The National tribune., 1885-10-15
PERU AND CBILI.
The War Between These Countries, It's
Causes and Results.
LIMA. PERU, Aug, 1.

LENA, PERU. Aug. 1.
| The late Gen. Stephen A. Hurlbut, of Hi
! nois, has been canonized by the people of Peru
as political saint. and they worship his mem
| Dry as they do that of Bolivar the George
Washington of South America, the man who
! gave political liberty to five Republics. Dur
| ing the Garfield Administration, it viii be re-
membered, Hurbut was here as United States
| Minister, and it was then that the war between
| Chilli and Peru broke out Blaine was Secre-
| tary of State, and seeing that justice was on
| the side of Peru attempted to interfere for the
protection Of the latter State, and gave Hurl-
but at Lima and Fitzpatrick at Santiago, Chilli,
| instructions to that end. The attempt then
made to secure peace between our South Ameri-
| can neighbors failed because of several reasons.
which it is not necessary here to discuss If
/ the policy had been enforced, rs it was origi-
nally intended, Peru would have been saved
| from destruction and the United States would
have Won an honor that our flag does not now
| wear.
1t is said that Hurlbut exceeded his instruc-
! tions, aud much of the blame of our failure
was thrown upon him. He was proud and
| sensitive man, and felt censure keeniy. His
disgrace, and the neglect OF his Government to
sustain him in the attitude he had taken, not
| only shortened, but ended his life, and he died
| here a broken hearted man.
| No one can come to Peru and read upon
| ruined cities, plundered homes, and desolate
! plantations the result of the war. without feel
| ing that Gen. Hurlbut's sympathies were on
| the right side whether he was guilty of diplo-
| matte errors not. He knew as every one
who comes here can discover at glance, that
! 1t was one of the most unholy wars that civil
| lied nations ever engaged in; that it began
without cause, and that
ITS MOTIVE WAS PLUMBER
| With the strict sense Of honor, with the keen
perception of justice which characterizes the
North American soldier, Gen. Hurlbut raised
| the flag of the United States for the protection
of Peru, and kept back the armies of Chilli
| until he was told to haul it down. He did not
prevent, but postponed the desolation and de-
struction of a beautiful country that was more
| remorselesS than anything the world has seen
since the days of the Goths and Vandas. The
first few battles ended the war. Then began
saturnalia of pillage and vandalism that did not
end until the country was robbed of ali its
treasures. What could not be stolen was
burned what could not be burned was blown
up with dynamite, until the whole of Peru was
| panorama of devastation. Peru is now what
the Southern States would have been if the
Union army had burned every city it entered
had ravished every woman it met, had cut the
throat of every man it captured, had killed
every head of cattle, every horse and hog and
blown up every piece of machinery in the
seeding States .,.F
Gen. Hurlbut saw this coming and tried to
prevent it; and the people of Peru recognize
his services. His funeral is remembered as
one OF the most imposing demonstrations of
| reverence and affection the country ever saw
his portraits are sold at all the shops and
stands, and the gratitude of this people viii
find form in a monument to him if peace is
ever permitted to reign here. 9.ss
The purpose of the war was a desire on the
part of one Government to destroy another
Peru was one of the
RICHEST COUNTRIES ON EARTH,
with its inexhaustible silver Mines its cnor-
nous deposits of guano, and its beds of nitrate
great enough to supply the world for ali time.
Chill had none of this. She has some silver
and copper, but all her mountains would not
produce as much as one mine III Peru. She
determined to possess these treasures, and the
war did not end until she had all the guano
and nitrate, and had flooded the mines and
blown up the machinery by which they were
worked.
The nominal cause of the war was so trivial
as to be ridiculous. and even the Chillanos
themselves smile when it is alluded to. Alter
independence was declared in South America
20 years ago, the Province of Bolivia was
given by Peru small strip of land along the
Pacific, so that she mi ht have access to the
sea. 1t was ranless desert, capable of pro-
ducing nothing and Peru would have given
her neighbor much more of the same character
without word of objection, but it was ali Be-
livia wanted. But as it happened the nitrate
deposits which gave Peru so much reveAue
were discovered to extend into this desert, and
some citizens OF Chilli, among others, went in
there to work them. In order TO pay the eX-
penses of maintaining harbors, the Government
of Bolivia imposed an export duty of ten cents
hundred weight upon the nitrate taken from
its lands. Chilli company refused TO pay it,
aud the Bolivian officials, after due process of
law, proceeded to levy upon the establishment
OF the obstreperous company, and attempted to
sell 1t for taxes due the Government. 200.
Chill interfercd, decided that this export duty
Of 10 cents was oppressive, and warned Bolivia
that If the proceedings were carried any far
Their she would send up man of-war to
lombard THE TOWN. rt
The threat was carried out, and the establish
ment which Chilli brought on the war to pro-
tect, was destroyed by her own gunboats. Chill
OWNS the place now, and her customs officers
charge the same company, as well as all export
ers of nitrate, $3.50 hundred weight, instead
of the 10 cents which she thought was SO OPP
pressive. Does any one wonder that the Chill
lanOs smile when the cause of the war is ask ed ?
There was treaty Of common offense and de-
Tense between Peru and Bolivia. Chill knew it,
and having no excuse to attack Peru struck at
her over the shoulder of Bolivia. The Peruvian
army was sent to the aid of the latter Govern
ment, and then Chill got the chance she was
uuHtinS lOT TcTu Was Invaded, conquered ana
destroyed. AS price of peace Chill demanded
all the nitrate beds and guano deposits of both
Peru and Bolivia-and got them. The civil
LIKED world stood by and saw the robbery COM
mitted. The United States made feeble pro-
test but did nothing to enforce it, for which
Chilli hates us, and Peru considers us sympa-
thetic, but c0wardly, friends.
There were some incidents in the war which
our old veterans will read with interest
At one time Peru might have prevented the
invasion of her territory and caused the entire
army of Chilli to perish but the instincts of
noble generosity and the unwritten law of com
mon humanity were observed. If Peru had
been rs merciless Chilli the struggle would
have been shortened and the result would have
been different.
Along the coast from Guayaguil, Ecuador,
to CoquimbO, Chilli a distance of more than
5000 miles, stretches desert on which a drop
Of rain aever fell. Occasionally stream, born
of a union between the burning sun and the
eternal SHOWS of the Andes, finds its way to the
sea, bringing n0uriShment to the soil and max
ing little oasis where men can live But I'M
less the water supply is very great aud it is
only occasionally So, the stream is swallowed
by the thirsty sands and absorbed by the at
mosphere, which is so dry that
NOTHING EVER DECAYS
and causes more rapid evaporation than is
known elsewhere In this desert lie the nitrate
mines, and towns have sprung up around them,
whose inhabitants are supplied with water by
artificial means Salt water is turned into