THE SPANISH THRONE.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 9913, 30 July 1910, Page 6

THE SPANISH THRONE.

DON JAIME, THE BOURBON PRETENDER.

United Press Association—By Electric Telegraph—Copyright. (Received July 30, 0.45 a-m.) LONDON, July 29

Don Jaime, the Bourbon pretender to the Spanish throne, has written to the senators and deputies congratulating thorn on their adherenco to the Pope. He asserts that the day is not far distant when the population and the army will rally to his cause against the enemies of liberty. So-nor Canalejas states that ho will exhaust all means consistent with prudence in his negotiations with the Vatican, but he is determined to keep the promises he has made to the country. The u l'mparcial " says that if the King supports Senor Cavalejas's policy, the latter will initiate measures against the church which will disagreeably surprise the Vatican.

THE CONDITION OF SPAIN

A HOPELESS TANGLE

" What mav be in store for Spain no man can say," wrote a contributor to the "Daily Mail's" latest Year Book. "In a sense, it is true that Africa begins beyond the Pyrenees. The Spanish character, or characters—for each province' has its own traits and tendencies —is so different from that of other ' Latin ' races as to be almost incalculable. The predominance of ecclesiastical influence in Spanish national life, the circumstance that the dynasty and the Church are allied and their interests interwoven, the fact that the ecclesiastical question in Spain is not solely, nor, perhaps, mainly, a question of spiritual control, but is largely one of economics and finance, complicate the problem almost beyond hope of pacific solution. " Not only is the patrimony of the secular clergy immense, > but the religious ' orders, headed by the Jesuits, are so immersed in commercial enterprises of various kinds that little room remains for lay competition on any large scale. Coupled with this commercial predominance, the Church 'in Spain holds an educational monopoly, which it exercises in the direction of preventing an inconveniently rapid spread of enlightenment. It thus stands at once as the custodian of the people's spiritual jweal, the power behind tho State ana behind the Throne, the capitalist ana entrepreneur, and the ' educator' of the young. " Next to the power of the Church comes the power of the cacique, or local 'boss,' who is the fulcrum of the Spanish political leyer. Church and State can always secure his goodwill for a consideration—and, invariably avail themselves of the opportunity. A circle so vicious can hardly be broken by fair words or gentle persuasion."