The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1902-10-04
LANDS OF TURBULENCE
VENEZUELA AND COLOMBIA, WHERE
REVOLT IS PERRENIAL.
Immense Areas of Great Richness Ly-
ernment-Leaders of Revolutions.
Buffalo EXPRESS.

habit of people of this country to think
of all South American States as petty
They may be petty in their politics and In
the weakness of their government, but
geographically they are giants. These two
countries. forming the northeastern corner
Of South America, extend over 10 degrees
of latitude and 20 of longitude. Superim-
posed upon the United States, that would
mean north-and-south reach as long as
from Memphis to Minneapolis and an east
and-west extent as great as from New
York to Kansas City. AS matter of fact,
even this comparison does not give an ade-
quate idea of the size of the mighty empire
that lies wasting amid the strife of fac
tons, all but useless either to its own in
habitants to anybody else through lack
of stable government and development. If
the irregularities of the boundary lines
were pressed out, these two countries
would cover an area as great as the United
States east of the Mississippi river and of
the States bordering the western bank of
the Mississippi, with Florida and Maine
cut OF for the sake of regularity. And the
total population, scattered over this 1,lOO,-
600 square miles Of territory including the
barbarcus Indian tribes, is about equal to
that found in the A. 2l5 square miles OF the
State of Pennsylvania, or $500 0004,0 900
in Colombia and 100000 in Venezuela.
Probably two-thirds of this vast area is
an uninhabited and almost UNEMPLOYED will
derness, made up of great tropical plains,
where the influence of civilization never
has been felt, neither of the mysterious
| civilization that had grown up and nearly
died out before the time of Columbus, nor
of the, civilization that Europeans have
| brought. Myths and romances have been
| located there-the fanciful empire Of the
Amazons, Walter Raleighs Manoa, the
| wanderings of the shipwrecked crew in
| Charles Kingley's Westward Ho" But
| the land remains, like most of the still
| greater area that forms the interior of
| Brazil, unknown, waiting for the enter
prise and courage that shall bring its
riches to the uses of civilization. The
greatness of Colombia and Venezuela ex-
| lists only on the maps.
In contrast with the unknown interior
| the coast regions were the first continental
| land reached by the Spaniards after they
passed the West Indies. Here some of the
earliest Spanish settlements were founded.
| The known and inhabited regions may
claim a civilization older than any in the
United States. Caracas, Cartagena, Pana-
ma. Bogota were rich and prosperous cities
while New York and Boston were still but
collections of log huts dividing the ocean
| from the wilderness. These lands, toe,
were the first that rose against the Span
| ish yoke and the only South American
| colonies which Spain made serious effort
to retain. Ihe trouble with them has been
| that after they successfully fought Spain
| they did not know enough to stop fighting.
! The turbulent spirit that sprang up in The
early days of the nineteenth century bad
never died out. Instruction had followed
| instruction, faction had fought faction.
with only rare and short intervals of peace
| for almost century; with a republican
| dictator, and even when relationships have
not formally been declared they have usual
/ ly existed in fact
/ the same state as under the rule of the
| Spanish. In the whole vast area of Colon
| bia there are but 37G miles of completed
railroads. These are all short, local lines
and are owned mostly by foreign COM
panies. Venezuela has 529 miles of the same
| character. A few telegraph lines accom-
pany the railroads. electric lights and water
works are found in the principal towns,
| foreign companies. such as the New York.
| Bermudez Asphalt Company. have made
| some attempts to develop the natural
| wealth and to do a little trading along the
rivers. The upper and ruling classes are
usually we'll educated in Europe, some few
| in the United States. But the resources
are squanoered in constant wars. The
| blight of unstable government lies over
| everything. Such is the country and such
are the people that are making the current
| news about the South American wars.
IN COLOMBIA
| AT the outset the principal leader of the
| Colombian Liberals was General Rafael
| Tribe Tribe. His name has not figured
| in the news recently and it Is believed he
| has left the country and that the insurrec-
| ton is now largely in other hands, but
| sketch of his career will afford a good in
| sight into the struggle:
ST am a Colombian" he said to New
| York interviewer. II was born in Antio-
| quia, Colombia, in 1852 My mother bore
/ the same family name as my father and
| that accounts for the duplication of the
name.
Il began fighting at sixteen. taking part
| in the Liberal uprising of 1875, and at this
early period in my life 1 mas made SUBJ
| lieutenant. A bullet through the knee and
| the suppression of the revolution turned me
/ into more peaceful occupation
| He went TO Bogota, where he studied
Jurisprudence at the National University,
receiving his degree Of doctor of laws in
| 1880. AS a lawyer, he did well that he
| was elected procurator general-the Span
| ish equivalent for district attorney-and
/ at the university.
| When his Liberal tendencies became too
| pronounced for further public employment
| or peaceful residence at Bogota he left the
| capital and founded a large coffee planta-
| ton at Medillen, in Cauca. At the out
break of the revolution In lSS5-the year of
/ the American occupation of the isthmus-
| Tribe joined the Liberal ranks, and as the
| commander of a division took part i'm the
disastrous battle of Tribuna
This defeat ended his career i'm that cam
| paign The story that he figured among
| Liberal commanders on the isthmus who
| were compelled to capitulate by Lieutenant
| Commander McCalla is myth.
| The ways of peace did not hold him long
for when the revolution of 1895 broke out
| Tribe at once cast his lot with the Liberals
| A crushing defeat dispersed his forces
Alone he made his way back to Antiouuia
| where he proceeded to raise new revolu-
| tonary levies.
| While thus engaged he was made a pris-
| oner, but presently escaped and returned to
| Tolima, whence he passed with small
| force to the mountains of Santander and
then to the Magdalena river. While cross
| ing the river he was caught between two
1 forces and was taken captive.
AS prisoner of war he was confined for
six months in the famous, or rather in
| famous, Las Bovelas cells of the fortress in
| the harbor of Cartagena From there he
was taken to Bogota TO be tried for high
| treason, but before the date set for the
| litical prisoners in Colombia.
| Under the more lenient regime of those
| days he began his political campaign for
| the Liberal propaganda and soon took rank
| as the foremost political orator of Colom-
! bia. He was the only Liberal elected to
| the Colombian Congress in 1896 and as the
| sole representative of his party fell into
| extreme disfavor with the government he
cause of his speeches for the recognition of
! Cuban belligersncy and for a transfer of
+, the isthmian canal project from French to
| American hands.
! The most powerful grafton of Jrribe,s