A holocaust such as this would scarcely seem to come within the range of sane and modern history.  When it is realized that, roughly, only one Paraguayan out of five was left of the entire population at the end of the five years’ war, the extent of the deep horrors of that period may begin to be understood, although its full tragedy can scarcely be imagined by the dwellers in more settled and peaceful countries.

It was the women of Paraguay who, having been driven at the point of the lance to labour in the fields in order to feed the army, now came forward of their own free-will in the time of peace and utter need, and heroically set themselves to agricultural toil.  After a while the rich soil of the Republic yielded sufficient harvest to satisfy the attenuated population of the land, but it was many years ere anything approaching a normal state of affairs was able to assert itself.

The war, indeed, had caused every nation involved a heavy amount of blood and treasure.  In some respects it is said to have served a useful purpose.  The Argentines, for instance, claim that this struggle intensified the national spirit of the Republic, since it was the first modern war on a large scale in which the South American States had been concerned.  It seems likely enough that there is some justification for this claim.  The result was, perhaps, evident in a rather lesser degree in the case of both Brazil and Uruguay.

The political effect of the campaign upon Paraguay was, of course, still more important.  The allies had announced that they were fighting, not against the Republic, but against the personality of its despot, Lopez.  His death marked the end of the despotic era, and, although Paraguay has suffered greatly from revolutions from that day to this, there has been no attempt at a repetition of a reign of terror.

CHAPTER XXVI

THE REPUBLIC OF CHILE

It has already been said how, at the conclusion of the War of Liberation in Chile, Bernardo O’Higgins found himself at the head of the State.  The first President was in every respect admirably fitted for his office.  The post, moreover, was nothing beyond his deserts, since he, more than the majority of the other patriots, had suffered for the cause.

The youth of Bernardo O’Higgins was far more chequered than that which falls to the lot of most young men.  Owing to the peculiar circumstances of his birth—­his father, as a high official under the Spanish rule, had not dared perform the marriage ceremony with his colonial lady-love, Bernardo’s mother—­his childhood had been somewhat neglected, and his early youth largely deprived of a normal share of paternal affection.  His father, nevertheless, had seen to it that the boy’s education should be of a liberal order.