Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-08-10
Upheaval in Chile Charged
To Economic Difficulties

Once q dictator and now Q fugitive,
Carlos Ibanez, former President OF
Chile, whose government has been over
thrown by o bloodless revolution. Il the
subject OF wide comment. American
opinion on the causes OF his downfall
generally attributes them to economic
conditions, while there 10 O tendency 10
believe that, disastrous 40 the events
may be, they reject democfacy's strength
rather than its weakness.
The flight Of the President Of Chile
u . dramatic episode in the revolution
fostered by the students Of the univer4
stiles and fed by unemployment" says
the Hamilton (Ontario) Spectator.
which thinks whether Chile win be
better on for the change may well be
doubted" According TO the views Of
this paper, the students Of this South
american republic derived their inspir-
alton from the success Of the student
movement In Bolivia q year ago, Q moye-
ment which has spread through the
southern continent, led to revolutions
IN Peru. Argentina and Brazil within
the last year and will probably lead to
osners. But 1t Is one thing to over
tnroW government and another to
create prosperity In times Of world de-
preston" concludes the Spectator.
ETplalning the trouble in Chile, the
Oakland Tribune says: THE beginnins
OF the quarrel between the university
students and President Ibanes came
when he refused 10 allow them 20 es-
taolsh Q student council and resulted
IN ms closing the university until April
% TINS year: Behind o great part of
the present difflculties IL o student body
squabble Of o kind which In This conn
Try has sometimes resulted In college
strikes and il regarded with more
amusement than alarm"
Chile adds one more to q rapidly
lengthening string OF South America,
revolutions" comments the Cincinnati
Tlmes-StaT, which states that "the
record shows that, In less than q year.
four-fifths of all the inhabitants Of the
Southern Continent have had violent
changes OF government. Not by orderly
processes OF election, not In accordance
with their own constitutions. but bv
military uprisings. by force or the show
OF force, by coup d'etAts, they have rot
themselves new rulers" While this
paper afhrfns that this is not q demon-
stration Of democratic Self-goyernment
working out as 1t Is supposed to do"
still it comedies that the record ais bet
ter than 1t looks, II comparison be
made. not with the United States, but
with Europe" and points out that "the
0abAh 1cpuDAlCS 10 the SCUM nave no
great standing armies watching each
other, nc heavy burdens OF inherited
fears ard antagunisms, no apparent
projects of reciprocal aggression, no
provocatlon to speak Of 'revanche,' no
necessity of stressing security and no
remaining boundary disputes Of conse-
quence. In these respects they are far
ahead of Europe"
In its analysis, the Charleston %, CO.
Evening Post says: THE revolution-if
such 1t can be cAlled--brought Chile
into the class Of Argentina, Braall and
number of other Latin-Arneric
nations which have gone through re-
organizations in the past year or two
because of financial and economic
difficulties." This paper declares that
"Chile's government upheaval was due
directly TO the unfav0fable situation In
the nitrate industry, Just - Bfasil's was
due to coffee, Bolivia's to tin and silver,
Argentinas to grain. Pefu3 to cotton
and sugar, and so on. The
breakdown Of the international nitrate
cartel and the abolition Of the export
tax on nitrate inevitably brought Ohile's
financial affairs, already badly involved,
to crisis"
The Atlanta journal thinks at h
striking token of the instability of the
times that five Latin-American repub-