The Birmingham age-herald., 1908-09-06
From the Boston Globe.

~ AVID H. GRAHAM, lately of Hl Venezuela, and still earlier of
 1 Machias, Me, stopped over yes- terday in Boston on his way to the Maine town. He has just been forced out of Venezuela by President Castro and to a Globe reporter yesterday he told a good many interesting facts con corning the South Americah republic
 "Venezula Is in a deplorable condi- tion,". said he, and l wouldn't be al all surprised to hear of a fresh revolu- tion against Castro breaking out any day He has many enemies in Vene- zuela who are only waiting for the right opportunity to overthrow him.
 while he snaps his fingers at all thf ma ations of the world, Castro fears his own people. His soldiers are a sorry lot-poor and ignorant, and so seldom paid that they are always deserting, but he Is mortally afraid of them. He is fearful that they will turn on him at any time, and he knows that they will do so If given half chance; so he lives in constant dread of an assassin's s bullet. That's why he had steel house built for himself in Caracas, and he keeps himself closely within it most of the time.
 "When it was put up he had it given out that it was built as an earthquako- proof house, but that was only blind. He hides himself behind the steel walls of the house, not because of it's being proof against earthquake. but because it's bullet-proof. But it's not altogeth- CT bullet-proof, either. The weather Is so awfully hot all the time in Caracas that Castro can't close the steel shut ters without suffocating in the house, so he has to leave them open. Some fine day stray bullet is liable to get in through one of those open shutters and find Castro.
 "Castros right thumb Is dreaded thing in Venezula," went on MT. Gra- ham. "He passes sentence on his ene- mics with that thumb, and many an unfortunate man has been condemned to death by 1t. The simple wag of his thumb is the law. That thumb rules Venezuela.
 "A few years ago man named Pedro Lopez-I knew him very well, and a very decent fellow he was-who | had accused Castro of having robbed him of all he had, managed to slip into the steel house one afternoon and fired A pistol pointb lank at Castro. But the | bullet went wide of the mark. It | struck against the steel wall, then re- | bounded and hit one of Castro's cabi- | net ministers, badly wounding him. | "Those who were in the house seized | the would-b be assassin, and when Castro | was asked what sh hould be done with l him he ierked his thumb over his right
 shoulder toward the door, and Lopez was thrown into the Rotunda prison, Q
 fearful place. I know what it is, for | that's where they had me for week
 when they fixed up the charge against me of helping revolutionists to plot | against Castro.
 | well, when the prison came to be | inspected later on and Lopez was founG missing, the keepers said the man had | escaped But the people of Caracas will tell you to this day that Lopez was murdered and his body secretly buried somewhere about the prison, for Castro had pointed his thumb down when Lopez was being taken away
 after firing the shot. Thumb down is | Castros mandate of death.
 "whenever he feels like executing 2