Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1902-11-18
CONDITIONS IN SPAIN
Letter FROM Agricultural Ex-
plorer Fait5hifa contradioted.
STATEMENTS DENIED
"supHRF1c14I EXAMINATION"
DECLARES MINISTER oJEDA.
The Country's Finances, He Says, Were
Never in Better Shape-Discusses
the Ministerial Crisis.
STATEMENTS DENIED

| That such grave errors and inaccuracies
in regard to the financial and agricultural
| conditions should be published Is most de-
| plorable. and if Americans who have been
| to Spain, and especially officials OF the
American government, disseminate such er-
roneous impressions, how is 1t possible that
Americans should form an accurate i'm
preston Of my country" said Senior Emilio
| de Ojeda, the Spanish minister, apropos OF
a letter addressed to the Secretary of Agri-
| culture by Agricultural Explorer ,Fairchild,
and which the Secretary will publish in
| pamphlet form in the near future.
Writing from Barcelona Mr.. Fairchild
| with a prolonged stay that Spain Is agri-
| culturally now SO far behind that she will
| have hard work to catch up. She has no
| coal of her own; the price of farm labor
| has dropped to an equivalent of p cents a
| day; much ignorance prevails. Spanish as
| well as foreign capital is afraid of invest
| ment In new undertakings. There is wealth
| here, but the Spaniard can get per cent on
| government bonds and is afraid that if he
! exploits a mine or goes into sugar beet
| raising some change in the state regula-
tions or tariff will ruin him; he prefers,
| will bring him. Foreign capital is afraid
| bonds and live quietly on the money they
| will bring him. Foreign capital Is fraid
| of governmental changes and invests eau
| tiously. Companies advertise that buyers
| will be charged for any changes due to the
| new government regulations"
| He also wrote that farm machinery Is lit
| tie in demand and that American who
| attempted to introduce English reaper
| was mobbed by the laborers and came near
| losing his life.
Again he says: '"The beet sugar industry
| fourished very well for a few years. but
| is now, l am informed, greatly overdone."
| Further along he declared: There may be
| other plains more fertile and more highly
| cultivated than that of Valencia but have
| never seen them. The orange and lemon
| orchards extend on both sides of the rail-
| way as far as the eye can reach and the
| train travels for hours through them"
Mr.. Fairchild Contradicted.
| Commenting on the more salient points
of Mr.. Fairchild's letter. Minister Ojeda
said that the finances of Spain were never
in better shape; that agricultural banks
were being rapidly established with a view
to loaning money to the farmers in the
event of bad crops, so that they might be
saved from having to borrow from usurers.
These banks would charge from to per
| cent and take real estate mortgages as Sc
curity.
Mr.. Fairchild must have made a very
superficial examination of the country"
he continued "as is evidenced by his state
ment that there is mo- coal in Spain. There
are extensive coal fields in the northwest,
and, while many of them are undeveloped,
because British coal can be imported for
less than the Spanish coal can be mined,
| some of them have been opened up and are
yielding large quantities of coal of a most
excellent quality. The Southern railway
which has ramifcations over all of south
| ern Spain, owns ats own mines and thew
| produce all the coal used on the road.
Many of the industries of Spain have
remained undeveloped in the past, for the
reason that the colonies have offered more
| inviting fields for the investment of capt.
tai. That is all changed now and the same
capital is seeking fields of investment at
home Mr. Fairchild's statement that the
| sugar beet industry is suffering from hav-
| ing been overdone would seem to belle his
| statement that capitalists are afraid to in
vest their money! They invested a little
too freely in that direction and in some
others, but those things are righting them
selves now.
Proposed Land Reforms.
I'm some portions of Spain notably An
dausia where probably the attempts to in
troduce an English reaper was made. the
country has suffered some sociological dis
turbance The difficulty is similar to that
Of Ireland and of numerous other countries
in fact. 1t is due to what you call absentee
landlordsm' The land is owned in large
tracts by people who live in Madrid and
other cities, who are contented, because of
the extent of their holdings to receive a
very small rental for their land, and who
permit 1t to be used grazing land for
contrary to Mr. Fairchilds statement there
are large herds of cattle and sheen in Spain
and the herders and shepherds receive very
small wages, perhaps not more than 20
| cents per day. This problem Is now con-
| fronting the government and it is seriously
| contemplating the purchase of the lands
| from their present owners and their sale to
| small farmers SO that there shall be nu-
merous small landowners, as is the case in
| other portions Of the country.
Limited Rainfall.
I'm portions of the interior of Spain the
| rainfall is limited, and that has served to
| retard the development of agriculture. but
| with improved methods and possibly some
system of irrigation that defect will be
remedied. OF course. Spain is still held by
the traditions and methods of centuries,
| but she Is making a gratifying progress.
| and that some of her agricultural districts
| are prosperous and well cultivated Is testi-
| fled by Mr.. Fairchild in his reference to
Valencia, one of the garden spots of the
| world
| 'orhe only ground on which 1t occurs TO
| me Mr. Fairchild can have based his state
! ment in regard to the uncertainty of legis-
lstive enactment is the proposed, and now
| executed, tax on government bonds. That
| tax has row been imposed, and we regard it
| as perfectly just one. These bonds are at
par at 80 and sell for somewhat less They
pay interest of per cent on their face. SO
| that they have been netting their holders
| slightly more than per cent. Now a small
tax is imposed on the recipients of this in
terest. 1t is similar to the income tax of
England. And even, tn imposing that tax,
so scrupulous has Spain been of the rights
of others that 1t lis not imposed on the in
terest payable to foreigners
| Mr.. Fairchild says, that Catalonia SUP.
plies the rest of Spain with manufactured
articles. He is right, Catalonia is a wealthy
| province and hersmanpfactures are extern
sve. Had he visited Catalonia he would
have found the REPUTATION of his statement
| that Spaniards were afraid to invest their
| capital in manufHctures."
The Cabinet Crisis.
| Referring to the current crisis In his coun-
try Senior ojeda Said That It was crisis in
name only. It had been expected; a new
ministry will doubtless be formed, and the