King Alfonso's address to the Cortes on the 20th inst.
was unexpectedly Liberal in tone, but nevertheless S. Canovas has -secured a heavy majority in the Cortes by direct compul- sion on the electors. He announces that all opponents of the Monarchy will be treated with the utmost severity, and he is preparing a new Military Bill. The King in his speech only alludes vaguely to the necessity for further measures of defence, but it is understood that a plan of universal military service will be introduced, under which the army will be gradually raised to 510,000 men, half of them in barracks, with reserves of about half a million more. The usual conscription—three years with the colours and five in the reserve—will yield that force ; and the only difficulty is finance. S. Canovas is, however, levying the taxes severely, and calculates that this year he shall -extinguish the deficit. One does not believe much in Spanish -finance ; but it is true that the private soldier in Spain costs little, that a determined King might get rid of the -officers on half-pay—said to number 22,000, though that must surely be an exaggeration—and that the honest collection of the taxes would raise receipts by ten per cent. S. Canovas is quite capable of shooting a defaulting collector for treason, and an example or two of that kind might generate a trad'tion of honesty even in the salt-offices and custom-houses.
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