DECLASSIEU Authority Stateletter Inhz ay me NART Date 2498 their cedulas have been given to persons who will vote for Picado.
About 5, 000 Nicaraguans living in Costa Rica have been naturalized, but not trusting them to vote for Picado, their cedulas have been, according to usually accurate sources, kept by the Government and will be voted by the Government. All the usual net hods of stuffing the ballot boxes, padding voting lists, etc. will be used. Intimidation of Cortés adherents, which has been going on for some tine, is expected to break out in open fights on election day. At one Democratic Party rally in Cartage, the great majority of those present carried sticks witla which to defend themselves should they be molested by shock troop tactics, and humorously called such stocks flags since a small Costa Rican flag was attached to the end of the stick to increase the effective ness of their rough hoa sen nethods, the undenied rumor is circulating that the Government is making black jacks in the shops of the Pacific Railway. Trains and busses, provided by the Goverment, are pressed into service to transport men to each Pleado rally. Jeeps, nachine gun carriers and armed policy are usually in evidence as another means of showing great strength and determination on the part of the Administration to win the elections.
All these preparations have resulted in a certain amount of pessimis among the Democrats. They often complain that against such ans they would have Httle chance, once the six rounds of pistol ammunition some of thom possess, is exhausted. The United States Government has been eriticised: for sending land lease materials to keep the Administration in power, and one Cortés deputy has gone so far as to suggest that Cortés may resign in protest, since there is no authority to which he or his Party could appeal a grossly unfair election. Regardless of Democratic Party pessimism, and the possibilities on the Government side for endnging the dections in its favor, the man Vinister of Public Security has informed the Embassy that the garrisons in those districts which are predominantly pro Cortés aro being stripped of most of their arms and ammunition, in order to prevent ans. Inom fall.
ing into the opposition hands. We can retake them later from San Joses he added. Given the unmilitary tradition of the Costa Ricans at is not too easy to see how this du be done. The Government does not appear to be too sun of its own military forces, and when Lt. Golonel Blair, head of the American Military Mission here, took out a group of soldiers to teach than the use of machine guns using real bullets, only four men were chosen, because as the Costa Rican officer in charge admitted to Colonel Blair, the four man selected were the only ones that could be trusted from that particular group.
The Government has also expressed the fear that the telegraph lines will be cut on election day. This would be an advantage for the Demo cratic Party in that the Government would not be immediately infomed of centers of disturbance which could get out of hand, as far as the Administration is concerned, and more important, it would not give the Administration time to revise the votes in San Joséto counternet une favorable returns elsewhere. The Government, therefore, plans to use radio communications.
Some fear has also been expressed by the Administration that Gutemala would be able to suggle arms to Cortés, and President Somosa of Nicaragua has told President Calderón Guardia that he does not like the cortunistic influences in the Vanguardia Popular Party Noithor of these countries is likely to intervene or send material aid to Cortés but