The Indianapolis journal., 1904-02-14

among "the cOnquering sixty" as they
are called in Caracas--the sixty with whom
he started his fight for the Presidency
The average Venezuelan is apt to be
treacherouS when placed in a position of
trust but the Andino is famous through
out venezuela for his loyalty. The Sikh
is not truer to his salt. the Scottish High
lander is not more clanish.
castro knows this. He is true to his old
friends, and they are true to him. He has
made them generals and cabinet ministers,
as he promised TO do when he enlisted them
IN the conquering sixty" and they repay
him by such faithful service as no Vene-
zuelan President has had before. Thus he
is able TO maintain his power. although he
! is the best hated man in Venezuela.
in cafe, in ballroom, in hOtel-one hears
curses, mot loud. but deep" of Castro.
But the cursers look carefully around TO
see that no AndinO officer is within hear
ing. They hate Castro and his Andinos in
tensely, but they fear them more.
1t is not easy to form estimate of
Castro's character He is many-sided. The
more one sees of him the harder it becomes
to judge.
Readers of "The Autocrat of the Break
fast Table will remember the three Johns
known to other people, and the John only
known to his Maker. There are more than
three Castros. The most obvious Castro
is Castro the COnquerOr, the warrior who
has faced his foes and backed his friends,
the ruler who has pillaged merchants,
ruined trade, reduced large part of his
siDIe Tor the death of thousands of men,
and brought upon Venezuela the scorn of
the world and the wrath of the great pow
ers. This Castro is a tyTant
But there is also Castro the Democrat,
accessible TO the meanest of his people,
anxious to provide for their enjoyment such
acceptable festivities as bullfghts, band
concerts in the plaza" picnics and dances.
This Castro is kind of Venezuelan big
Bill Devery, who likes nothing better than
blowing everybody in sight The writer
ha i'm, Inr oir, Irf,, lit,
with peasants at a picnic, minglng affably
with the crowds who promenade in the
plazas' of La Victoria and Caracas in the
evening, and suddenly inviting everybody
in the square to come up TO the palace
and enjoy an impromptu dance.
When he returned to Caracas from the
'crowning glory of La Victoria, he kept
open house at MiranOres Palace Anybody
down to the lowest beggar, who cared to
walk in could swim i'm champagne and
'aguadiente," If he chose Half Caracas
suffered from headache afterwards.
NOT UNDULY FORMAL
No ruler on earth is more accessible than
Castro He has made hundreds of bitter
personal enemies, as well as thousands of
political ones. but he never hedges himself
about with guards or secret service agents.
Anybody can walk straight into the patio
of his palace without challenge. Likely
enough, Castro will be standing there, chat
perhaps, playing billiards or feeding his
numerous pet birds.
1t is no breach of Venezuelan etiquette
to go straight up and talk to him. He is
always affable and courteous, whether the
visitor be foreign minister or merely an
itinerant pedlar trying to sell books or
boot-laces.
ON one of the most critical days of the
recent international blockade several per-
70 90
trO
He came into the patio" with several of
his ministers, crossed over to them and
''Will you kindly wait a little longer?
Some important cablegrams have come
| from Washington, and we have to hold a
meeting of the cabinet to consider them
He passed, with his minister's into the re-
| ception room, at the doorway of which the
| visitors were sitting, and the cabinet sat
| round In circle for the conference Natur-
| ally, the visitors rose to go but Castro
| jumped up and begged them not to disturb
themselves-the conference would soon be
| finished,
Before he sat down again, a beggar boy.
who was lounging in the patio" "butted
| in to the cabinet circle and asked the
| President of his republic to buy some knit
| ed socks. Castro laughed, chaffed him. and
| gave him a dollar. Then the cabinet coun-
ell went on, within earshot of a score of
Such is the way in which public affairs
| are transacted in Venezuela What else
| can be expected when one of the country S
| principal officials is Castros old barber
from the Andes? He still shaves the Pres
| ldent when he has leisure from his other
duties as general and statesman.
| Castro, the Tyrant, and Castro the
| Democrat, have each his good points. but
| there is also Castro. the Dreamer. best
| known to himself. who is full of national
pride and patriotic fervor, who knows the
| possibilities of Venezuela and sees visions
| of her as a great world power, bound in
close alliance with the other American
| States, to resist the aggression of Europe
| The writer had a glimpse of this Castro
| two years ago at La Victoria when he un-
| folded a scheme for Pan-American de-
| fensive alliance against Europe, which he
| evidently considered to be within the realm
| of practical politics.
| This Castro has Napoleonic ambitions
| which are fed by a crowd of fiatterers who
| tell him that he is the greatest South Amer
| lean general since Bolivar. Looking back
| on his career of persistent victory he he
| lieves them and plans for the CONQUEST ot
| Colombia, and the control of the Panama
| canal situation. He wants 10 be to South
| America what Napoleon was TO Europe.
WILLIAM THORPE.