New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1903-02-19
CASTRO'S LITTLE WAl.'

>otb;uo that 1vp have ever said by way OF
criticism Of President Castro or OF dissent lfo"
some of his methods of government Is 10 ne
construed as reflection upon his astuteness
and resourcefuIness In the latter qualities ne
is assuredly without fear, If not wlthout re-
nroach In token of which, witness the master
stroke by which he provides FOR the pay lnehI
of the German, English and other Chains. Ioh-
siderinp how Venezuela has been impoverished
by domestic war and foreign blockade, IL might
have PUZZLED n less shrewd statesman and
financier to find means for running the govern
ment with so per cent of its customs revenue
expropriated for foreign claims. Not so the
indomitabIe and resourceful Castro. Was there
not a Gar of Russia once who settled an IN
volyed DISPUTE over the route of the St Peters
burc- Moscow Railroad by calling for map ana
with pen and ruler drawing mathematlcally
straight line from the one place to the other!
With equal simplicity and grandeur this fresl-
dent of Venezuela overcomes the loss OF 81 per
cent of his customs revenue by decreeng 80
per cent increase of all tariff rates mus ne
will be able TO pay to the powers the 80 per
cent and yet have his revenue unimpaired- lie
will achieve the putatively impossible task OF
''eatng his cake and having it, too
II is significant to observe that President
Castro appropriately issues his decree to this
effect not through the Minister OF FINANCE nor
yet on his own account, but through the MINIS
ter of Foreign Affairs. That is to Indicate thae
the thing is done because Of foreign eXlgencles-
We NAV also observe that the burden OF the
new order will fall directly upon the foreign
merchants who practically monopollze the COLL
merce of Venezuela These foreign merchants
are chiefly Germans. SO we have the engaging
spectacle of Germany with a mailed fist exact
from NeneX
uela in return exacting an equal sum from the
rockets of German subjects. That isn't the
proverbial "robbing Peter TO pay Paul" 1t is
robbing Paul's right hand pocket to pay Paul $
left hand rocket 1t is bit of high finance
that might almost suggest to William of Ger
many the desirability of sending to South
America for Finance Minister the next time
he needs one particularly badly ARENAS ward
once expressed a willingness to put down the
rebellion if it took every one of his wifes rela-
tives TO do it. President Castro means to pay
Germany's claims in full if it ruins every Ger
man merchant in Venezuela to do it.
Really. too the thing seems quite practicable.
The existing tariff of Venezuela is not an ex-
travagantly high one, and the raising of it by
80 per cent would not make 1t prohibitive. even
if the increase had all to be paid by the con-
sumers, which it won't be- The German mer-
camille houses at La JuayTd CafdCdS anu SloS-
where have long had the reputation of making
enormous profits, and they probably deserve 1t.
That is why they have so persistently held their
ground in a country which they affect to dis
trust and to despise, and that is why they have
been in such tremor of trepidation over Ger
1nany's brusque way of dealing with Nenez-
uela fearing that thus the future of their fort
une making trade would be jeopardized. They
are not likely now to add to the odlum already
incurred by raising the prices of their goods to
consumers by anything like the 30 per cent of
the tariff increase. They will more probably
paw a large share of the tariff Increase out of
their own pockets ard charge it to profit and
| loss, hoping to recoup themselves therefor at
some happy future time this side of the Ewlg-
keit. They have not hitherto regarded with en-
thusiasm their Emperor's little way" of enforc-
ing claims against the land in which they are
domiciled They will not now rejoice in Presi-
dent Castro's little way of meeting those
claims But it is President Castro's way, and
who shall say him nay?