ANARCHY IN ARGENTINA.

Marlborough Express, Volume XLIV, Issue 58, 14 March 1910, Page 3

ANARCHY IN ARGENTINA.

REVOLUTION THREATENED

CHIEF OF POLICE KILLED BY

A BOMB

The chief of Buenos Ayres police, Colonel Ramoi Falcon, was killed on Sunday, November 14, by an anarchist bomb thrown into his carriage while he was returning from the funeral of the late Colonel Bellve, commander of the national prisons. For the past six months (says the correspondent of the Lyttelton Times) the anarchist section of the community have had the late .Colonel Falcon "listed." Although he knew of this, he took no special precaution whatever, and he paid the penalty for his neglect. The thrower of the bomb followed the coach, in which Colonel Falcon was driving, and on its slackening speed to turn a corner, he threw the bomb into the vehicle and literally blew the legs off both| Falcon and his secreary. Such dastardly outrages are only ;fco be expected when one knows the conditions of life here. The anarchist section of the community in this city has been growning rapidly, and the whole social structure is threatened unless measures are taken to remove the causes of this rapid growth. Unfortunately the measures taken by the auhorities are not such as commend themselves to thoughtful men. ELECTIONS AND ANARCHY. To understand the present outburst of anarchy one must know something of the style of voting and go back in the history of the country for some years. Every elector in Argentina, on registering his name, receives a little cardbook book called a "libreta." This is supposed to identify him at election time. These j "libretas" are openly bought and I sold, and with them, of course, the 1 vote. The party seeking to retain themselves in power, or their opponents, purchase these books, and weeks before the elections come on, they are, at times, foregone conclusions. Such swindles were not barefaced enough, so a new and less expensive scheme was devised. The official party had duplicate books made of all names on the roll, - and these were used by their friends for voting purposes. Some of the voters whose votes were recorded had been | dead eight or ten years, but that did not matter.

This style of managing elections gave satisfactory results to the party, but later the trouble and expense of issuing false "libretas" became too great. The perpetrators of electoral swindles get bolder by degrees. A more simple dodge was next adopted. When the "Government's" friends came into the bootli 5 they exercised their own vote; but. when an opposition man came in he was told he had already voted. If he denied it, the roll would be produced with his name marked off, and he was told to "get out." If he did not "get out," he was, if in the city, taken to the police station and thence to prison for a month or two awaiting trial, to be ultimately discharged without a stain on his character, but with the prints of his fingers registered at the police office and his photograph placed at the disposal of every policeman in the country. If the election were being held in some of the provinces, he probably would be sent on that long journey "whence none return," by one or other of the half-bred Indian police who are "the representatives oi law and order" in remote districts.

"IRREGULARITIES" AT THE

POLLS

One would have thought that under these conditions electors would give up fighting for the rights of citizenship. ' Not so, however, the Labour party here, called locally "the Socialists." At the last election they decided to plump for their man. By arrangement they went to the booths in perfect order and kept the officials occupied all day. No one but the labour men turned out to vote. There opponents did not trouble. They knew their party would be made to win. In one city election labour polled 6000 votes for one Palacois. Notwithstanding this

his opponent was declared elected by over 1000 of a majority. Everyone knows, and everyone admits, that Palacios won the election fairly and squarely. Those who risked life and i limb in going to the booth are denied | the right or satisfaction of seeing j the man they elected in Congress. LABOUR'S TROUBLES. Having patiently tried every rational and legitimate means of securing representation in the Congress, these men organised a monster meeting last Labour Day, at which it was proposed "to discuss" the irregularities of the electio-i and other matters affecting Labour. The different societies, after forming at their respective rooms, were marching to the place of meeting, when certain of the members of the more "advanced" societies—those of distinctly "anti-clorical" tendencies—hooted at a Roman Catholic church on passing. That was pretext enough for the late j Colonel Falcon to "let go" fifty or sixty of his "faithfuls." They sounded tho buglo and rode down on the procession at full tilt. Once in the middle of it, they dismounted, formed a ring behind their horses, and fired indiscriminately into the crowd. Quite a number were killed. Of course the anarchists were blamed by the official Press for starting the row. They were alleged to have fired the first shot, b\it all the examinations made have failed to produce one policeman with a buttet would. Some horses were wounded—hut by tho type of bullet tised by the police. Hemmed in as the workers are in this country, oppressed by employers, and hounded by the police, and exploited by the property-owning class, no one who has looked into the position of matters carefully can feel surprised that some •of the workers loso their heads and give way to acts of anarchy. The condition of tho average worker is pitiable in the extreme. Owing to the enormous rents, the labouring classes huddle together into "conventillos," houses containing twenty, thirty, and even up to seventy rooms, all leased out per room. Two and even three families sometimes live in one large room. Rentals of single rooms vary from £1 10s to £3 10s, according to size and position. THE LAND MONOPOLY. Instead,of trying to. break up the land monopoly, and thereby get the people Qn the land on reasonable terms., the Government, when it needs money, increases the taxes on food and other necessaries of life and civilisation. The food supply of the city has to pay an octroi duty before it is allowed to enter. Every quart of milk, every dozen eggs, every fowl, has to. pay a contribution to the municipal authority. The duty or octroi paid by the rich is not felt by the man with a long purse; but the working man, who has a small income and a big family, is .hit as with a sledge-hammer. One recent instance will suffice. The Government here decreed that a stamp to the value of five cents must be placed on every cake of soap that is offered for sale. The man who buys common soap worth ten cents per cake is hit with a 50 per cent increase on this item, whilst the rich man who uses a special imported high-class article costing one dollar is faced with a 5 per cent increase. This is no isolated instance. So it is right through the lis. The workers are tired of this. They feel they are being oppressed; and in some instances they wreak their vengeance on the men whom they fancy are the representatives ofrfcheir oppressors. ,- ■ - *■'**&' - • • ■..■■-. A "STATE OF SIEGE." The Government lost its head when it became aware that Colonel Falcon had been assasinated, and immediately declared a "state of siege." This left the military in control of the city. Immediately, all newspapers known to have a leading towards "reform" were closed down. Decrees were issued prohibiting the rest of the Press from referring to Colonel Falcon's death or to acts of anarchy whether in Argentina or abroad. Under this decree if news came of the assasination of the Tsar of Russia the newspaper press could not publish it in this "lovely country of the free." The day after Falcon's death the official papers were very anxious1 to make their readers believe that the assasin was a Russian; but such is not the case. He is an Argentine born and bred. The cry was "deport these foreign anarchists" ■'; now silence is the rule. Under the state of siege the Gov- | ernment can do anything, and is doj ing it with a vengeance. The newspapers that are read by the working classes and sympathise with them have been closed. Some 700 persons have .been placed under arrest. ' Of these 200 have been sent, without trial, to Ushuia, a penal settlement of the Argentine Government on Tierra del Fuego. The other 500 are beina returned to the country of their birth. They, or others, will return next year, after the scare has worn off, for Argentina accepts the scum of Europe and Asia. All are welcome and no questions asked.

REVOLUTION IN PROSPECT

Unless some radical changes are brought about Argentina, will, within a comparatively short period, be plunged into revolution. Things cannot go on much longer as they are. Were the wealthy class united, one would look only for industrial wars such as strikes, riots and lockouts. However, the wealthy are far from being one big happy family. The bone of contention is power and its perquisites. The Presidential election looms large on the political horizon. There are two candidates, Dr Rogue Saenz Pena and Dr Udaondo. The former is the representative of the party now in power. He has the support of the wealthy commercial class. His past record is one that commands confidence. Saenz Pena promises "reform"; Udaondo nothing. The workers or Socialist party stand between the two. They like Pena's "promise of reform," but distrust the man, whose past record cannot compare with that of his opponent. They dislike the clerical party and the "bosses of labour who are backing Udaondo, but like the man and his record. That is the position briefly and clearly. The rival factions are getting warm already, and by the time the election comes "along "white heat." will probably he reached, and when party politics reach that degree of warmth everything or anything is possible m a city like this, filled with the refuse from all the countries of Southern Europe and South-western Asia.