Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1885-04-09
=, COLOMBIAN REVOLUTION.
iona and humorous Features of the
Frequent Outbreaks.
From, tie Neqo York tribune.

b
~, reb1inon. Theirs no inser tfon
e., Jssi,e to subvert the Existing I'm 4
~ nuel... A revolutio2 is rather the
55o,nlar method Of expressing dissatisCac-
In with the regnar political l,arty.
41-r,p North Americans orranlze
abqlt0 south Americans organize arevo-
en-, When the lCr'3el appeal to the
INT boz to leTedy political evils. the
5,.ter resort to gunpowder and bullets.
!, +bA desired political chapees can be ef-
...tal by the empty marshalling Of troops
lsO the BLAIR of trumpetS, without APP
& IN arms, 10th Iartitn are the bette
ll.fed. But neither side hesito.as TO
s'ssrt TO blood-letting, if success is not
.a,berwise attainable.
~, cartagena, for some time after actual
Entities had broken out, the natiOnGl
Ems we're Quartered in the Convent of
a. Iuan de DeOs, while the revolution
..+s 6arricaled themselves in the college
h,,13ings. "WhY don't You drive out
.baf nest of rebels i'm the cnllege?2 I
o osi,d loyal otHcIal. "Quien sabe?'
@Wro knows J? he replied with a shrug.
Nrd when finally steamer arrived
3.~;goipp reintorcements' from Panama,
fHn
,,.aroh round TO be college and capture it,
-lli',-terinc the revolutionists and deposing
3fag1pI NuneZ Rapol, the revolutionary
p,es.dant of the State of Bolivar, no at
ta,nuf was made to hold the latter re-
-,onsihlp for his intriguing to hand the
1i4q over to the rebels, and many of the
~ovoutionary recruits soon turned up in
t5anniform of national soldiers. To an
outsider such playing at war seems mex
O1icsble at first. Closer scrutiny. how
aver shows that it is wise Micawber-
I;ra waiting to see What will turn UP
om,pg the politicians, who, not the sol
G.ars nor generals, are the real arbiters of
tbs nation's destiny. Either party is
rasdy 10 succumb when it is manifest
tbqf its rival has gained the political
supremacy.
an Jan. IS the rebels captured Baran-
ooiN9. at the mouth of the river Magda-
lana the great central artery of Colon
HAN commerce, thus securing to them
eelves the customs duties at that port
They converted some Of the captured
steamers into armor-plated gunboats,
ana one Of them, a large tug, armed
with an Armstrong gun and commanded
bv a plucky American, Capt. Akers,
came down to Cartagena and fired some
HANK shots at the town. "Why don't
YOUR people lombard the town and rOu'
emit the handful of national troops in the
convent?" I asked a rebel synhathizer.
n0uien sabeS' was again the reply; "as
as there is any doubt as to which
side will win. what is the use Of useless
bloadsbodp So far as one can see, the
whole sfTair is conducted upon the same
minciple-a vast game of bluff. For weeks
The national forces were busily engaged
in iron-plating the steamer Rafael Nunez
at great expense to themselves of time
and money. At last she was ready, ard
a detachment Of troops. numbering 400,
under command Of Gen. Ulrueta, went up
the DiQue upon her, crossed to Sabana-
larga. which they occupied Feb. 7, only a
few miles from Baranquilla. At latest
adYices they were only waiting the ar
rival of cannon and reinfOrcements, dis
patched by the steamer Ailsa, of the Atlas
Line, to occupy the town. the main body
Aot the rebels having fed up the river with
5out fighting. How hong this game will
fc0ntuue no one can say, though the ma
IOnal party seems clearly to have the
asceudancy at the present moment.
But the unfortunate feature of these
revolutions is the utter paralysis of in
dukby and business which always fol
lows. With the suspension Of public
guarantees on Dec. q, by decree Of gov
erament, all the national schools closed,
courts adjourned. contracts were sus-
Pended ana every one settled down TO talk
godcs and watch the issue of events.
i0i-ners wishing to reach the interior
are blnckadcd from ascending the riYer.
add those in the interior can neither got
ont nor get supplies. 1t 10 not easy to
salculate the loss from this suspeu-
sim Of business to companies engaged Din
mining or manufacturing. Recruiting
parties carry away the wOIkmen from
the haciendas 10 make them into uuwil-
iaT soldiers, cOnfscating at the same
time the mules and horses. The panic
amoag the country people is almost ludi-
oruus to fOreigner. AS was sailing mp
4 the Dque in a steam LAUNCH under the
British flag the occupants Of the boats
and canoes took to the woods without
waiting to ascertain our mission. The
male inhabitants of whole villages sleep
& I'd the mountains and sayannas to pre-
vent surprise by the conscription. The
\ Wharyes Of Cartagena are laden with
4 freight which the steamship companies
can neither store nor forward to their des-
tinat0ns.
And who is to pay for all this loss and
ee7ntiCn? Whence comes the money
winch Is squaudered SO laYishly by every
one who has his fingers in the public
81 treasury? The extravaganza and ire
& sl0ns0ility OF those in authority is the
.@ik OF all FOREIGN residents. The Yucca
IAN vas paid $4,000 for bringing few
ldieTs from Colon to Cartagena, and
s5ylO TO the ship and $1,000 TO the captain
Ie PAID for carrying few guns and
qapments 10 Barauquilla. IL VIII cost
le government $500 per day for the river
nis detained in their employ and
9a l.e wages for all employees. The sum
aIai OF the expenses in this little town
~ a lew weeks indulgence in a reYolu-
1gn VIII be enormous.
30 far as the property of foreigners is
3acefnod, there seems 80 be a general
'.s.uon 10 let the government have
"Aal u wants. Foreign gunboats are q
~! good security, and the size OF the
AIh' Is prOportiGned to the trouble and
~ q collecting them. The pillaged ma
US however, have no recourse. De-
pi'el Of horses and stock. the workmen
gus pied, all paying industries { a
."aaslill, years Will be required to re-
the ground lost by few weeks OF
-. alied revolution.
.s is the secret Of the slow pr ges3
'ues republics in the South, in spite OF
laf enormous richness IN NJ erial re-
Wees' No one will make inv 'mehts
siuiflug time and careful atte..uon for
a ueFe'opi2snt, because OF tn~se r.
ltule seasOHs Of CONFUSION and nsecu-
~, me government cane make con.
ne Tor in rnal imprON@--en.s W b
paying erorm ,us premiums. IN addi-
70 the actual cost 20 CO pensate
luaeiors i0r the risks they take. Tie
u classes prefer 20 live on plantains
H,e, without laboi or trouble 10
Ives, rather than ace'"aulate PROV