A COMIC OPERA AUTOCRAT.

Grey River Argus, 24 November 1910, Page 8

A COMIC OPERA AUTOCRAT.

Latin America produces a type of egotdsm and •truculence that is quite unique. That comic . opera person, General Valladares, of Honduras, (who ever heard of a plain -CoFanel ; jri these parts ?•) . is a case on point. When in 1907 President Davila "Srove Senor Boniila into exile General Valladares fled to Amapala, which is situated on an island twenty miles from' the mainland;, and seized .the Customs, which he admiinistered, paying his own personal expenses and maintaining his troops with the proceeds- The Fresident,:.was powerSsss to remove him. When the President sent hiis Foreign Minister to pay an official call on ,n United States cruiser that was visit^nM Amapala, the General kept the Mm

ister prisoner for a couple of days. A few weeks ago the. General . came into conflict with the power of Britain. He 'attempted to arrest 'the British Consul on: >a charge of fomenting a -rebellion, and the Consul barely escaped with his life. When'the GeneraJ learned that the American and" British residents were petitionding .for his removal, he threaened to string them all up by the thumbs, and when he heard that a British kunboat was on the way to Amapala, declared that his forces would raze the cilty if- she <ap>;. peared. The United States he had already grossly insulted. When the United States Minister ■arrived at Amapala, on his way to it-he capital, General Valladaores refused 'to welcome ■him, declaring that he "he did snot intend l to show honour to one of Taft's dogs," and shortly afterwards named him "the pet dog of Taft." to show his contempt for America. The United States pocketed the insult; The explanation of such escapades prob-" ably is that their authors have no idea of -the size and power of foreign countries. Likes ithe notorious Castro of Venezuela', they 'think their own countries great Powers, -and imagine that they cando do what they please •to barbarians from elsewhere.