The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1885-03-25

painful TO see military chiefs open the carriage
door, and, with hands on their swords, standing
before the carriage in front OF the doors OF
houses for the Presidents wife TO come out to
make calls The liberty of the press has been
decreed in Guatemala. But the unfortunate
typesetter of printing Office, for having set up
an article which did not praise the conduct OF
the President, received more than 500 lashes,
which caused his death This incident. taken
together with the utter lack of public spirit and
civi. strength among the Guatemala people,
sufficiently explains how it happens that we
hear of the constitutional republican form OF
government in Guatemala and never OF the
dictatoria autocratic essence Of the system.
MERCHANTS ToRMENrED IN PRISON.
sThere was firm of merchants called Cobos
s. Batres. Batres had a brother who went to
San Francisco and purchased steamer writing
to his brother that he intended to use her in OPP
position to the government The letter was
opened (all letters are in this country, and the
two merchants were arrested and thrown into
prison, and couple of the greatest rascals In
Guatemala were, by order o. Barrios, put into
prison with them for the express purpose OF tor
menting them. One of these rascals was called
Juan Mulca, and the other rejoiced in the sobrle
quet of Ell Terroro-the terror. For twenty SIX
days the two gentlemen were subjected to the
grossest indignites, and then were released on
giving bail to the amount of $50, 900 each. Pro-
visions and luxures sent to the imprisoned
merchants were confscated. In the mornings
they would rise, and Juan would say: Now
boys what are We going to do today and then
| they would proceed to hold mock court, making
Mr.. Batres go down on all foCrs to represent
| table, and as the lawyers on either SIDE mace
| point this Juan would come down heavily with
| his fist on Mr.. Batres's back. Taking the SCOT
| out of the lamps, these men would smear the
| faces of these gentlemen, making them most
| hideous spectacles.
| "a lawyer by the name of Juan Andrue en-
| ployed by the government to defend poor men,
| was applied to by political prisoner, who had
| been in prison fourteen months. no charge
during all of that time having been made
| against him, and when the new constitution
went into effect he was advised to make an
this man Andrue to draft his appeal asking
simply for trial Two days afterwards this
Andrue was summoned before President Bar
rios who said to him: Why did you inter
replied, this man has the right to appeal 1
am the Constitution, said Barrios. 1 am the
law, and he took horsewhip, which he always
| had with him, and cut the lawyer across the face
and then kicked him in the side and beat him
| terribly Next day he had him whipped again.
and the lawyer, high spirited gentleman, took
| it SO much to heart that he died. The prisoner.
in whose behalf he had interfered, was taken to
| the penitentiary, and for three successive days
| logged in the MOSS brutal manner, until after
| the third days whipping he too died.
Another case is that of a merchant by the
! name Of Candelaria Gusnan. who had served as
a colonel under Macmillan in Mexico He had
dabbled little in political matters, but had done
| nothing offensive to the government About
| two weeks before the shooting Of seventeen po-
| litical offenders in the public square this mer-
chaut was in the regular course of his business.
| going toward Quezaltenango and encountered
| President Barrios on the road. They saluted
| one another ccurteously, and the merchant went
on. About an hour afterwards two officers over
took him. and said that President Barrios desired
| to see him He returned to Guatemala and was
Immediately thrown into jail. No charge
was made against him, he has never
| had trial, and is still in prison. having suf-
| fered the most atrocious treatment A chain
has been riveted to his leg, which has worn his
| flesh clear to the bone, and by order OF Barrios
| a thousand lashes have been administered to
| him. Another instance that was witness to
was that of an old leprous cripple who was kept
in Jail for over two years. and then discharged
without trial
A SPY IN EVERY HOUSE.
'"The state or society in Guatemala under the
rule Of this tyrant, is we'll nigh unbearable
There is a spy in every house in the shape Of
| servant girl or some other menial and no
! mans life or liberty is safe. The judges are
| completely under the control of the President,
| and any independence shown by any one Of
| them is surely followed by his deposition. Some
| years ago four men who had become possessed
| Of some documents in relation to the boundary
line between Guatemala and Mexico were
| thrown into prison, and have been treated with
| the utmost Severity-kept in close confinement
| and only permitted once month to come into
| the prison yard for few moments breath of
| fresh air. One of these men was the Alcalde OF
| Chiapas. and two years ago he was the only one
/ of the four who was alive. 1t is charged that
| Barrio3 has plundered the treasury to large
/ amount and has secured his i'll gotten gains in
/ New York and In London, go that if he is ever
outlawed in Guatemala he will be enabled to live
| abroad in luxury.
'It should be known that the punishment of
the lash is suffered in Guatemala by hundreds of
| people 1t is daily inflicted all over the republic
| and on all classes OF persons without any dis
tinction whatever as to their standing in society
| and never the result of trial 1t is made use
1 of sometimes as means to investigate the mat
| ter, and more often as vent of the anger and
revenge of the President or Of some lower author
| ity."
| In relation to the boundary dispute between
| Mexico and Guatemala there was in 1881 a con-
| siderable correspondence, in which Mr. Blaine,
! then Secretary of State, offered this government
as an arbitrator to settle the question at the re-
! quest of General Barrios. The Mexican govern
! ment, however, declined Dir. Blaines offer on
| the plain ground that Mexico could not submit
to arbitration her right to one of the States of
| the Mexican confederation, since that was a
| point of her political existence" AS to a union
| or the central American SCaCeS, minister logan
| wrote Mr. Blaine in 1881 that anything which
had even the appearance of interference by the
! United States in this delicate matter would
| place fresh obstacles in the way of such union,
! because it would arouse the jealousies OF the
political leaders in those States, several of whom
| had the same ambition entertained by General
| Barrios to make union with themselves at the
/ head
| Central America, comprising the five indepen-
| dent republics of Costa Rica, Guatemala. Hon
duras Nicaragua and San Salvador, has an area
of l75OO0 square miles, and a population OF
about 1881. 900. The people are divided into
| three classes-whites and creoles, mestizos, or
| the offspring of whites and Indians, and the ab-
| original natives. Alvorado completed the con-
| quest of the country in 1926, and it remained
| subject to Spain until 1923, when the five colo
MES formed themselves into federal republic of
independent states This confederation lasted
until 1889, when it was dissolved There were
i j: lca.o