Evening star., 1939-07-23

For the present, the Spanish Basque
capitol is a modest building at II Rue
Marseilles, in Paris, good $50 miles away
from the Spanish Basque country, lying
at the southeastern end of the Bay
of Biscay. The Basques' is government
by exiles, who, since they cannot gov
EN-. having no lands to rule, plot. The
ramifications of their plotting, mys-
terious, fascinating, enchanting plotting
which needs a historian of the Dumas
school for its chronicler, spread halfway
around the earth. 1t reaches right into
Washington.
The head man at II Rue Marseilles is
Jose Antonio Aguirre. On October 7,
1885, dressed in a tailcoat and wearing
winged collar and top hat, instead OF
the jacket and beret which are GUS
tomary among the rural Basques, Senor
Aguirre was elected President of this
singular people at meeting of Basque
patrlarchs beneath the 77-year-old oak
tree at Guernica The Spanish civil
war was young The Basques both op-
posed the aspirations of Franco and
ulSdppIONcu lilcll SlOoC VIC Will VIC 4C-
public. They had newly declared their
complete autonomy-Basque land for the
Basques-and let the Spaniards do what
they would.
Accepting the dignity which had been
conferred on him by his fellow pa
triots, President Aguirre rose and took
solemn oath beneath the oak, the sue
of hot houo fO1lr.
ished on this particular spot, or near
it, in Guernica for a thousand years,
symbolizing the liberties which the
Basques have always arrogated to them
selves.
Swears to Accomplishment.
Before God" (who in the Basque
tongue is literally "the Gentleman up
Above'), President Aguirre declared, "in
all humility, upon Basque earth, stand
ing under the oak of Guernica, in re-
membrance of those who have passed
before, 1 swear to accomplish my man
date with entire faithfulness."
Within another 12-month, Guernica,
leading city in an area which the
Romans never fully subjugated (al-
though they easily dominated the sur
rounding country in the Iberian Penln-
sula). was destroyed through the aid OF
Italian bombing planes. Gen. Franco
objected to the independent resolutions
of people whose three provinces were
patiently a part of Spain. He took the
Basque country for his own. In Sep
tember 1887 President Aguirre was in
Paris. He left his republic by plane just
in time to escape fate worse than exile.
Since that unhappy occasion President
Aguirre has been proceeding in accord
ance with his oath-accomplishing his
mandate" to the best of his ability.
The Basques have historic excuse for
a great faith in themselves, and the
President and his cabinet, operating an
invisible republic which might attract
the SCOTS of those who do not SYM
pathize with their mandate" at least
make a show of confidence that before
too long the Basque provinces will be-
long again to the Basques instead OF to
the Spain of Franco.
The mandate is the establishment and
maintenance of tangible independent
republic of Basques, who want nothing
better than that their three Provinces
of Viscaya, Guipuzcoa and Alava be the
components of distinct, free land. The
steps undertaken for the realization OF
this desire form one of the most fas-
cinating stories of the day. The Basques
are furnishing the entertainments OF
romance to an age whose political mott
vations most frequently lie in the i'm
pulses of sober economics.
A Small Region of Spain.
To one who is not a Basque, the
problem confronting that strange people
seems insurmountable. Their provinces
constitute but a one-hundredth part of
Spain The population is little more
than 100000, while all Spain has a.
600 900 people. Basques themselves esti-
mate that this 100000 has been q third