less men, women, and children, who had been placed on board the steamer for safety.

"What afterward occurred may be given in Captain McLane's own language:

"Not a sound went from the station; doubtless each person there felt that dreadful scenes of massacre, rapine, and plunder were inevitable, unless the authorities of the country could be brought and interposed between the reckless and maddened rioters and their innocent, unarmed, and defenceless victims. At this moment the long-listened-for sound of the bugle note was heard, bringing relief to many an aching heart. We congratulated each other, and in a moment more would have been outside the enclosure to welcome our deliverers, when there was poured into the station a volley of musketry, accompanied by savage shouts for blood. This volley was quickly followed by others; the dreadful reality came upon us that the police had joined the mob. In a moment the police, headed by Colonel Garrido, had crossed the clear space between the cienaga and the station houses, and from under the windows of the ticket office and freight room commenced firing into them. At the same time the outside mob, with some of the police in company, entered the station from the west end along the track, firing through it to clear the way, and broke into the various rooms, machetes in hand, and began their work of murder and plunder.'

"When the police took possession of the station, Captain McLane, accompanied by another person, went to look for the governor, and, having found him after some delay, prevailed upon him to accompany them to the station and stop the massacre. But the order which it was said that the governor had previously given to the police to fire upon and occupy the station was carried out by them in such a manner that nearly every person in the station was massacred by them and the mob. It was also alleged that the governor was remiss in efforts to prevent the plunder and bloodshed which took place in his presence."

The reader will be interested in hearing what the United States government did in view of this premeditated outrage on its citizens, many of whom were helpless and unarmed.

The administration of Franklin Pierce deserves lasting censure for its despicable inactivity. After some years, an "International Mixed Commission" was appointed to "arbitrate" this affair. Its shocking disregard of the commonest principles of justice or decency is fully set forth herein, in the chapter on "Sundry Arbitrations between the United States and Latin-American Countries." Helpless people had been robbed, wounded, murdered. But no redress whatever was given them or their heirs; the perpetrators of the hideous crime were not punished; the brigand government of the country of the crime suffered not at all for the terrible part taken by armed official forces of one of its divisions; and the United States government maintained its customary attitude, the laissez-faire of a too easy-going spirit.

CHAPTER XVI

CHILI'S ALLEGED FRIENDSHIP FOR THE UNITED STATES. THE BALTIMORE AFFAIR

HE American people should not rely too implicitly upon the

Tprophetic utterances of American diplomatic representatives

to Latin-American countries. To illustrate, here is a quotation from a letter from William R. Roberts, of the United States Legation, Santiago, Chili, dated December 29, 1886, addressed to Secretary Bayard:

"I enclose extracts from two speeches delivered in the Chilian Senate on the 22d instant to which I beg to call your special attention. The subject under discussion was the annual appropriation for the Department of Exterior, and the speeches are important for two reasons: first, as an evidence of the desire of Chilian statesmen to act in concert with the United States on the question of bimetallism; next, as showing the existence of a new and better spirit towards our country. . . . I am informed on good authority that never since the formation of this government have such friendly sentiments been uttered in Congress about the United States. I look forward with great confidence to their steady and permanent growth. I may mention that Senator Concha i Toro is a very wealthy and influential man.

There is but one final test of things, the truth. Was Chili at that time friendly to the United States? Is it friendly now, -not friendly for diplomatic purposes, but really friendly ?

An account of the killing and wounding of American sailors in Valparaiso, and of other events in Chili in 1891, follows. Such occurrences suggest an answer to the above questions,

an answer not

in the phrases of diplomacy, but in the logic of events. Our ministers to Latin America would do well to restrain their exuberant prophecies and confine themselves to facts.

I. THE AMERICAN LEGATION AT SANTIAGO UNDER ESPIONAGE

During the long and bloody revolution that led to the overthrow of Balmaceda, Dictator of Chili, in 1891, and his suicide on September 19th of that year, the Chilians committed a vast number of outrages against civilized foreigners. The American Legation, Mr. Patrick Egan, Minister, was appealed to for protection by large numbers of

Americans, Englishmen, French, Germans, and other foreigners, as well as by many noted Chilians who were in danger of assassination.

Mr. Egan endeavored to avoid all favoritism and to accomplish impartially the tasks imposed upon him by the sentiments of common humanity (tasks often nicely balanced amid the exigencies of diplomacy); but he was subjected to infinite trouble and annoyance by the suspicious and treacherous Chilians.

The United States, in Chili, was simply pursuing its well-known policy of cultivating and maintaining friendly relations with the de facto government, of taking no part in internal affairs, but of protecting non-combatants to the best of its ability. This policy did not satisfy the fanatical Chilian faction in power, and the facts that the San Francisco, and the Baltimore, of the American navy, granted asylum to Imael Perez Montt, Julio Banados Espinosa, Domingo Godoy, and other well-known Chilian political refugees, and that the American Legation similarly sheltered others whom the then ruling authorities wished to imprison or assassinate, aroused a very bitter feeling toward the Americans.

The American Legation at Santiago was surrounded by secret police, and spies in the interest of the provisional government, and various indignities were committed against persons entering or leaving the legation. At least twenty arrests were made. The diplomatic correspondence in this connection is extensive, but the following letter from the American minister sufficiently describes the general conditions:

LEGATION OF THE UNITED STATES, SANTIAGO, November 20, 1891 (received December 26). SIR,For some time past the legation has been surrounded, especially at night, by a number of secret police agents or spies, composed of peons and persons of a very low grade, who have been hanging around the corners of adjoining streets, sitting upon the doorsteps and window-sills of the adjoining houses, and lying and standing on the sidewalk of the street in front of the legation, and at a distance of only from twelve to twenty paces away from it. Some of these men have even come into the door of the legation and endeavored to induce some of the refugees to go out, offering them security from molestation in exchange for a money consideration, and on some of those occasions these spies approached the legation in a state of intoxication.

On the night of the 15th instant some of these men got drunk, knocked at the windows of the legation, and gave expression to gross insults against the refugees. Next day, 16th instant, I reported the matter by note, in moderate terms, to the Minister of Foreign Relations (enclosure No. 1), and also reported the occurrence to you by telegram.

To this note I received last evening a reply which, as will be seen from enclosed translation No. 2, evades entirely the main question.

I have replied to-day (enclosure No. 3), pointing out that this whole course of action in surrounding the legation with these spies partakes of the char acter of a serious impropriety and want of respect towards this legation.

The charges made in the letter of the honorable minister against the refugees, of having "with voice, with gesture, and with action, provoked the passer-by," I know to be entirely unfounded, as are also the charges of indiscretions against employés of the legation, and I cannot help feeling surprised that the minister would accept and seriously repeat such

statements.

The refugees referred to are gentlemen of distinguished families and of culture, and entirely incapable of such actions as are ascribed to them; and the only time that any of the employés of the legation came into contact with the police agents who are watching the legation was when the fellows came into the legation under the influence of liquor.

I have, etc.,

PATRICK EGAN.

II. FALSE CHARGES AGAINST ADMIRAL BROWN

Against Admiral Brown, U. S. N., the Chilian authorities made charges which were absolutely false, but which served as a pretext for venting their spleen.

On August 20, 1891, when the Congressionalist army disembarked at Quinteros, the United States steamship San Francisco was in Quinteros Bay. She sailed at once for Valparaiso, whence Admiral Brown sent a cable despatch in cipher to the Navy Department in Washington.

The Congressionalists who were fighting the dictatorship of Balmaceda, had persistently alleged that the American authorities were too friendly with Balmaceda. This idea was a phantasm of the overwrought imaginations of the insurgent party; and it had no basis in fact save that these Americans were maintaining toward Balmaceda the attitude that the American government traditionally maintains toward the de facto governments of Latin America. Indeed but a few days elapsed before Balmaceda's army was routed; the insurgents took Santiago, and the United States minister recognized the provisional government formed by the Congressionalists.

To return to Admiral Brown's despatch. The Congressionalists pretended to think that the admiral had used the cable to inform Balmaceda of their movements, a mistaken supposition quite in harmony with the intriguing, deceitful, unstable Latin-American nature. This absurd accusation was seized upon for raising a hue and cry against Americans, and the bitter feeling against them grew in intensity.

III. THE BALTIMORE AFFAIR, AT VALPARAISO

Among the many outrages against foreigners in Chili at or about the period of the revolution against Balmaceda, the murder and wounding of unarmed American sailors at Valparaiso, on October 16, 1891, holds a conspicuous position.

Captain W. S. Schley (later distinguished in the naval victory off Santiago de Cuba, and promoted from commodore to rear-admiral) was in 1891 in command of the United States cruiser Baltimore. On October 16 the Baltimore was lying in the harbor of Valparaiso. On that day Captain Schley gave one hundred and seventeen of his men and petty officers shore leave. In accordance with the rule of the Navy Department all of the shore party went quite unarmed.

In the early part of the evening these American sailors were assaulted on the streets of Valparaiso, “with a suddenness that strongly implies meditation and preparation," by a mob of about a thousand men, the mob rapidly increasing in number. "The police arrived on the scene ... a full half-hour after the assault began," and joined the mob in its brutal work. Two of the sailors were killed; sixteen were seriously wounded; while of the mob but one was seriously hurt.

President Harrison's special message to Congress follows:

To the Senate and House of Representatives:

In my annual message, delivered to Congress at the beginning of the present session, after a brief statement of the facts then in the possession of this government touching the assault, in the streets of Valparaiso, Chile, upon the sailors of the United States steamship Baltimore, on the evening of the 16th of October last, I said:

"This government is now awaiting the result of an investigation which has been conducted by the criminal court at Valparaiso. It is reported unofficially that the investigation is about completed, and it is expected that the result will soon be communicated to this government, together with some adequate and satisfactory response to the note by which the attention of Chile was called to this incident. If these just expectations should be disappointed or further needless delay intervene, I will, by a special message, bring this matter again to the attention of Congress for such action as may be necessary."

In my opinion the time has now come when I should lay before Congress and the country the correspondence between this government and the government of Chile, from the time of the breaking out of the revolution against Balmaceda, together with all other facts in the possession of the Executive Department relating to this matter. The diplomatic correspondence is herewith transmitted, together with some correspondence between the naval officers for the time in command in Chilean waters and the Secretary of the Navy and also the evidence taken at the Mare Island navy yard since the arrival of the Baltimore at San Francisco. I do not deem it necessary in this communication to attempt any full analysis of the correspondence or of the evidence. A brief restatement of the international questions involved and of the reasons why the responses of the Chilean government are unsatisfactory is all that I deem necessary.

It may be well, at the outset, to say that, whatever may have been said in this country or in Chile in criticism of Mr. Egan, our minister at Santiago, the true history of this exciting period in Chilean affairs, from the outbreak of the revolution until this time, discloses no act on the part of Mr. Egan unworthy of his position or that could justly be the occasion of serious animad