V

ENEZUELA has apparently reached the parting of the ways. Is she to sink into a state of perpetual lawlessness, giving up all attempts to uphold even the form of republican institutions, or can she yet free herself from the military dictator and his organized band of plunderers? Will she eventually return to the state of chaos that prevailed half a century ago, when a score of selfish factions held the various provinces and warred upon one another and upon the central government, or is there an element in the country courageous and patriotic enough to establish a decent and stable government? These questions are not for the outsider to answer. So many problems present themselves, such a peculiar condition of society exists, that the history of no other Spanish-American republic presents an exact parallel. Venezuela's destinies, provided that some foreign power does not intervene, lie in the hands of a new and untried people.

Some writers, with more aptness than courtesy, call the Venezuelans a mongrel race, but even that term fails to express the remarkable miscegenation that has taken place. In Argentina, Uruguay, and Chili, while the majority of the people, apart from the great foreign population, are mestizos, or "chinos," as they are called there, the upper classes are almost entirely white. In Paraguay, Bolivia, and along the Pacific coast as far as and including Mexico, the vast bulk of the population is also mestizo, with here and there a pronounced strain of negro, especially on the Peruvian coast; but there remains a minority of pure European descent, or what counts for pure in Spanish America. In Colombia the ethnic conditions are more complex, there being, besides the mestizos and whites, many communities of pure Indians, an almost pure-blooded negro element, and the zambos-half Indian, half negro. Such, also, is the common classification given to the Venezuelan population, but, while correct

enough perhaps two generations ago, it no longer answers for the strange race that is now being evolved.

In her European stock Venezuela has been exceptionally fortunate, for the country was first settled by the Basques— a sturdy people who found a congenial climate in the upland valleys. The recent immigrants have come largely from the Canary Islands and from Catalonia, and have proved equally desirable. Italy, Germany, the Republic of Colombia, and the adjacent islands of the West Indies have also contributed their quota. Moreover, at the conclusion of the revolution against Spain, a number of English, Irish, and Scotch soldiers of fortune settled down in the country, as was the case, indeed, in nearly every part of the continent, and from their intermarriage with the creoles and with the foreign residents have sprung many prominent families of Caracas and Vallencia. Even the "best" families, however, are in very few cases free to-day from a mixture of either Indian or negro blood, or both; and race antipathies, as we understand them, can hardly be said to exist. Among the middle class and the peasantry, or "peons," the amalgamation is so advanced that pure-blooded Indians or negroes are no longer met, except, of course, the West Indian negroes, who are to be found in the coast cities, and the remnants of innumerable tribes of Indians scattered throughout the unsettled regions. The mestizo type also is becoming rare, and the zambo has almost entirely disappeared. Just what to term the nondescript race of white, "copper," and black which, though though as yet by no means homogeneous, is bound to become so during the present century, must be left to the ethnologist to decide.

One must bear in mind, however, that Venezuela has a most remarkable variety of climates, equaling a range of latitude at sea-level of sixty or seventy degrees, and herein one can plainly foresee her " race problem" of the future.

That a uniform type can be preserved in a country presenting regions as diverse as New Brunswick and Porto Rico, or the Scotch Highlands and the Nile Valley, is certainly impossible, and one marvels that miscegenation should have been so rapid and so thorough. It simply means that one process of evolution has outrun the other; but already the second or climatic modifications are becoming manifest.

This is illustrated by the rise of the despised "Andinos or mountaineers of the western States, who, under the leadership of General Castro, disputed the right of the Caraquenians-who may also be considered a mountain people— to rule the country, and have now been in power five years. They are rude, unscrupulous men, the President not excepted, but they display a courage and vitality that augurs ill for the rest of the country, which they evidently regard as so much territory to be despoiled.

To sum up the character of the Venezuelan people would be to describe in part the three primal races from which they have sprung. They are brave in battle, but display the doggedness and ferocity of the Indian, tempered with the docility of the negro, rather than the rash valor and cruelty of the Spaniard. They tolerate the bull-fight, but prohibit the use of horses, presumably to make the spectacle a little more humane. When a revolution is over, the lives of the prisoners are as safe as if they had merely engaged in a sham battle, and only one case has occurred in modern times of a revolutionist suffering the death penalty. On the other hand, President Castro has acted in a most inhuman manner towards the officers and aiders of the Matos revolution, a thousand of whom are now languishing in the dungeons of Maracaybo and Puerto Cabello, many of them chained together like prisoners of the Middle Ages.

In speech the Venezuelan can use all the polite forms; nevertheless, he lacks much of the courtesy of the Spaniard, or even of his neighbor the Colombian, and at times is guilty of a boorishness that one would hardly expect to find in Spanish America. Some of his habits, too—or at least those of the peon-are often far from

pleasing, and his disregard for cleanliness is quite disgusting to the foreigner.

The business men are shrewd in small matters, but distressingly conservative, and conduct their affairs on the "penny wise, pound foolish " principle that seems to obtain throughout the continent. They seldom take the initiative, preferring to leave all new enterprises to the foreigner, whom they jealously watch for fear he may do too well on his venture. When our people attack their integrity, however, a word in their defense is required. These are hard times in Venezuela. Coffee, the main source of wealth, is down to an abnormally low price; labor is scarce and dear, owing to the recent revolutions; foreign capital is being withheld; and, to crown all, the business interests are being preyed upon by the Government much as the Jews were "bled" by royalty in mediaval times. A merchant may intend to meet his obligations in good faith, may even be prepared to do so, when, without a moment's warning, he is made liable for some new tax or may be secretly blackmailed by a Government official. Or a revolution may break out, bringing his business to a standstill, and the despondent proprietor suddenly finds himself forced to subscribe to a Government loan, both the security and the time of repayment being as uncertain as the outcome of the campaign. It is not uncommon for a business man in the interior to be levied upon by both sides, and then suffer a reprisal at the hands of the victorious party for having lent aid to their opponents. No one in our country can conceive of the hardships and hazards to which he is subjected, and if our exporters have cause to regret doing business in Venezuela, let them at least place the blame where it is due.

There is, of course, much business dishonesty, but it is generally to be found in connection with the Government, or at least participated in by a Government official; and the fact that fraud and crime are not rampant is greatly to the credit of the commercial and industrial classes. The Castro régime marks an era of "graft" such as has never been witnessed in the country before, but the majority of the business

men will be found to have suffered quite as much as the foreigners, and are without the hope of entering a "claim" at some future date.

The peon is intelligent, faithful, and industrious if judged by South American standards, for the shiftlessness with which he is charged is no more than might be expected in a land of constant revolutions. Why should he labor to better his condition, he reasons, when the next revolution may sweep away all his possessions, even to his last burro? Furthermore, he has long since given up any thought of seeking redress before the courts, and the hand-to-mouth life 江 that he leads seems, on the whole, not ill suited to his environment. He is proverbially honest, and would no more think of committing a robbery than he would dream of claiming the right of franchise. He is not a hard drinker, but when intoxicated frequently gets into trouble. He retains the stoicism of the Indian and not a little of the pride of the Spaniard, but has lost, apparently, the jollity of his negro progenitors, and gives one an impression of morosenessin keeping, certainly, with his miserable He demands high wages because the simplest necessities of life are phenomenally high, and is really no better off than the laborers in many of the West India Islands who receive only a third as much for their day's work.

existence.

I cannot dismiss the peasant class without bearing tribute to their kindness and hospitality. Shortly after my arrival in Venezuela, while on a country excursion, I had occasion to call at the native huts from time to time for some slight favor. Not only was I treated with uniform courtesy, but money, as a rule, was declined; one good wife informing me that a glass of water could be had for the asking, but could not be bought. The Roman Catholic religion prevails in Venezuela, as throughout South America, but the power of the clergy has been very much weakened. As in Argentina, the Church receives a meager support from the State, but is in the humiliating position of having its policy controlled by the President, who does not scruple to use harsh measures when The late Guzman

it suits his purpose.

Blanco, indeed, severed the relations entirely and confiscated the property of several orders of monks, expelling the latter from the country. To show his freedom of thought, moreover, this eccentric dictator actually erected a large Masonic Temple in Caracas and paid for it out of the national exchequer. General Castro has given equal offense by having a divorce law passed, and although only one divorce has as yet been granted, the Church is bitterly opposed to the measure and inclined to strive for its repeal. As in many other Catholic countries, the clergy exercise more power in the towns than in the cities, and have treble the number of adherents among the women that they have among the men.

The cause of education, which received great attention during the Guzman-Blanco régime, has steadily declined ever since, and is so neglected by the Castro Administration that the whole system at the present day may be described as an utter farce. There is an attempt to keep up public schools in the cities and towns, and municipal schools are also sustained, but both alike are so wretched that only the poorest parents avail themselves of the privilege of a free education for their children. tunately, there are parochial and private schools of better standing which are patronized by the upper and middle classes; but as each creates its own standards and methods, the education even of the children of the best families is quite haphazard. In vast sections of the country no attempt is made to support schools of any sort, and the children, consequently, are little better off than the young Indians of the forest.

For

Eduardo Blanco, the recent Minister of Education, who is a cousin of the late Guzman-Blanco, has no doubt struggled heroically with the small resources at his command, and has been one of the fewmen in the Government who seem actuated by a spirit of patriotism. In the universities, of which there are two, and the institutions for higher education, more, perhaps, is being accomplished, but the writer had ne opportunity of investigating the conditions outside of the public schools.

The general standard of intelligence seems, on the whole, higher than one could expect in a people whose education is necessarily so limited; but it must be remembered that the schools were much more efficient two decades ago, and that the Caracas University, which at that time included in its Faculty Dr. Ernst, a prominent German scientist, bore a high reputation not only throughout Spanish America but in Europe as well. The great lack of books and instructive periodicals is very noticeable, and the daily press, which is almost beneath contempt, has less prestige than that of any South American Republic the writer has visited, not excepting Paraguay. One must remember, however, that it is denied the slightest independence in any question relating even remotely to the policy of the Government, so that one must temper his criticism with a good deal of sympathy.

The remarkable political conditions which now prevail can hardly be presented clearly in this limited space. The present situation, however, is briefly as follows: After forty years of anarchy fostered by innumerable factions, many of whom clung to an absurd interpretation of the doctrine of State rights, Venezuela yielded to the despotic but beneficent dictatorship of GuzmanBlanco, who remained at the head of

affairs for nineteen years. This, how. ever, while advancing the country's interests, so undermined all republican institutions and left the people so unfitted to protect their rights that the nation has since been a prey to a succession of unscrupulous dictators and their puppets. General Castro, who has now been in power five years, has shown himself to be one of the most irresponsible tyrants that South America has ever seen, and bids fair to reduce the entire nation to bankruptcy if he is not soon overthrown.

The writer cannot venture an opinion as to what the outcome will be, except that the Castro régime is doomed. Whether the nation will be able to restore at least a semblance of representative government or will fall a prey to yet another military adventurer can hardly be predicted even by the Venezuelans themselves, and some, in despair, look to the intervention of the United States to save the country from a repetition of the present disastrous conditions. If the people were of the same blood as the Argentine and Chilian nation, one could regard the outlook more optimistically; but, as I have pointed out, they are a new and untried race, and the process of regeneration is beset with great difficulty. Caracas, Venezuela.

I

N a gray, lifeless Russian hamlet, as the dusk thickened, old Isaac sat by his mud-hut door, eagerly nodding over a book and straining his eyes to finish the chapter. His tall back was crooked and bony; a black cap covered his baldness; his clean gray beard hid deep wrinkles; his eyes by overuse were small and faded; his bushy brows twitched nervously up and down. In the miry street before him two hollow bellied dogs were sniffing garbage; a rooster with a lonely but still gay feather in his tail was contemplating three shy, featherless hens; and a baby sat chuckling at its muddy, wiggling toes. SudSud

denly the babe's face grew solemn and resolute; he crept behind the ogling rooster and jerked out the one gay feather. In despair and rage the bird turned and pecked the babe. The babe howled. Isaac put his hands to his ears, but it was useless; he looked up, tired and nervous, and you could see now that his left eyelid drooped. He observed the howling babe gripping the feather, and his eyes twinkled as he turned and thus addressed the bird:

"Saul," he said, in Yiddish, "fear not. The hens shall still sing thy praises. There is no young rooster David here." As he looked around the dead, squalid