Show SAN JUAN RESISTED SAMPSON spaniards tell of the bombardment by our fleet bg Sig shells fell as though they were paper wads and did no damage victory was celebrated in the city progress being made by por porto t 0 rican commission Is most satisfactory spaniards have beena humored copyrighted by the associated tress san juan porto rico september 26 the american commissioners to arrange for or the evacuation ot of porto rico have been eminently successful in their dealings with the spanish commissioners ers and it is believed that within three weeks at the tarth fart erest berest the last of the spanish troops will have sailed for home and the stars and stripes will be unfurled over san juan their mission has been accomplished without friction more or less trouble was anticipated at the outside but our commissioners have been agreeably surprised at the frankness and candor the spanish commissioners have displayed while general macias and general or tega the second in command in the r and and one of the spanish commissioners in their conversations with our commissioners have fully acknowledge cl ed the tact fact that the loss of cerveris veras fleet cut all hope of succor from spain they still maintain that the american army had a tremendous task before it in crossing the mountains and macias contends that the army could not have reached the gates of san juan without a loss of men the little skir on the south coast general macias refuses to call reverses because he claims hla his troops retired by his orders to the stronger positions in the mountain passes As a matter of fact the only action of importance the bombardment bar dment of morro castle by admiral Samp sons fleet early in may macias i insists was a distinct spanish victory sampsons Samp sons guns pounded away for three hours they wrecked several buildings in the city but for their effect on ou the thirty foot walls of that val fortress the eight ten and twelve inch projectiles from the american warships might just as well have been i nape pape wads not a gun was dismounted rot a man hilled killed after the fleet had retired repulsed is the word the spaniards used the victory was celebrated throughout the city all the L mill military tary bands paraded the streets playing martial music a grand concert I 1 was given in the plaza and the cafes that night echoed with the cries of viva espana abajo los americanos so it was that the military chieftains who met our commissioners met them not as defeated soldiers to deliver up property lost in battle but rather as soldiers martyred marty red by the defeat of others to yield that which they still claimed they might have been able successfully cess fully to defend general brooke commodore schley and general gordon were exceedingly careful not to disturb their illusions in this respect and to their extreme tactfulness is due the ease and facility with which the negotiations were finally concluded they decided before the first meeting to stick to the main issue which was the immediate evacuation of the island and to be generous to the point of magnanimity in nonessential non essential matters the spanish commissioners especially ti general ortega were at first alstn dined to discuss the main question they raised a myriad of minor matters few oi of which had anything to do with the business on band hand on all the questions the american commissioners waived aside pending the settlement of the wain main question the evacuation but for several days they allowed general ortega to talk on and his colleagues were compelled to revert to the main issue the language of the protocol was plain definite and specific it provided for the immediate evacuation at the island on its text our commissioners stood and to their gratification they found the spanish commissioner not ot only acquiescent but seemingly arin anilus to retire from the island at the earliest arli cst possible moment the spanish authorities realized that the entire PC population P had become suddenly hostile to them that they had been dispossessed by the hea high court of war and that they were there no longer by right but by sufferance they were as strangers among people of their own race blood and language those who bad had fawned upon tho the captain general in the old days no longer came to the palace lie ile I 1 tad bad no more favors to bestow and they I 1 remained away lest test associations with the old regime might prejudice them in the eyes of the new the position of the spanish authorities was a painful one and though return to spain meant heavy reduction in salaries and the complete loss of perquisite the sooner it came to an eydthe better they would like it tills was the tone they assumed it was then that they were confronted alth a new embarrassment they hal bai no transports to convey their troops back to spain and were powerless to obtain them they were compelled to announce this to the american commissioners until the madrid government should send transportation they could do nothing our commissioners sio ners realizing the force of their argument made no attempt to force them although it occurred to them as it did I 1 d to other americans in san juan that the t transports of other countries could have been chartered tor for the purpose had there been too much delay this view of tho the situation would have been presented only dut but in this our commissioners ners preferred to accept the spanish statements in good faith and indue in due time their course was vindicated while awaiting the arrival of the transport the whole scheme for the retirement ti rement of the spanish troops to san juan was arranged both the spanish and american authorities were being flooded with appeals for protection the former were beseeched beseeches ched by the spanish residents living between the lines lilies and sand within the american lines to gua d their lives and property from the rapacity of fhe native inhabitants who were threatening them with all sorts of prosecutions and the latter was the sublet ts ot of the importunities of the rich porto rican within the spanish lines lims who feared that the spanish soldiers as a alst act of cruelty would despoil them of their property and perhaps haps murder them some of the appeals were both frantic and hysterical but bul k steps were immediately taken to prevent disorders as far as possible it was natural that in the transition from the control of the spanish gov to a condition of liberty those who had suffered for generations at the hands of the governing class should seek vengeance or that private individuals a should hould seize the opportunity to re dr ios sa private wrongs that there were outrages Is I 1 beyond question the natives burned cottages and many a fine haciendas in various parts of the island the spanish troops massacre acrel about 90 people in biales and later in suppressing an incipient riot at arecibo shot four natives A reign of terror existed for a time near cocoas coccas in the tenter center of the island about brigands brigande bri gands many of them said to be convicts released by the american authorities at ponce and others it is said from hayti with their headquarters in the heart of the mountains pillaged and ravaged the country during the in terrp glum there were also disturbances at fajardo when the spanish troops left some of the rich sugar planters had b been n driven out after the small force of marines landed there had been withdrawn and upon their return after the spanish civil guard retired the natives set upon the spanish residents general macias maclas was compelled to send the guat guard 1 back in order to protect them thern but all things considered it is remarkable that more disorders did not occur and more lives were not sacrificed undoubtedly every precaution was taken as soon as the commissioners had bad arrived at the main conclusion to reduce the danger of disorder to a minimum the neutral zone between the lines was wiped out and our soldiers and the spaniards were permitted ahila in pursuit of de predators enter each others lines this was the first step it was then arranged that wherever the in their concentrating movement evacuated a town or position the lines should overlap that Is that cur troops should enter the town shortly before the spanish retired was no hiatus and no opportunity given to the lawless element whenever our troops entered a spanish town or position by the arrangement of he be commissioners the commanding offie officer r of the spaniards delivered an in henory of all the spanish military and government property to the commanding american officer and took the lat receipt this inventory is to be turned over to the united states authorities this j plan obviates the necessity of sending a commission over the island to inventory tor r government property when the last inventory is made and dell delivered cred at san juan general brooke will have a complete inventory of all the government property in the island er since the american commissioners arrived at san juan the native porto ricans have deluged them with stories of alleged spanish cruelty to carrying oft off plunder which properly belonged to the island some of the natives for a considerable time devoted themselves to ferreting out conspiracies some of their reports were investigated and found to baseless be and the commissioner missi oneri continued to assume that the Fran tards were proceeding in perfect good falth although they had their own mea means us of ascertaining exactly what whal was going on one of the alleged reports th the epo porto arto ricans especially exercised was that the spaniards proposed to take with them to spain some from the aults vaults of the banco espanol and vari ois trust funds which it was claimed d properly belonged to the people ct of the island the commissioners abot thought it was time enough to consider these matters when the alleged trust funds were taken the porto ricans also affirmed that fine ane paintings and r treasures were being removed from he lite palace and various other public buildings and as these works of art had been paid for by taxes collected in the island the commission should see that aney remained it Is doubtless true that some of lite most valuable treasures in the island were removed but cur commissioners decided not to td ralio to have protested would have created more trouble than the ci tides removed were worth and besides hom something ething of this sort was to be expected i porto ricans made the general mistake of believing that everything t iry pain patti for out of the taxes of the island should be theirs had that general been assumed by our commissioners mis sinners ners and adhered to the spanish soldiers and all the spanish officials salaries were paid out of the insular taxes should have been held aa as hostages and a claim might even have been s I 1 up for a portion ot of the spanish brov 11 6 the spanish were acting in good faith was as proven afterward when at aguabilla aguacilla Agu acilla they turned over to the them american officers over in custom revenues which they could have mady m adf away nw ty with had they been so als d Is posed tle american commissioners laid down he the general proposition that the spaniards could remove all their personal per end private effects state papers and everything belonging to the military this the spaniards assented d to and this thim Is the general theory upon which the evacuation is taking place the only collision thus far has been in connection with some six inch siege guns nn on carriages when the first regiment of troops were embarked on the san francisco last thursday four of thebo guns were taken to the wharf ready for shipment our commissioners on the ground that although these amsi were movable from place to place when in action they were located in embrasures embra and must be defended in otha r words they were not movable with a fighting line after some discussion the spanish commands agreed to this definition of a movable gun which confined it strictly to field artillery pieces A groat great deal of the old plunder about the military mii tary barracks and arsenals and equipments of volunteers and civil guards which have been disbanded is being sold for what it will bring the money from this sale the spanish ib authorities dillof course take back to spain A couple of americans are laying buying up much of this material for a mere song and the american people will doubtless in time have an opportunity tf tc glut its appetite tor for military souvenirs of the spanish army in porto rico it is impossible to tell exactly when the tb last of the spanish troops will leaie transports Tian sports are due in a week and the indications are that in three weeks it at most general macias will relinquish control of the last toot of territory A fitting celebration is being arranged for the occasion of the flag falong at san juan both the naval navai and military forces will participate in case general macias maclas will accept it Is probable pro ruble that a dinner or reception will be given in bis his honor by the amerla commissioners |