OF the schools are relegated to
the background, and the only chance
they now have to teach is to start a
theological school. The government
allows them this They are allowed
in neither normal schools nor the uni
versities, of which latter there arc
three for the teaching of professions
The chief occupations of the peonte
in Ecuador are agricultural pursuits
and grazing. Quito is located on a
high plateau and enjoys an ideal eli
mate although almost directly over the
equator. The grazing is excellent
there and If the situation was taken
advantage of the people could profit
by it. However. they are of a very
primitive nature. They do not, as .
rule, seem to wish to be educated
They have lived for years and years
under the rule of the SLOW Conserva
tives and it will take years to get til,
Conservative ideas out of their minds
They are content to do almost any
thing or nothing, their chief cares in
life ending with the supplying of then
meals to them.
] There are strong caste lines drawn
among the people of Ecuador. The
patricians, or direct descendants o!
the Spanish, constitute about one
ninth of the population. while the
plebeians, or common people, make
up eight-ninths. And yet. the patr
clans are in power which can largely
/ be accounted for by the fact that the
patricians have forces they could use
against the lower classes
The climate in Ecuador is for tbs
most part rather pleasant. On the
plateauS the weather is temperate, al
though when at first one goes there
the rare air makes him think he is in