Waterbury evening Democrat., 1908-02-25
WANT A CHANGE
A Republic May Soon Supplani
The Monarchy in Portugal
People Are Ignorant
MONARCHY TOP HEAVY

Il
near future will witness violent
political struggle in which the life
of the monarch may be at stake. The
comparative tranquility since the as
sassinations is simply breathing
spell in which the forces of the mon
archy on the one hand and popular
government on the other, are being
marshalled for the coming conflict.
The masses Of the people in the coun-
try are igonrant and have hitherto
been entirely Indifferent to the poll
tical battles which have convulsed the
capital. Lisbon, for political pur-
poses, is Portugal, and the republicans
are confident that the influence of
the capital which they assert is al
most unanimously republican. will
sound the knell of the monarchy.
Since the assassinations of King
Carlos and Crown Prince Luiz, the
republicans have been joined by the
dissident progressists and they in
tend to make their campaign for a
change of regime openly in the COM
ing electoral contest Ex-Deputy Al
media, who is at the head of the re-
publican organization, declares that
their campaign has virtually been
made for them by the revelation of
the abuses of the old parties. The ex-
posure of the political corruption, the
manner in which an army of clients
was maintained at the expense of the
public treasury and above all the sec
retary's advances made to the roval
family he claims shocked the people
from one end of the country to the
other end and destroyed forever the
prestige of the monarchy.
They anticipate an easy and COM
plete victory. Disinterested opinion
however, does not consider Portugal
ripe for republic; it believes in fact
that the country under a popular
regime in the present backward state
of the masses would become a prey of
the ambitious politicians like the CEN
trail American republics would be
without stability and probably wit
ness a series of popular upheavals
and relationships Nevertheless the
fear exists in these quarters that the
monarchy is doomed The young
king, Manuel, undoubtedly with the
best of intentions has yielded to the
enemies of his farther and Franco.
They have persuaded him to sponge
out the dictatorship and to begin as
a strictly constitutional sovereign, but
above all to place himself in their
hands. They want him to enact the
role of Dom Luis, the father of Car
los, who for 20 years ruled Portugal
but did not govern. Under the pres
ent circumstances the course of the
king is most dangerous insomuch as
he has placed the destinies of the
throne in the hands of the leaders of
the two discredited old parties, men
whose past prevents them from meet
ing their adversaries in the open
field of political discussion and who
the people will insist must be dis
ciplined.
The real weakness of the mon
archy in Portugal seems to be that
ii is top heavy. With its territory
shrunken, its wealth withered, the
people crushed down by taxes. the
national credit bankrupt, fifteen
years ago, the bureaucracy and the
court are maintained on scale al
most as extensive as in the days of
Portuguese world dominion. Seven
magnificent royal palaces. the Neces-
sidadtes, the royal city residence,
Ajuda, the palace of the dowager
queen; Belem, Quedez. and cascaes
on the seashore and the marvellous
palaces of Cintra and Pena, in addi-
ton to the shooting places at Villa
vicosa and elsewhere, are kept up
with all the expense involved in the
constant transfers of the large court
from one place to another. The
court itself has hierarchy and a
ceremonial etiquette second only to
that of Russia and Austria. and the
personnel is considerably larger
than that of Germany. Titles, ranks
and decorations abound and are
sought with passionate rivalry, and
the number of officials attached to
and supported by the court is count
less.
II is here that the pruning hook
must be applied in the reorganiza-
ton of a country where half the
taxes collected go to pay the inter-
est on state debt. The students at
the universities. as in Russia and
other countries where revolution is
being agitated, are playing a eonsid-
cradle role in Portugal. and another
factor in the situation. the church.
may become prominent. Roman
Catholicism is the state religion. and
the people are Catholic. but not
clerical No matter what happens in
Portugal. foreign direct Intervention
to sustain the monarchy is not sntiei-
pated. Both Spain. the neighbor.
and Great Britain, which practically
dominates the foreign policies Of
Portugal. would undoubtedly like 20
see the present regime sustained. as
would probably other powers whose
subjects have business interests in
the country. but Great Britain Il is
believed would not attempt to inter
fere in the internal politics of the
country. she viii probably continue
to keep ships az Lagos OF in the hzr-
Dor Of Lisbon. TO protect her subjects
and the Portuguese government
probably will be given TO under
stand thstt Il can count upon Great
Britain's moral support" as long
as Il keeps within certain bounds.
and Great Britain can Be relied upon
"a r,z~r7ff tie fn-erreuffo1 Of M