170 The National Geographic Magazine 



ceeding term. In Paraguay the presi- 

 dent is chosen b}^ a direct^ vote of the 

 people for four years, and both presi- 

 dent and vice-president are non-eligible 

 for eight years. Brazil, the last of these 

 countries to assume a republican form 

 of government, and profiting by the ex- 

 perience of its neighbors, provided for 

 the election of its president b^' a direct 

 vote of the people for four years, and 

 made him ineligible for reelection. Its 

 constitution also contains a provision 

 that the candidates must not be related 

 b}- blood or marriage to the outgoing 

 president or vice-president in the first 

 or second degree. In Venezuela the 

 choice of the chief executive is somewhat 

 complicated. Congress consists of two 

 houses, the representatives being elected 

 for two years by the people, and the 

 senators for four years b}- the state 

 legislatures. A federal council of nine- 

 teen members is chosen every two years 

 by the congress, who elects a presiding 

 officer from their own number, and he 

 is president of the republic for the two 

 years. Neither the president nor coun- 

 cil can be reelected for the next term. 



When these countries declared their 

 independence and first essayed the prac- 

 tice of republican government, they soon 

 found that the greatest danger to their 

 institutions arose from the disposition 

 of the chief executives to prolong their 

 power by continuance in, office, in vio- 

 lation of the constitutional provision. 

 Iturbide, the first president of Mexico, 

 betrayed his trust, declared himself em- 

 peror, and dissolved the congress ^y 

 force, precipitating the country into 

 revolution and paying the penalty with 

 his life. 



Simon Bolivar, the most renowned of 

 the Spanish-American patriots and the 

 one who did most to achieve the inde- 

 pendence of the South American coun- 

 tries, marked his entire career by over- 

 riding their constitutional provisions as 

 to the executive and by assuming dicta- 

 torial powers. As earl)- as 1813 he 



captured Caracas from the Spaniards 

 and set up the government of Vene- 

 zuela, but he at once declared himself 

 dictator, established a court and body- 

 guard, and assumed royal dignities. 

 He soon became unpopular, met with 

 reverses, and had to flee the country. 

 Returning after some years, he led the 

 insurrectionary movement which gave 

 final independence to Venezuela and 

 Colombia, and thence went to the aid 

 of the struggling Peruvian patriots, 

 achieved their independence, and was 

 made dictator of that countr}-. Having 

 failed in his effort to secure a provision 

 in the constitution making himself 

 president for life, he returned to Co- 

 lombia, where he was chosen president 

 of the united states of Colombia and 

 Venezuela. Seeking in vain to secure 

 a constitutional provision giving him 

 practicall}^ absolute power, he declared 

 himself dictator. Being suspected of 

 desiring to make himself a king, he lost 

 his popularit}^, was driven from power, 

 and died in retirement. He was called 

 ' ' the Washington of South America, ' ' 

 but be3'ond his gallant ser^dces in secur- 

 ing the independence of the northern 

 states of South America, he had little 

 in common with Washington in his con- 

 duct or character. The example of the 

 latter was lost upon him when he re- 

 jected the offer of the American army 

 to make him king, and when, after 

 having enjoj^ed the free suffrages of his 

 countrjanen as President, he voluntarily 

 laid down the great office and retired to 

 private life. 



If the history of the I^atin American 

 republics is carefully examined it will 

 be seen that the cause of most of the 

 revolutions which have darkened its 

 pages, decimated their population, and 

 retarded their development has had its 

 origin in the efforts of the public men 

 of those countries to continue them- 

 selves in power or to attain the presi- 

 dency by other than peaceful and con- 

 stitutional methods. With rare excep- 



