Year: 1872




The situation here has become one Of profound
quiet as midsummer cruise on the Mediterranean.
When last wrote you the burden Of my story was
the fall Of the Serrano government. It fell with
crash. No single event has 80 stirred Spain to It's
inmost depth since Prim and Serrano unfurled the
dag OF revolt on the deck Of Topete's ship, while
the royal band played the revolutionary hymn Of
Rieg0. There are multitude of stories In the air
which would embarrass the truth h-seekng mind
especially as story contfadiSts another 1t was
natural that Sagasta's Ministry should full. Moth.
ing more corrupt and debasng has been seen In
spanish politics since the days OF Godoy. There
was no life In It, not in this easy going country
OF Spain. Dshonor in the Cabinet, dishonor In the
Cortes, dish0nor IN the fnances the nation hurry
ing into the Niagara eddies of bankruptcy, cortes
composed OF men whose election had been pur-
chased by lavish use of public money-even Spain
could not submit to this, and sagasta fell without
friend, without an honest follower, for the men who
carried his flag would carry the flag Of the next
leader who brought larger sum of money.


sERRANo's CLEMrNCY AND sERRANos DOWNFALL.


But 1t was different with Marshal Serrano. Next
to Espartero, who lives In retirement his life now
verging upon the nineties, and to Spain what the
blind old Dandolo was to Venice. he was the FORE
most man In the kingdom. 1t seemed for a while
that the Spanish Dandol0 would DO urged from his
retirement to be to Spain what Theirs, In his sew
enty-seventh year, Is to France But Espartero was
too old to leave his home, and when the summons
came from the king age and illhealth made him
decline to be Minister or Councillor. But Serran0
is in the funess and vigor Of life. His name s not
only honored In Spain but all over the world. 1t
was Serrano who, with Prim, led the insurrection.
When the monarchy fell he was made Regent AL.
Iox ALL,
canddaturc Of Amadeus he accepted the dynasty
with alacrity and has thus far served II Loyalty. To
the American mind serrano viii always
be held In kind remembrance because Of
his treatment Of the Carlists. When he sup
pressed that rebellion he showed clemency
to the conquered. You cannot imagine the
courage required to perform this act Of eminent
patriotism unless you know the Spanish craving for
blood and the intense disappointment any failure
to crafty this appetite always inspires. You see
this passion for BLOOD this morbid love Of cruelty
and death, In the bull1gh the conspicuous national
amusement Of Spain, and in itself brutal and dis.
gustlng butchery When the Carlists fell Spain
looked forward to executions, con1scations and
punishment. Serran0 made peace, and with peace
granted amnesty and immunity. When he re-
turned from his work he was met with an outcry Of
passion and rage. He resigned his offices went
into the Cortes as deputy, defended himself In an
honorable and manly speech, was hOnored by his
fellow members In formal vote for his valOr and
clcmency, and returned to power apparently the
strongest subject in Spain. Within ten days from
that supreme moment he and his party had fallen
from power.


HOW sERRANO's FALL WAS BROUGHT ABOUT:


You must not suppose that this sudden fall was
inspired by whim OF Amadeus. He saw, what his
wiscst friends had advised him to see, that there
could be no dynasty apart from the revolution. 1t
is even question whether there can be q dy-
nasty with the revOluti0n-whether, in short. the
whole revolutionary movement here does not mean,
sooner or later, an end Of dynasties. But serrano
had ceased to represent the revolution Ills inter-
ests were satisfied with Amadeus Just as they
would have been satisfied with Don Alphonso or
the Duke Of MOntpensier. He Is Captain General
IN the army, Duke Of the kingdom, and all that
politics can bring him is added dignities. Whether
they came from Amadeus or not is an Indifferent
matter. What he wants is dignity SO while he
was the strongest man In Spain 1t was not the
strength OF the people. His main concern was the


pubic order," forgetting that In all truly governed
nations the public order takes care of ITSELF
So when he returned to the head Of the ministry he
felt that the first duty to arrest the revolution,
to take up arms against 1t; to surround the throne
as with an embankment, and make revolution i'm
possible or at least bloody business to those who
attempted 1t. This was the meaning OF the measure
which he proposed to the King, and because of the
Kings refusal to accept 1t resigned his ministry. AS
] explained in another letter, the measure was q
suspension ofthe constitution, but although so desg
mated it was really more than that. The only act
corresponding with 1t in our own country that can
remember was Mr.. Lincoln suspendng the habeas
corpus in 1851. What Mr.. Lincoln did was In the
presence Of war which threatened to destroy the
nation. No such danger threatened Marshal Ser
fano. he desired 10 suspend the constitution to
secure himself hom any popular influences. This
measure gave him power to raise money In any
way he deemed BEST and upon whatever terms; to
levy taxes at his pleasure and expend the public
treasure without an appropriation bill to garrison
the large towns with the troops Of the regular
army; to suspend individual rights and prevent
public meetings-in other words TO hold Spain in
his hand and do with 1t what he pleased. No one
doubts that the Marshal would have used Spain
gently and behaved In his exalted place like O
patriot; but there was danger in the prospects
that all men saw and feared-the danger OF the
people. There was another danger which we are
told had Its influence upon the quckened and
anxious Imagination Of the King-the danger Of
Serrano and his friends going over to Montpenser
or Don Alphonso, and using the pro-
dgous power which they craved to upset
this throne and restore the old one under prince
Of the House Of Bourbon. The announcement that
there was to be q radical meeting, or rather con-
venton Of the leaders OF the radical party fastened
the resolution Of Serrano. Had the measure he
craved been passed he would have prevented any
meeting Of his opponents by suspending the con-
stituton and declaring martial law.


THE KING AND THE PEoPLE-PARTY AND POWER.


fr tuyif n ftvod dane
King, 1t Is said, distrusted the men who demanded
this unusual tenure Of authority There can prob
ably be no sevcrer reflection upon the social
and political condition of Spain than the
circumstance that King would deny the
request Of his Ministers for fear Of their
conspiring against the crown. But the lesson
of Spanish politics shows that what we would call
treason in our country, even In England is usti
fable n0litical exnedient here. The men who are