Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1870-04-01
PARAGUAY IN RUINS.
Horrible state of Affairs AT Asun-
cion-The Position of Marshal LO-
pez---NOt "a soul TO be Found In the
Towns The Houses Tumblfne q
DOwu---Misery all Around.


There has been terrible row at As
uncion, which for time threatened the
very existence Of the Paraguayan gov
ernment. 1t appears that Portuguese
sailor was arrested for attacking a poor
Paraguayan woman in the middle of the
day at the battery. The Captain of the
port had the fellow locked up, but soon
after gang of about fifty Austrians,
Portuguese and Italians, all armed,
marched upon the Capitania, and de-
manded the instant release of the Por-
tugese. Captain Ferreira, the Para
guayan Captain of the port, refused in
dignantly, but this nearly cost him his
life. The sailors swore they would pull
down the Capt. 'ania, and shoot the port
Captain and all his men, if he did not in
stantly accede to their demand; they
shouted out death to Paraguay, and
death to the Paraguayan government
and actually seized upon the flagstaff,
cut it down, pitched the flag into the
street, and would probably have carried
out their threat had not Brazilian Off
Ger, seeing the row, rushed out with a
picquet of twenty-five men ano charged
volvers and some two or three of the
Brazilian soldiers were wounded, also
some of the sailors, but the Brazilian
officer soon succeeded in getting the bet
ter of the rioters and making prisoners
of the leaders; they were at once taken
in irons to the policia, where they now
are. The state of things in the rural
districts of Paraguay is something which
defes description. Gangs Of deserters
and hungry Paraguayans keep prowling
about
POVERTY EVERYWHERE.
Travelling through even the suburbs
of the city is at present dangerous. The
poverty that prevails throughout the
country battles imagination. There are
thousands living upon roots and what
ever fruit they can find. AT Luque, TIA,
Itagua, and all the other towns, there is
scarcely soul to be found; the houses
of the town are tumbling, and, in one
word, Paraguay is one vast ruin. Not
for several generations will the country
recover itself.
STARVING WOMEN
There are some twenty thousand Para
guayan women all stopping about Asun-
cion, in the vain hope of getting down
to Buenos Ayres or Montevideo. Every
vessel leaving here takes its quota.
LOPEZ.
The news from the seat of war is as
contradictory as ever The prevalent
opinion is that he is now inaccessible IN
the remote mountain ranges of Yagatlml,
where he has still some thousands OF fol-
lowers, and is provided with supplies by
the Caingua Indians He is probably
short of arms and ammunition, but the
Brazilans seem to have little chance OF
bringing the war to speedy termination,
either by following him up actively or by
starving him out.
In the statement of Susanna Cespedes,
aged As years. widow, who has a son
and nephew holding commands under
Lopez, occurs the following: The Ca
Clique Galiano had arranged with Lopez
for an interview at the next new moon;
the former as well as the other chiefs of
the Caingua and Tembiquy tribes are not
allied to Lopez, but rather disposed to-
wards the Brazilians, and treat the wo-
men very kindly. The Southern tribes
of Cainguas, however, have given sup
plies and assistance to Lopez. The un-
fortunate women. of Espadin had to exc
out a subsistence from bitter oranges,
and occasional supplies
brought them by the Indians in exchange
for what little jewelry they had remain.
ing. Most of the women, however, had
already parted with their jewels, giving
them for safe keeping to the French and
Italian consuls, NM. Cuverville and
Chapperon. The number of women still
detained at Espadin is very large.