IMPRESSIONS OF SPAIN.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXXII, Issue 35, 6 February 1912, Page 7

IMPRESSIONS OF SPAIN.

Some interesting impressions of Spain, together with its neighbour, Portugal, have been given to a Christchurch “Press” representative by a gentleman who, though a German by birth, lias lived many years in the land of sunshine and oranges. ~ Catalonia, he said, was the great industrial province ; the rest of .Spain practically was dead; the people, though they grew their oranges, etc., were too lazy. The people of Catalonia wore really a different people from the ordinary Spaniards, a mixture of French and Spanish blood flowing in their veins. These people, the only working class possessed of any energy in the country, had to j>ay the greater part of the taxes, and this they strongly objected to. Furthermore, the people were much better educated than the people in the other parts of the country, and they saw the injustice of their position; hence their discontent. Their attitude towards Spain was like that of the Irish towards England. They wanted to be separated from Spain and rule themselves. King Alfonso and his English spouse were personally very popular in the country; the King was broad-minded and tried to develop his country, but die. was always under the influence of the clericals, who were the cause of practically all the trouble in the land. People wanting to secure influence had to get it through the clericals; it was the only way. When the gentleman who gave the interview loft last July, the, country was very quiet, but it required just a thing like the Ferrer business' to set the whole country in a flame once again. The chances of theiisuccessful revolution, however, he thought, were very remote—and matters were really bettor as they were than if a republic were in existence, as the people were different to the German and English races, they always went to either extreme, and as only 45 per cent of the population were educated, and very few of the revolutionaries, the result of a revolution could easily be'left to the aiivagination. Spain was a nice country to live in, and the people were most hospitable, especially to foreigners, whom they regarded as more advanced peoples than themselves. Ho considered Spain to-day for business people showed very great joossibilities. There were there just as many chances to be had as in New Zealand, Canada, or Australia. The ' country was rich in minerals, and the real Spaniard was not the man of enterprise to develop it. Speaking of Portugal, the visitor said he had been told by very reliable persons that this country would remain a republic. Trouble had been not so much with the King, but he had been practically compelled to do all that Franco, the Dictator, instructed him to do; and the result was that when the people objected to Franco’s methods, the unfortunate King received his share of the objection.