An appropriate anecdote can accurately draw the profile of a character, in this case that of Enric Prat de la Riba (1870-1917). Josep M. Ainaud told it to me.
The now president of the Mancomunitat summoned the historian and archaeologist Agustí Duran i Sanpere to commission him to install the telephone in Cervera. Surprised and bewildered, he claimed his ignorance. The statesman's reply was definitive: his native status would help him overcome the resistance there to reject such a novelty; and he assured him that the wise engineer Terradas would teach him everything he needed to know about such technology.
This is how the telephone arrived not only in Cervera, but Duran i Sanpere already participated in distributing it throughout Catalonia.
Prat de la Riba was more than a politician: he was a statesman at a crucial moment. And in these times, with confirmed sterile quarrels that grip politicians of such low level, his forgotten figure well deserves to be evoked.
His human nature contributed decisively to the notable success of his leadership, despite the fact that it was short lived and was diminished by illness. He died at 47 years old.
He carried out an enormous task in having to set up the structures of an entire country. To say that it started from nothing is not an exaggeration. The list of institutions created was enormous.
His personal style facilitated good outcomes. He was positive, in favor of adding. He knew how to listen to the point that the petitioners he received left the meetings satisfied. He was not irascible, he controlled his emotions and hated “fer soroll”. All his energy was focused on staying decisive and simplifying problems. Being respectful did not prevent him from firmly defending the countless objectives that he had set for himself.
When Alfonso XIII expressed his desire to visit the city more, he suggested that he become a resident of Barcelona; Cambó tried to make the idea effective, without success.
Another anecdote reflects the style of incorporating worthy people with elegance. When showing a foreigner the recently recovered palace for the Mancomunitat, President Prat de la Riba described the official who was working in an office this way: “And here, the poet López-Picó, who helps us build Catalonia.”
