The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1912-11-26

SASO
GUATEMALA CITY, Guatemala.
He that only rules by terror
Doeth g%rievous wrong!
Deep as he'll / count his error,
Let him hear my ong
AND so I let the poet Tennyson in
trOduce my story OF the great and
good friend OF the United States,
Manuel Estrada Cabrera, the presi-
dent OF this Guatemala republic.
There Is no doubt OF his ruling by
terror. Every man. woman and child
in the country Is afraid Of him, and
he who would criticise him gets be-
hind the wall and speaks with bated
breath.
My first experience as to the fear
which permeates the hearts Of the
Guatemalans was in a hotel in the
capital Of Costa Rica. l had spoken Of
telling a story l had heard concern
ing him to an American who a
large interests in Guatemala. He
begged me to speak low, saying there
were spies everywhere. and that /
could not say anything in Central
America that Cabrera would not hear.
Here in Guatemala l am told that
h president knows everything, even
what each man eats for dinner, and
as to the guests that sit down at his
table. In many cases the very ser
wants are in his pay and all society
is. said to be honeycombed with his
spies. There is absolutely no freedom
of the press, although now and then
the newspapers criticise the admins
tration. Such criticisms, however.
are always directed from the palace,
and are merely dummy expressions
to give the impression abroad that
freedom exists.
Uu>o Mon nF lllond oNd vr0n
President Cabrera is Guatemaias
man Of blood and iron. He Is a COM
bination of strength and weakness, OF
greatness and the reverse. In some
respects he reminds one Of Nero, IN
others OF Napoleon and again or Alb
dul Hamid, h now dethroned sultan
OF the Turkish empire. He was a
Napoleon in his grabbing the pres1-
dency, and q Nero and Caligula In
some of his acts since he took charge,
has been a Napoleon in his arbitrary
rule. which has kept the people
quiet, put DOWN revolutions with
an iron hand. Order is better kept IN
Guatemala than in any other Central
American republic, except Costa Rlca'
and the people are far better on tina
those Of Honduras or Nicaragua II
Is true that the financial system OF
the country is. to use q disgusting ex-
preston, rotten. n that the dollars
here are worth only s cents or oul
money, but nevertheless the plant
ers are growing rich, and the col
fee crop brings in its millions 8
year. 1t Is due to Cabrera that rail
roads are being built and that the
iron track running from New Iork
through Mexico will soon be lac
across Guatemala to the capital o.
Salvador, SO that we may IN time q
to anama on. the cars. 1t is u te
IT., xLo< education 10 hQing DllShoC
throughout the republic, and mat {
new peOn law which proposes to &C
away with indian slavery has beer
enacted.
Afraid of Assassination.
And now take Cabrera as the 40
dull Hamid Of Central America. Whei
Abdul Hamid was SULTAN he was MAJ
crazy from his fear of assassination
Everything that was cooked Tor Mn
had to be prepared in q certain way
andl he had his professional faster
who, it was thought, would get En-
first bite at the poison. He Away
had a revolver at his right name an
! was told in Constantinopie tina
there were times when he sat up a
night TO watch. Ills career enoeu o.
a revolution and 81 enforced abdica
ton. and he is still trembling nOR
that he is in retirement.
i do not know that Cabrera trem
bles. doubt 1T. He seems to be tn
soul of bravery. but OF caution a
we'll. When Secretary Knox was ner
no came out Of his palace Ior In
first time in many months. and whe,
his state coach drove to the door o
the palace where Mr.. Knox was en-
tertadned, it was surrounded by secIe
police. When it left II vent by IN
back way, and it is said that other
Of his journeys. K during TIA
visit, were made in street hacks !
order to avoid the danger OF tn
state carriage being dynamited:
1t is known that Cabrera takes
different route every time he come
out OF his palace. There are Store
here Of his always wearing q coat {
mai, next his skin and that for Il Ion
time his meals were prepared by n
aged mother who sent them to MI
in locked boxes, to insure the 700
o;- 49,. .nnoiiilifN of being DOS