State
Treasury; and it was verified that up to April 30th last there existed a
sum of Rs. 87,000,000 (L5,800 sterling), which became reduced to Rs.
50,000,000 (L3,334 sterling) after the payments made on the 1st, 3rd, and
4th of the present month (May, 1910). It must be understood that the
above-mentioned sum does not represent a balance existing in the
Treasury, because it includes deposits and guarantees, as well as the
deposits of the Orphan Asylum and of the Monte Pio.

"Leaving out the sums left in the Treasury on deposit, and which
represent in fact a debt of the State, we come to the conclusion that
there is no money whatever in the Treasury, and that the State '_ainda
fica a dever_' (is instead deep in debt). The expenses were vastly higher
than the income of the Province and whereas the expenses of
administration increased daily, the receipts remained stationary."

There was a certain humour in the Presidente's remarks on crime, when he
referred to the difficulties experienced by the Chief of Police, who
received no remuneration.

[Illustration: The Author's Six Followers.]

"It is easy," he said, "to understand the drawbacks resulting for the
maintenance of order and the repression of crime, which is daily becoming
more common--owing, no doubt, to the facility of entrance, through our
unguarded boundaries, of persecuted people or fugitives from our
neighbouring States, and of the impunity of criminals due to the
benevolence of our juries. The diminution of our police force in so large
a State with such difficult communications has had the result that the
police force, moved incessantly from one end of the State to the other,
never arrives in time to prevent crime!

"Many criminals have been prosecuted and are now safely guarded in
prisons, but unhappily the greater number of criminals are loose all over
the State without fear of being prosecuted, and terrorizing the
population. Bands of gipsies were followed by officers and soldiers, and
their attacks on property and individuals were prevented.... In the town
of Catalao the two armed parties were successfully prevented from
violence and '_viessem as maos_' (coming to blows). At Morrinhos armed
citizens in a menacing attitude were dispersed by the police ... in other
localities other riots or attempts (_sic_) at disorder were immediately
repressed, and we can now say that the State enjoys perfect peace, save
the municipality of Douro, which is threatened