Year of Peace

Every house in Madrid last week displayed either the flag of Nationalist Spain or a picture of Francisco Franco, or both. Along the broad, tree-lined Gran Via and the busy Calle de Alcala leading to the Puerta del Sol, from new flagpoles fluttered thousands of the red-&-gold flags, flanked by the emblems of Spain's single Fascist party, the Falange Espanola, and of the traditionalist Requetes. Each pole bore the single word: Paz.

For a fortnight Spain and its tubby little Caudillo had been working up to a celebration of the first anniversary of peace. On April 1, 1939, Generalissimo Franco issued his last communique, announcing the end of 32 months of civil war. This year, for the first time since the days of Alfonso XIII, Seville celebrated Holy Week with traditional splendor, and to Seville last fortnight went General Franco to give his blessing to Spain's return to Catholicism.* Back in Madrid, he was acclaimed by thousands of Madrilenos in a Falange-sponsored demonstration. He held a reception for the diplomatic corps, entertained 3,000 Army officers at luncheon in the Royal Palace. Finally, this week, came the celebration of Peace Day.

In a black uniform and the red beret of the Falange, El Caudillo reviewed 15,000 troops marching through the flag-bedecked but still war-scarred streets. Behind the troops marched column after column of Falangists, led by Franco's brother-in-law Ramon Serrano Suner, chanting their battle song, Face to the Sun. Fighting planes roared overhead. Authoritarian Spain had been told it had much to be happy about. Special editions of Government-controlled newspapers had shown the contrast between Spain of a year ago and Spain of today. Brother-in-law Serrano, who is also Minister of Government (interior), had inaugurated a public-works program calling for the erection of 700 workingmen's homes in the suburb of Usera. Just announced were a new air service treaty with Italy and a trade pact with Japan.

Scars of War. But the truth was that in Spain's year of peace few war scars had healed. And if anyone wanted to see what Western Europe had a good chance of looking like after a year or so of total war, Spain was the place to see it. A few miles from the Puerta del Sol, Madrid's hub, lie the desolate ruins of suburbs where fighting raged for more than two years. The $50,000,000 University City is a pile of rubble, and in West Park, where trenches still remain, only 33 trees are left standing. In Barcelona and Bilbao, Spain's first and second seaports, the destruction is almost as great. The Government has estimated that it will take at least ten years to carry out the reconstruction program already planned.

With economic life upturned by the long struggle, the cost of living has increased 50% in Spain in the past year. Wages have not gone up. Bread lines in Catalonia are longer than during the blockade of the Republic. In Valencia, famed for its arroz dishes, there is a scarcity of rice. Aristocrats dine at Madrid's Ritz on chick peas. Butter, eggs, meat, oil. coffee and sugar are rationed, when they can be had at all.

Leather is scarce and so is cotton. The orange crop was normal last year and Spain had an export surplus, but olives and olive oil, the country's big agricultural exports, were below normal. Exports were at the expense of hungry Spaniards. The output of mineral resources (iron, copper, mercury, potash), in spite of British and Nazi efforts, was about 75% of pre-war normal.

There is a 20% tax on everything in Spain, including taxicab fares. Two-thirds of this goes to Government relief, one-third to the Army. Since last August the Government requires each family to present a budget for inspection. There is little metal currency in circulation in Spain; for change of less than one peseta, postage stamps are used.

There are 1,250,000 unemployed, between 500,000 and 1,000,000 political prisoners. (Daily executions still took place as recently as last December.) Political prisoners who are not too anti-social are put to work on roads and rebuilding projects, guarded by officers with guns. There has been no demobilization of the Army because of fear of a new uprising. In fact, there is a shortage of trusted man power for the Army. Last week the Civil Guard and caribineros were incorporated into the regular Army.

Refugees. Only one of the Republican leaders stayed to face the music. He was 70-year-old Julian Bestiero, who handed Madrid over to Franco and got a 30-year prison term for his courage. In France are ex-Presidents Niceto Alcala Zamora and Manuel Azana, ex-President Luis Companys of Catalonia, onetime Premier Francisco Largo Caballero, Generals Juan Sarabia and Jose Asensio, many others. Premier Juan Negrin and Foreign Minister Julian Alvarez del Vayo are in Mexico, as are some 6,000 of the more Leftist Republican supporters. Madrid's Savior, General Jose Miaja, is also in Mexico. General Vicente Rojo is in Argentina. Corps Commander Enrique Lister, famed Communist fighter, is believed to be in France or Russia. Dolores Ibarruri ("La Pasionaria") is in Russia.

Last week one of the camps of Spanish refugee volunteers in France near the Spanish frontier heard that the frontier was closed, that there was street fighting in northern Spain between Falangists and Requetes. That night three of the refugees slipped across the frontier with two submachine guns and one machine gun. Next day the entire Spanish battalion was in a ferment and the volunteers sat out on the beach singing civil-war songs and talking of mass desertion. The French prudently transferred the entire camp to Valbonne, north of Lyon.

Of 400,000 Spaniards originally interned in refugee camps in France, some 60,000 are working in unpaid labor battalions, 13,000 in paid labor battalions. About 17,000 entered the Foreign Legion and are in Syria. Only a few hundred are in the volunteer battalions in France. Some 6,000 are in refugee camps in North Africa, 4,000 working on road gangs there. About 75,000 were absorbed into war industries, 30,000 into private employment. Hundreds returned to Spain, until returns were stopped last month. Some 180,000 remain in the refugee camps. Last week the camps were ordered closed, but so loud were the protests in France that the closing order was extended to May 1. Then, unless the order is again extended, the refugees will be given their choice of two alternatives: Spain or work.

Seesaw. Of those who have returned and those who will return, some will die and some will give their loyalty to Franco. More will swear allegiance and wait. Even with all Leftist opposition leaders exiled or purged, Spain is split into many political factions--Falangists, Requetes (Carlists), Catholics, Conservatives, Basque and Catalan separatists, Monarchists--and many subdivisions of these.

Even the Falange, which combines all political organizations of the Right, is divided into two camps: Serrano Suner's New Falange, which is purely Fascist, and the Old Falange led by Founder Jose Antonio Primo de Rivera's appointed successor, Fernandez Cuesta, which favors restoration of the monarchy. Most of the Army officers are Monarchists. General Franco has generally been near the middle of the seesaw, first throwing his weight to the generals, then to the Fascists. (Internationally nobody knows where he is; when Hitler recently sent him a Mercedes-Benz France graciously transshipped it.) Under the spell of his persuasive brother-in-law, and probably in enjoyment of his personal prestige, he has lately leaned most heavily on the Falangist side. But one day, as in 1936, some general may get mad and break the plank.

* At the same time negotiations between Spain and the Vatican for a new concordat deadlocked.

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