| OCR Text |
Show Mexico my CLAIMS VICTORY i Dispatch Sent Washington Embassy Recites Details of Alleged Defeat of Villa. WAR TO BE CONTINUED Claim Large Reinforcements Arrived at Torreon in Time to Administer Sound Whipping to Rebels. Washington, D. C, April 3. The Mexican embassy hero today still claimed victory for the federal forces at Torrcon. Charge Algara today gavo out this statement: "An official dispatch, signed by tho secretary of foreign affairs, Senor Lopez Portillo y' Rojas, has just been received at the embassy, giving an account of tho crushing defeat of the rebel forces until Villa at Torreon. General Maas, who loft Saltlllo several sev-eral days ago with large reinforcements, reinforce-ments, has arrived at Torreon, General Gen-eral de Moure's column has reached San Pedro de Las Colon las, where a decisive defeat was administered to the rebel forces sent out to oppose his advance. The government has also, succeeded in raising a loan of over 50.000.000 pesos, which will materially ma-terially assist It in Us tireless offorts. towards pacification." Mexico City, April 3. The federal capital was ignorant today of the fall of Torreon. None of the newspapers contained any intimation of the federal fed-eral defeat On the contrary, all gave assurances assur-ances that General Javier de Moure had won a great victory over the rebels close to Torreon, while the Constitutionalists were trying to prevent pre-vent him and his reinforcing army from effecting a junction with General Gen-eral Vclasco, the federal commander at Torreon. General Velasco is alleged by the newspapers to have repulsed General Gen-eral Villa's rebel army, which, It is said, "has retired definitely and is attempting to reorganize in Jimlnez." Denies Fall of Torreon. General Blanquet today denied to the Associated Press that there was any truth in the report of the fall of Torrcon. As late as noon no paper had published pub-lished the "news and it was doubtful whether a dozen persons in the federal fed-eral capital were aware of the facts. "Not only does General Velasco continue to hold Torreon," said General Gen-eral Blanquet, "but the rebels have stopped their attack. I do not presume pre-sume to say they will not return to the attack, for probably they will do so. "At present the. rebels are holding positions In the north of Torreon. They are between General de Moure, who is at San Pedro, and Torreon. General Moure's force is in good shape. It has been reinforced by General Joaquin Maas and I expect it to be further strengthened today by General Carlos Garcia Hidalgo." While there is a large element of the population of the federal capital who are believed to sympathize secretly se-cretly with the revolution and who would hall with delight news of rebel success, they are kept in doubt regarding re-garding events in the north. There is a strict censorship here and also a lack "of wire communication. Today being a church holiday, the natives devoted themsolves to a celebration in honor of Santa Anita. The govern-ment govern-ment offices were closed as Well as many business houses. Government Holiday. Yesterday was a government holiday holi-day and tlie war office. was closed all day in "celebration of the anniversary anniver-sary of the battle of Puebla Alta. General Blanquet, minister for war, said late last night that no official reports had reached him, although reliable re-liable advices had been received that Torreon was safe from capture. He also said that the federal force under un-der Goneral Moure had defeated the rebels who were trying to check their advance toward Torreon, that the rebels had been driven back to Sacramento, Sac-ramento, west of San Pedro, and that the federals were pursuing and killing kill-ing many of them. General Blanquet added that the troops under General Joaquin Mass, which left Saltillo on Tuesday, had arrived yesterday at San Pedro, 1800 strong. oo |
