THE PERUVIAN WAR 319 with the moderate liberals from the old conservative party. This evolution once begun continued through the administration of Pinto. The conservatives were kept out of oiBce, and in time the power and influence of the administration was exerted in favor of liberals.* The conservatives had become demoralized, out of line, "fuera de Hnea," systematically removed from all pub- lic offices, possessed not a single influential official, and hanging over them was the shadow of political ostracism.! This was the condition of the parties at the close of the year 1880, as described by one of the foremost conservatives. But the men of the old regime were not disposed to submit tamely to the new order, and constant dissensions followed. From the time that the nation had become free from the Freire agita- tions and the liberals had been put down in the battle of Lircay, 1831, until 1871, presidents had been able to succeed themselves and hold two terms of office each. Prieto, Bulnes, Montt and Perez had each held two terms, and during those years Chile had had a stable government, strong enough to put down all liberal in- surrections, although the policy of Prieto, Bulnes and Montt, was, because of this very centralized power, illiberal and retrograde. Under the new order, no president could hope to do more than name his suc- cessor, and an attempt to do this by Balmaceda, as we shall see, was vigorously opposed. It was opposed when Pinto favored Santa Maria. A strong effort was made to prevent the nomination of Santa Maria; the liberal party, which was made up of a radical group, the moderate liberals and other
- "Sisteindticamente alejados de todos los puestos publicos, no gozaban de in-
fluencia oficial ninguna, i pesaba sobre ellos la sombra de una especie de ostra- cismo politico que, si no era persccucion manifiesta, tenia todos los caracteres de odiosidad profunda," etc. C. Walker Martinez. t"La herencia de Pinto debia necesari£tp?epte servir a las ambiciones liberal- es," etc, Marti[ib2:
