The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 55, July 1951 - April, 1952 Page: 155
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country has sampled many a governmental technique. Despite
its share of many military dictatorships it has also experimented
with semiparliamentary government. As a colony and independ-
ent nation, it has tried monarchy, empire, federation, and rep-
resentative republic.
This area study in government contains chapters with a de-
scription of the country and a brief outline of its history fol-
lowed by a more detailed study of the Honduran constitutions,
legal systems in general, and the present political system. A final
chapter of conclusions, an appendix containing the constitution
of 1936 and a reference list of the Honduran presidents from
1824 to 1949, a bibliography, an index, and numerous maps and
illustrations complete the volume.
Although the governmental system described is authoritarian
in character, a surprisingly extensive personal freedom is enjoyed
by the average Honduran. The author notes the Honduran ap-
preciation of the freedom and dignity of man as well as the
"structure and the functioning" of his government. This same
quality of personalism may be found in Honduran political
parties.
Ever since the establishment of the republic in the 182o's, so-
called political parties have existed in Honduras. Yet if one
insists that an "effective guiding philosophy" is necessary for
a political party, then Honduras has never had one. Parties such
as reds, greens, blues, liberal, and conservative are no more than
factions which "were mostly armed bands owing blind obedience
to a caudillo." Of the two important ones now in existence, the
Nationalist is dominant in the state and is the first one to advo-
cate that no political party has the right to start a civil war
because of a lost election. This thesis became of practical impor-
tance when the party recognized defeat in the 1928 election and
failed to resort to violence as an alternative means to political
control.
In the past, elections in Honduras have been usually fraudulent
and bloody, but there has at least been relative peace in the
country since 1933. Hondurans have been conditioned to admire
the leader of decisive strength and action, and an analysis of
Honduran governmental institutions seems to indicate that the155
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Texas State Historical Association. The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 55, July 1951 - April, 1952, periodical, 1952; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth101139/m1/179/?rotate=90: accessed March 28, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas State Historical Association.