Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-03-07
SPANISH PROGRESS
DUE TO DICTATOR.
Trade Aided and State Made
. Sounder During Five
Years Regime.
BY LELAND STOWE.
pecial Correspondent of The Star.


MADRID. February 26.-For five
years and five months the dictatorship
of Primo de Rivera has governed Spain
the second oldest dictatorship in Eu-
rope. The years have slipped by with
only an occasional political flare-up to
focus the worlds attention momentarlly
upon the geographically isolated Span
ish peninsula. Perhaps these two fac
tors-the brevity of SPANS uprising
since De Rivera came to power and the
country's geographical aloofness-haVe
contributed chiefly to the general lack
of careful scrutiny. politically and eco
nomically, which Spain has enjoyed IN
recent years. Yet to appreciate the Sit
nation in Spain 1t is necessary TO re-
visualize the situation when the name
of Gen. Primo de Rivera first dominat-
ed the headlines Of the worlds press.
September, 1928, marked the COM
plete breakdown of Spanish parlia-
mentarv government. Much as France
slid to the thin edge of parliamentary
oblivion in July, 1926, and, thanks 10
RAYMOND Poincare, escaped 1t, Spain
avalanched to the same thin edge three
years earlier and, constitutlonaily,
plunged into the abyss. She emerged
without parliament, without con,
stitution. but with Moroccan-tanned
general seated in the Ministerlo del
Ejercito.
Governments Were Weak.
For several years the Spanish gov
erument had been increasingly weak
ened by party jealousies, by scandals
and ineff1ciency.
one after another impotent govern
ments had held the reins, each only
long enough to demonstrate the Ia
mentable extent of their impotency. Min
istries were disorganiZed, public works
were much needed, industry was para
lived and unemployment growing.
Above these ills rose repeated evidence
of graft and dishonesty in pubic Oh
fee. while year by year SPANS annual
budget recorded another deficit IN
long uninterrupted line OF government
deficits.
Meanwhile, in the Spring and SUM
mer of 1928. disorder degenerated into
wholesale disregard for law and order.
Municipal and provincial authorities
lost ali control of the populace.
hybrid sort of Communism spread
among the unemployed masses. and
what amounted to anarchy gripped
first the smaller towns and then the
large cities. Robbery, plumber and
murder spread on every hand.
In Barcelona citizens will tell you
today of the regime of uncurbed law
lessness which terrorized that city for
months before the De Rivera dictator
ship was formed. Murders in the
streets of the city averaged eight or
nine daily. In a few weeks throughout
Spain hundreds Of persons were as
sassinated for no other reason than
that portion Of the populace had gone
mad, and there was no unified re-
straining influence to stop the slaugh-
ter. Men were shot down in daylight
in the streets and their pockets plum
dered of few score pesetas.
Wealthy citizens, dared not go about
their affairs without private armed
protection. Spain, in a word, was ripe
for one of two things-universal an
archy or rule by the army.
Morocco Policy Had Failed.
Associated with these grave ills of
bad government and social chaos was
the complete failure of SPANS policy
in Morocco. The long-drawn- out wars
against the Moors in Spanish Morocco
had been series of defeats. Millions
of pesetas and thousands of men had
been sacrificed without any tangible
progress toward ending the senseless
fasco.
Spanish people were sick of war which
meant nothing and gained nothing.