BoletiÌn mercantil de Puerto Rico. (San Juan, P.R.) 18??-1918, 1905-01-27
EDITORIAL.


- AA~ ksR
'ssstfe ass saE "a .aef~
~ haNt sxs.. - 2ht eaft ~a.i.a 4
- ssnns.l ienfa.sus ansi f-sfie.s ~,ss -
svTAxs aaa ls.kaaN s. ktsncs ffts "a
a1shessN N%ex TBS mhw~s
he n:a<ss,al = os.s gierioa rs
wasths oia%si4nk sa.sea and soepisa
wssausss dsssN~son eg al ieus. ~ho
Asr snisr, $50 lu De sslapaA sao,~zs
II Xanuuissal shr cgafmons efsaA
whi,h - afsAs g g. oCssFDg. .5on.
Auh he h;ucss pecu.isf to Ns
fnc. hefii he >AnNcs - - have 50 4
upon oihrs OCCASIONS. ;hc means oi
putting in;e pgaessoe he profess - loan
ws;host conssring 4. - somebody
msski inslGiou>.y ~ne Frryefr.y puini
ous. inso paolc DhsEac ~al,A sse
AK payers weuld have - pay.
such - aoi The Csse not - = sse
plan Of Mr. Luoche;ii.
Nssa 80 ~ raur lI-Ty a1.a.s ssuD
competency which have nd upon ills
occasion a wide held IN which 70 M
niiesi themselves. the eminen; econo-
mist has elevely psrried all the defects
which the adverSaries OF The coffee
loan have pointed 10 Is insurmoun-
table obstacles.
He has said 10 those who deny The
ina poriance OF the ciifee industry. IN
words which speaks for its clearness,
elegant concisenesS and calmnesS, the
following.
Half OF the inhabitant 5 OF IuIto
Rico live from the coffee production;
the whole center OF the island is given
MP to this cultivation, which cannot De
abandoned; which would be foolish to
substitute, IN fact, impossible as we
have repeatedly maintained.
To tho sc who object, without gro
unds on which TO rest their weak
argume Mt namely the traditional OPP
position Of the Amerlcansts loans, he
has quoted the section of the Foraker
Act which allows loan for the relief
of the depressed conditions caused by
the cyclone.
The selfish citizens and the false
prophets, who pretene ded to tremble
before the absurd supPosition that the
tax paying element would have TO pay
for the coffee growers loan are con
fronted by Mr. Lucchc,ti with a conclu.
sive statene III syvsiaavh cripples them as
real enemies Of commerce in high
economical sense. He.says; -
''It.treats of loan r'Nhfch fst*not
charged to the Treasury nor to the
taxpayers but to the borrower in &C
cordance with the amount. used and
which will he advanced him upon
furnishing asuficient guarantee.
All the opposition is therefore
overthrow. No possible arguments
now remain against the loan which,
before the cyclone, was asked by tho
chamber of Commerce from GIe4er al
Henry, but the Ilustricus Aaaarican
governor in view of the appAeaching
change of political regime, d&I .nothing
wishing to transfer the charge of
saving our sprincipasll.c::lt.adustr pasll.c: to his
successors. ~
The opposition is corlquered. There
are no impediments to places in front
of this work of humanity which We
know by the name of a loaasfor coffee
interest. 81
remark that the creditors holding
mortgages, would leave Porto Rico
CARVING with them the money of the
loan. This mean invention, Mr.. Luc-
chetti qualities as it deserves. He
terms 1t the height of immortality,
illegality and absurdity. There is not
a loophole that has not been covered
by the eminent author of the memo
rial whic b. this time is well-known
to the legis atorS.
Roads must be built, it is true, but
at the same time. the coffee plantations
must be rebuilt. Roads cannot be
put before products; school houses
cannot be built without nrst having
the children well fed and clothed; IN
short the cart, cannot be put before
the horse
The distinguished writer on econo-
mics, sustains with his high prestige
as an authority on the subject. which we
have maintained in the campaign that
we carried on against the crisis, and
speaks of the justice of protective
tariff for coffe. lie supports the ar
gument of the commanding necessity
of condoning the taxes which weigh
upon the ruined plantations until they
have been put in condition. With CT
tations from the celebrated economists,
Sully, Baudrillard and Yaubran, in
support of loan industry which is the