Evening star., 1923-08-17
Continued From Yesterdays Starr

Now I'll tell you what was in the
little black book" said Estuban. -.
Greg looked at his watch. Hold on!'
/, he said. It's past one. De Socotra
might possibly return here. His room
/ is adjoining. We had better go down
to my own room where there is no
, danger of being disturbed. In any
| ceive a report over the telephone"
! In the little hall room at Bessie
/ Bickle's Estuban. white-faced and
| grim. told his tale. There was no
| ferred to his murdered friend calmly.
| He said:
First 1 must try to make you un-
| derstand the situation in Managuay
| that produced this crime. l may be
| difficult for a free American to credit.
| must bear in mind that Managuay
| is very small country, sort OF
| small-town republic, and quite out
side the currents OF the world 5
! thought indeed for Managuayans the
| outside world hardly exists. In other
| countries, even the most backward.
] of late years social conscience has
developed, but in Managuay no! Our
! overlords are still as rapacious as
| feudal barons. We have no prosper
| Gus middle class to act as a balance
wheel In ManaGuay there is nothing
| between the old Spanish. aristocracy
| and the mlSerdDle poems.
! Up to a dozen years ago Managuay
was poor country; the old land
| holders were impoverished. and they
| had no business acumen: trade passed
| by our ports. Then American busi-
ness men began TO find us; they had
the business ability and the Mana
| guayans had the rich land. Gradually
| there grew up the infamous associa-
| tion that has almost ruined my coun-
try: ,,s .s TOO
rich. Under improved methods OF
cultivation and with the markets
made accessible, great fortunes were
| reaped from rubber, coffee, fruit In a
| single season. Too easily made money
atrophies mems moral sense; they be-
4 come filled with a lust for more.
| more, more.
! Our landholders sold their lands
to American corporations. taking
shares in payment; After nntb,nr rnat to 'de dc
but spend their dividends. The
American business men did all the
work. and they became the real own
| ers of my country. They never IN
terfered openly In the e9Verniinem' ni,io
they didn't have to. for their Mana
| guayan stockholders were only TOO
willing tools. The entire country Is
| now run with single eye TO pro-
duoing dividends for the American
| cornoTations. What Is the conse-
ouence? Our people are wretched pc
vond description. They are sci 70
work on the plantations and In the
factories while they are scarcely oul
of infancy. This keeps down tne
price of labor and prevents them IRON
ever learning enough to organize
against their pitiless masters. IL
would ring your heart to see tnem
The generation now growing up are
like little old men and women betore
J they are mature!
tc- rh r
! that the principals never show them
! selves in the open. We have sue
cession of fgure-heads as Preslden'
OF Managuay. but the real power
never changes; IT is loaseu otra IN nme
hands of Senior Francisco de Socotra
He is the instrument of big business
| All the reins of power are gathered
up into his hands. He directs our
poor travesties of courts with a nod
THE Judges are his appointees: he Is
the real commander OF our army ne
! owns our newspapers. What chance
has the truth of being spoken?
| II do not mean to blame the United
States for the pass we have been
brought to; the evil men are the Man
aguayans who have betrayed their
| country. The only criticism / would
make OF your government Is that II
thoughtlessly backs up It's buccaneers
| of commerce without examining into
their methods. And we little. help
| less people suffer. The ruling gane
| in Managuay derives its real power
from the implied support Of the
United States which is behind It,
believe that secretaries Of state are
honest men. but they may be swayed
through devious courses that they
know not of. And up to this time
there never was anybody to speak
| for the wretched natives of Mana
quay.
You can see how hopeless it was
| to think of successfully opposing sc
perfect an organization. ! may men
| tion as a significant fact that our