CHAPTER XVIII.
PRESENT CONDITION AND FUTURE PROSPECTS OF PERU.
Population—Civil wars—Government—Constitution—General Castilla and his ministers—Dr. Vigil—Mariano Paz Soldan—Valleys on the coast—Cotton, wool, and specie—The Amazons—Guano—Finances—Literature—Future prospects.
After a sojourn of a few days at Lima we took a final farewell of the land of the Incas, on June 29th, 1860. As we steamed along the coast, in sight of the emerald-green valleys, surrounded by trackless wastes of sand, and of the glorious cordilleras which towered up behind them, a long train of memories passed in array before us. In this land alone, of all the nations of the earth, did the ideal of a perfect patriarchal form of government become a reality. Here, too, are the scenes of the most romantic episode in modern history, comprised in the career of the Pizarros. The sufferings of the gentle Indians excited the indignation of the Elizabethan chivalry; the fabulous riches extracted from the mines of Peru attracted the adventurous spirit of the buccaneers of a baser age; and the brave struggle for independence led more than one gallant Englishman to shed his blood in the cause of Peruvian liberty.[351] What is now the state of this famous land, and what prospect is there of the glowing hopes expressed in Mr. Canning's well-known speech ever being fulfilled, are questions which cannot fail to arouse some passing interest.
In giving an account of the present condition and future prospects of Peru, the invariable kindness and frank hospitality of its inhabitants impose an obligation to speak with as much leniency and forbearance as the interests of truth will admit. The South American Republics are peopled by races of mixed origin, who are doubtless inferior to Europeans, both mentally and physically; and the unsettled condition of those countries, which inevitably succeeded the struggles for an independence for which the people were unprepared, has continued longer than might justly have been expected. But it appears to be a generally received idea in England, originating from the accounts of travellers unacquainted with the people, and ignorant of their language, that the South Americans are a mongrel degraded race, incapable of improvement, and hopelessly degenerate.[352] So far as my experience extends, and after a careful consideration of the subject, I can see no grounds for resigning the hope that a brighter future is yet in store for the land of the Incas.
It is true that, after a casual and superficial glance at the state of affairs in South America since the expulsion of the Spaniards, the prospect appears sufficiently gloomy. But a more intimate acquaintance with the subject, and especially a knowledge of the tone of thought amongst the younger men, as expressed in conversation and in their writings, would show that, under the surface, noble aspirations and steady enlightened views prevail, which must eventually yield fruit, and thus justify our hopes for the future. When independence was established in South America, there were two principal causes which led to the civil wars which ensued; namely, the question between a federal or a centralized form of government, and the disputes respecting boundaries. The power attained during the revolution by the armies, and the selfish ambition, treason, and corruption of public men, aggravated these sources of evil to a melancholy extent. But other countries, far greater and nobler than these poor struggling republics, have had to pass through as long and as degrading a crisis in their history. Englishmen must remember the thirty years comprising the reigns of the two last Stuarts with quite as much shame as the great-grandchildren of the present Peruvians will experience when they learn the history of their country for the first forty years after its independence. It is recorded that in a British House of Commons there was but one Andrew Marvel. To my personal knowledge there are now several Andrew Marvels in Chile and Peru. These young and inexperienced countries have had to pass through a fierce ordeal, and, truth to say, they have played their part but indifferently as yet. They indeed require forbearance, but let us not turn from them with disdain and contempt, in the pride of our present grandeur and prosperity. Were treason and corruption and base selfish faction never rife in England's court and parliament?
The fatal mistake of several of the old Spanish colonies was in establishing a federal system of government, in imitation of the United States. This was the case in Mexico, Central America, New Granada, and the Argentine Confederation. No system can possibly be more entirely unsuited to a thinly-peopled mountainous region, without roads, and unprovided with a sufficient number of capable educated men in the distant provinces to undertake the local government. Power necessarily falls into the hands of any cunning adventurer, every little state becomes a focus for revolution, and an endless succession of civil wars are the result. Such, in fact, has been the fate of those republics where federation has been established. Pernicious as centralization always is when carried too far in old and densely-peopled countries, it is an absolute necessity in young states, with a small population thinly scattered over a vast extent of country. The distant inaccessible districts do not possess the materials for self-government within themselves, and necessarily depend for their prosperity and advancement on the capital.