REPRODUCED AT THE NATIONAL ARCHIVES. DECLASSIFIED Authority Stateletter Wahz By ME. NARA Cate 2418 seen in Costa Rica engaged in various lines of business.
It requires no student of economics to note that the very difficult financial situation in which costa Rica as a Government and the merchant and trader class as champions of trade find themselves, is not the time to open up new business establishments with any hope of compensating monetary return. The answer is. they do not expect such return. Only last week the DIARIO DE COSTA RICA published a lengthy article in which without mentioning names but indicating plainly the no torious Enrique Yankelewitz (to whom reference has frequently been made in despatches from this Legation)
and assistants as the agents, it was explained that one could order a suit made by these recentlyestablished tailors, or purchase knick knacks and dry goods from the wandering peddlars, make little or no down payment and none thereafter, without fear of being taken into the courts or having other serious measures taken against him for collection.
There is little natural tendency toward Communism among the costa Rigans. In fact, the peasant and small property owners do not knom what it is all about. They do know, however, that pathetically poor as they are in this world goods, they are able to secure from these pedalars articles sufficient for their limited needs at prices below those quoted by their nationals in the little corner shop. And the pedalars constantly remind