The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1881-02-19
NATIONS FALL.
What the Want of a Leader
Did fer Lima and CHllHO.
4 Terrible Tale.

New York, lS.-The EUening Post
has the following: On The capture Il
Lima and Callao, it seems universally
conceded that in the battle near NJ sri
flou, FIVE or six miles from Lima, the Pc
ruvian held tie advantage and might by
one more determined AID prompt efforts
have made lhem,e masters OF the
situation. Encouraging and c0ngrstula-
tory dispatches from the front and bull
letins announcing . Peruvian victory
we're p in press; fireworks we're PEE
pared ard the streets OF Lima and
CallaO were filed by iubilAnt and ex-
cited crowds. At this time occurred one
Of the unAntieipated events which some
times in moment change the fortune Of
cattle and destroy d people. Pisrola,
who had passed four days and nights al
mos: coz isuously 10 the saddle, over
come by exhaustion, WAS placed upon
slrelcher in the field where be was in
stanlly plunged into = profound sleep.
The troops, it is said, had been all day
without food or water. At this
critical moment, while their chief
was unconscious, superior officers
dIsbanded their forces and assuring
them that the Chilian hordes would
soon be swsrming through Lima and
Cgilso, robblng, pif.aginK and deVas-
tating, advised them to anticipate she
Ch;lians and help themselves to what
ever they wanted. Later on strAgglers
from the front began to arrive in Lima
aud CallHo, and their dOleiul reports
were circulated as if by lightning. The
fireworks were suppre. sed, and instead
preparations were made for destroying
the forts. All the morning Of the 10th
II IL 80,
Lima and Callao, but they passed in pro-
found quiet and gloom, without an indi-
cation of what was to follow, except the
forming of many groups of soldiers,
negroes and Indians in the subuf bs Of
the cities, and the suspicious quietness
with which they seemed to be discussing
recent events. About 10 st night the
work OF pillaze began. Tee doors were
smashed in, and soon the streets swarmed
with men, women aud children
laden with huge bundles Of every
class of objects that could be
Unsigned. The attack was opened on the
stores Of Chinese and these furnished
huge quantities of frecIackers, bombs
and cheap fireworks, The popping and
banging Of which added to tue uproar
and confusion. Toward morning tne
scene was rendered more frightful by the
glare OF burning ships, all OF which had
been fred and the frequent explosion of
dynamite, which had been placed under
every gun which defended the fort.
No sooner did the rioters get taste of
the pillgge excited pernSps bY liquor,
than they began sacking Al stores Snd
houses in the street without regard
to nationality. In Callss perhaps thirty
Chinese were killed. AS most were
killed upon the outskirt of town and
upon the open CAM US it ia probable
they were pursued and murdered simply
for the pie sure of killing. In Lima
there was greater slaughter. The riot
began at An earlier hour and some humid
reds OF Chinese we're sacrificed Not only
does 1t appear that the rioters were i'll
cited to and encouraged in these horrible
bsrbAritles by superior officers, both in
the army and navy, but many detsch-
mems or synods of rioters were led by
officers who particiDsted in the pluuder.
at noon on the l7th the riot suddenly
ceased. A number of foreign residents,
many Of them owner of stores which had
been pillaged, hastily organized them
EelYes as an urban guard, and sailed forth
upon the mob. News this spread like
lightning through the city and stimuli
taneously in one moment the rioters
disappeared as if swallowed by the
earth. The guard was soon sde-
qlstely armed With abandoned rifles,
and undertook TO systematically
scout though the lanes inhabited
by the poorer Glasses of people, and
much stolen property wss recovered.
The men, lnfuenc by their losses, and
perhaps by other stimulahts, # which
there YVES no lack, did not perform their
self-Impo4ed duties with negligence or
undue gentleness, and in The morning
following, many corners were encGmbered
with sWarthty corpses. In fact, several
Of the guard fell victims to their zeal, as
in time the rioters were much more nu-
marous, and re,istence to the urban
guards was much more serious, and it is
said more than 5000 rioters were killed.