DEVASSTED Authority Stateletter Inh2 MLAR. 24181 of the paper, and has blamed the delays on the Government Post Office.
Moreover, the Embassy has learned from a reliable source that Pinaud had a bitter scene with the Minister of Labor, in which he accused the latter of favoring the DIARIO with his interviews. It is said that the Minister wished to resign from the Government to settle the affair with Pinaud on a personal basis, but that he was dissuaded from this course of action by his friends.
Be that as it may, the success of the President in gaining the adherence of the moderate Conservatives has stirred the extreme oppositionthe realization that some action is necessary if they are to maintain any degree of popular support. They had apparently hoped to capitalize on the difficult situation facing Picado because of the Congressional proposal to name ex President Calderón Guardia Benemerito de la Patria, but Picado, by refusing to take any action, has blasted their hopes, and the matter has now blown over with the exception of an occasional sarcastic note in the opposition press.
As a first step in consolidating the opposition forces, a meeting was held on the night of November 17 in the office of Dr. Peña Chavarría to discuss plans for strengthening their ranks. It was decided to approach both Acción Demócrata and the Centro Para el Estudio de Problemas Nacionales and request them to join forces, without giving up their individual identities, in a common front, and it was also agreed that a manifesto setting forth the aims of the group would be published. committee was set up to carry on the movement, composed of the following: Ex President León Cortés.
Otilio Late Dr. Antonio Peña Chavarría.
Alfredo Volio.
Fernando Valverde.
Rafael Angel Chavarría.
The DIARIO, as might be expected, gave full publicity to this meeting, and at the same time announced that on November 19 there would be a convention of the members of Acción Demócrata from all over the country, and that the convention would discuss the desirability of joining with the Centro in the formation of a political party. The press organ of the Acción also announced that this convention would take place, and stated that the group was fighting for the creation of a national conscience.
Such a conscience, it went on, would prove the death blow to the decadent political organization which holds us subject to the will of ignorant tropical bosses.
While it is obvious that a consolidation of the various elements opposing the Administration will provide a more effective organization politically, it should be noted that they are still faced with the same problem of the lack of a leader of any real popular appeal. It is not felt that Cortés is of sufficient stature to head an effective body, and the Centro has never had any members who could count on a popular following.
Moreover, many people feel that the Centro is no longer the rather idealistic organization it was at its inception, and it has perhaps lost rather than