El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1911-07-22
n kADRID, Spain. July 22.-Nomi-
MI nally Alfonso XIII, a gentle
= ~ man of high culture man of

| Spain with constitutional Limitations
| upon his power. Actually the country
is ruled by political bosses ''Caci-
| Quism" in Spain is what "Bossism is
| in the worst governed American cities,
save that bossism in America hardly
| goes so far in corrupting government
| The word ''Cacique' comes, of course,
| from the West Indies where the chiefs
| of Carib and other indian tribes were
| so called. The caciques exercised abb
| solute power over their people anu
| the lives Of the indians under them
were theirs TO make use of or destroy
| at will. When the word was brought
back to Spain by the conquistadores,
I possibly by Columbus himself, it be-
came the slang term for the Spanish
| political boss. Nowadays the average
| Spaniard knows. that 1t means poll
| teal boss but does not connect 1t
| with the indians and does not know
1 that it had an American origin. The
| political cacique has been an institu-
| ton under that name for so long that
| there are doubtless hundreds of thous-
ands or even millions of Spaniards
| who would say, If asked about the
matter. that the word was Spanish.
AIfonso's Palace.
King Alfonso lives in one of the
handsomest palaces in Europe and
| MAINTAINS the VI
the Spanish court. He is active
and busy young man who arises early
| in the morning, keeps good office
hours and disposes of a deal OF rou-
tine work nearly every day when he
| is In his capital Even when he goes
| to Seville to enjoy the quiet of that
ancient Andalusian city and the peace
of the Alcazar he takes along the
| material for keeping up his desk work.
00<4 two
duties to rest at San Sebastian he is
not wholly idle.
But despite his devotion to detaii
work the king of Spain has very
little to do with the government OF
his country. The throne has less
power in important matters than the
men behind the throne. If a presi-
dent of the United States took so
small a part in the government as
Alfonso takes he would be cartooned
in every Independent newspaper from
Maine to California as a backboneless
nincompoop disgracing his high office
by allowing the political bosses 10
run it for him.
Bossism I'm Spain
UDon paper Spain is rather well gov
erned. A great deal of difference ex-
lists, however. between the government
upon paper and the government in
fact. The difference is, in a word.
'.caciquism.'' Because of what dis
tinguished Englishman once called the
American habit of getting unuer
sounding board and confessing the
national sins through a megaphone, the
United States is widely exploited a.
a country in which politics is corrupt.
But acts that go unquestioned in
Spain would create an upheaval in
America.
The watchword of the Spanish bosses
might be what is the constitution be-
tween friends" Nominally Spain
enjoys universal suffrage. ActuaIIy
the elections are held by and for small
cliques who scorn the will OF the pev-
pie and make the election returns what
they wish them to be. Caciquism,
spelling rottenness in every branch OF
administration, made the government
of SPANS American and Oriental col
onies as bad as it could be- 1t gave
ground for its discomfort that created
revolution. When war was made upon
the insurrectos. caciQuism weakened
the strength of armies and made cam
paigns Intellectual. 1t finally cost
Spain a great deal of territory as
well as an enormous amount of blood
and treasure. but it continues to eS-
ercise its baneful influence in the d.
minished Spanish dominions today as If
1t were impossible for the Spaniards
to learn from bitter experience 1t is
sowing the seeds of revolution at home
as it sowed Them in the colonies
What Minister Maura Says.
Senior Maura, twice prime minister,
is quoted in a book called 'Oligarchy
and Caciquism,o as saving that public
power in Spain is neither desired nor
exercised in order TO protect right or !
Or
perity or guide the life of the people. !
Endeavors 70 employ the constitutional |
functions Alright. he says, have always
been "ephemeral. Incidental and |
promptly frustrated Beneath the falss !
frame of the constitution, there is the !
Big Cacique-the editor of the Official |
Gazette, and distributor OF the spoils.
AS the prime minister is the real dis |
tributer of the spoils, the word Of a |
former prime minister upon this sub |
ject may be taken as being reliable
So long has caciquism been nutured |
in Spanish political life that a majority |
of those who are in politics, but who /
are not yet caciques. hope to root out |
the bosses who are fattening upon the /
spoils rather than to uproot the evils OF l
5ossism. There are, of course, sincere
and decent men who make attempts to
better conditions, but up to the presens
Time llcI are d SIudll anu AACAACNbAHC
and have not succeeded in |
making themselves sufficiently menac-
ing to the system of bossism TO have
decided and salutary effect There will
be a revolution in a half century per-
laps. say the pessimsts, but in the
meantime there will be graft. There
are, of course, optimists who hope for
4 social or military revolution at a
much earlier period.
People Are Ignorant
Power remains in the hands of po-
Litica1 factions or cliques from the
smallest provinces to the cap1raI. Ano
great majority of the people are too
gnorant and apathetic, in a country
where 10000 900 out Of 100000 caL
lot even read their own names, to be-
come greatly interested in reform
They have learned from long experience
hat overtaxation, neglect Of education
md other evils are to be expected in
spain and they expect them with
toicism that is tempered by their ig-
lorance Of how much Derter OH the
people of other countries are.
The great bulwark of cacfquism is
he government, which supports the po-
itical party in power and pays no at
ention to the people and their welfare