Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1928-10-04
GALES MAY TAKE
NEW PARTY RE|NS
Group Pledged to "RevoIu-
tionary Principles" Seeks
Education of People.
BY the Associated Press.


MEXICO CITY. october 4.-Plutarco
Elias Gales, country school teacher,
who became President and declined to
be dictator, may go to teaching school
again.
He will not be called professor If he
accepts the new job offered him When
he leaves the presidency November 30.
His school will not be listed in any de-
partment of education. His title will
be head of a new political party, his job
the political organization of the people.
But, actually, it will be new kind of
school teaching-all the Mexican Re
public for classroom, all its 100000
Inhabitants as pupils. The blackboard
will be the election ballot, the lesson
Gales will try to teach will be that
enormous and complicated one of do
nestle constitutional government and
political party organization.
To Keep PrOgressives.
Gales has been asked to become the
leader and director of proposed new
Gran Partido Nacional," dedicated to
preserve the revolutionary principles"
of the Obregon- Gales governments of
the past eight years, to coordinate the
various revolutionary parties" to argue
with political opponents instead of
pumping them full of bullets, actually
to recognize and incorporate within
their group conservative minoritieS, to
teach the people what politics based
upon freedom of principles and demo-
cratic elections meanS-and to bring
about such political campaigns and
government.
That is the ambitious plan. Gales
is actually, although not in these words.
being asked to organize and direct a
school of government Tor all the people
of Mexico, and to be professor of APP
piled politics. The man they ask to do
this taught his first school as a lad in
Sonora, In a one-room 'dobe shack with
a few dozen Indian boys and girls as
pupils.
Gales new Job, If he accepts it. VIII
be to get $4,000 900 people, many litter
ate and a bunch of ambitious political
bosses and military chieftains to apply,
for the good of the country, the prin-
ciples of his farewell speech to Con-
gress. In that speech he said. in effect,
that Mexico must end the tradition of
centuries that only "caudillo" or mill
tary overload, only man on horse
back" only an iron-flsted army boss can
govern Mexico. He said Mexico must
learn and practice the ways of consti-
tutional government, of democratic elec-
tons and orderly political processes. In
essence he said Mexico must learn to
be governed by ballots, not bullets and
bayonets; to elect them by arguments,
not armies; to determine political issues
by principles and parties, not uprisings
and revolutions.
And the new Job offered Gales is only
to teach Mexico how to do all that. No
man knows better than Gales the mag
nitude of the task. Any disgruntled
general might abort it and any group of
them might destroy 1t. It would be rash
to predict the plans realization and 1t
would be unfair to forecast its failure.
Some observers think the mere fact that
1t Is seriously proposed and seems about
to be undertaken in good faith is, of
itself, distinct advance in Mexican
affairs-even II the class should prove
backward and some of its bad boys
grow obstreperous and try to close the
school.
Practical Man.
Gales is an ideahst, but at the same
time a singularly factual and practical
man. He may doubt that he can change
very much within few years the ideas,
practices and heritages of centuries, but
he has never shirked a Job because 1t
was hard or omitted effort because he
might not succeed.
Gales was told Mexico would go to
ruin If he left the presidency He was
told armed fighting between followers
of various ambitious military leaders
would break out He was told Mexico
had to have strong man" at its head,
and that he was that man, and the
only one on hand after Obregons death.
Powerful pressure based on that argu-
ment was brought to bear upon him.
One night he said to trusted friend:
THAT is the way every dictator has
started. The way not to be a dicta tor
is to quit in time Every dictator began
as patriot, but listened at last, to ar
guments his country could not get along
without him. Mexico must learn she
can run without me, without any man,
however much woe there may be in
learning the lesson. Eventually the
learning of it will be worth the cost.
know the situation. know could be
dictator. know could continue my
self in power as long as live. I know
I could be another Porflrio Diaz. But
am not willing to sink that low. Mex
leo must commence, right now and with
me, learning how to avoid dictators."
After that Gales went home and
wrote that portion of his congressional
valedictory in which he pledged his
word, not only to Mexico but to the
family of nations. never to be President
of Mexico again.