Swift and Sure: The Story of a Hydroplane Read online

  Produced by Al Haines.

  Cover art]

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  IN THE NICK OF TIME]

  SWIFT AND SURE

  The Story of a Hydroplane

  By

  HERBERT STRANG

  Author of 'King of the Air,' 'Barclay of the Guides,' etc., etc.

  ILLUSTRATED BY J. FINNEMORE

  LONDON HENRY FROWDE HODDER AND STOUGHTON 1910

  RICHARD CLAY AND SONS, LIMITED, BREAD STREET HILL, E.C., AND BUNGAY, SUFFOLK.

  PREFACE

  Exactly a century has passed since the French invasion of Spain gave thesignal for a general revolt of the Spanish-American Colonies. In thetwenty years' struggle that ensued, Spain paid in kind for more thanthree centuries of Colonial misrule. Her garrisons, again and againreinforced from the mother country, fought a losing fight, with theold-time Spanish gallantry that had won for Ferdinand the Empire of theWest. But the tide of freedom swept them remorselessly from oneprovince after another, and with them went the swarms of corruptofficials who since the days of Cortes and Pizarro had plundered thecolonies for the benefit of the Spanish treasury.

  In the northern provinces the leading spirit of revolt was SimonBolivar, a man whose many faults of character were obscured by anextraordinary energy and enthusiasm. He is said to have fought fourhundred battles; his victories were sullied by inhuman barbarities; hisdefeats were retrieved by unconquerable perseverance. Bolivar wasinstrumental in founding five republics, among them that of his nativeprovince of Venezuela, of which he was the first President.

  Ten years of one of the grimmest struggles known to history gave freedomto Venezuela and her sister republics; but in the north, as in manyother parts of the Continent, freedom has for the past century spelt,not liberty, but licence. Centuries of slavery, in fact if not in name,had rendered the mixed races of South America unfit for self-government.The mass of the people merely exchanged one set of corrupt rulers foranother; the history of the South American Republics has been for themost part a chronicle of incessant civil war between the partisans ofrival dictators. Venezuela has in this respect one of the saddestrecords. Since Bolivar, her first liberator, died in exile eighty yearsago, she has enjoyed scarcely five consecutive years of peace. Althoughblessed with boundless natural resources, the country is probably themost backward of all states that can claim a place among civilizednations. The population of Venezuela is believed to be less at thepresent time than during the Spanish domination; and it is doubtfulwhether the condition of the people has been sensibly bettered by ahundred years of self-government.

  The best hope for this and other South American republics seems to be inthe gradual opening up of the Continent by the capital and enterprise ofmore progressive communities. This movement has hitherto been checkedby the insecurity of life and property due to constantly recurringrevolutions. But sooner or later trade and commerce, one of thegreatest of civilizing agencies, must bring the nations of South Americainto such close relationship with Europe and the United States that theycannot fail to recognize the value of stable political institutions.This recognition will be the first step towards what the wars ofindependence should have given, but did not give them--liberty.

  HERBERT STRANG.

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