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Hokitika Guardian, 3 August 1928, Page 2

Tiie rule of the despot is invariably .severe, aiul history lias numerous examples where, tlio severity of such rule finds out the weak verses of such radical systems of Government. There arc - three European countries which are at present governed bv absolute despotisms—Russia, Italy and Spain—and as a natural consequence the recent history of all these countries has been constantly punctuated with records of rebellious plots and conspiracies. No civilised human l»ings are long satisfied to live under a tyranny, and all that absolutism can do against discontent is to drive it underground. Tn Spain constitutional government lias been for sonic years past replaced by a military despotism, and the inevitable consequence lias .been the recurrence of plots against the King—who is not ]>ersoiially unpopular—and the Dictator; General Primo de Rivera. Of course, there aro specific, causes of discontent— corruption, maladministration and the exhaustion of the country’s resources by the endless African war. But the real malady which is eating out Spain’s heart is the longing for freedom, and until the jieople secure a much larger measure of social and political and intellectual liberty than they now possess, King Alfonso will have no reasonable prospect of ending his days in safety and peace. The plot recently disclosed by a “Daily Mail” correspondent may not have l>een so widespread and dangerous as the report indicates. But it is merely one symptom of flic revolutionary impulses that arc constantly working below the surfa.ee in Spain.