The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1889-02-17

complete control OF the lSlands anu ustu
CONNIE need a search of all vessels IN
Samoan waters but, after seiZing an En-
glish tourist named Gillian, on the steam
packet Richmond, from Auckland, Captain
Hand of the English war ship Royalst,
ordered the man released and prepared Tor
action. The Germans released Gillian on
| this demand. Goods which arrived ON tne
Richmond for American merchants at Apla
| the Germans would not permit TO DC
Landed unless they were taken TO German
stOre-house and passed upon by German
officer. The Samoan Times was suppressed
on Jan. 10 for stating that but for German
support, all of the Samoans would JOIN Ma
taafa, and that, unless Bismarck was de-
ceived, he wouldnot attempt to enforce his
| unpopular rule in the country. Prior TO
| this Mr. Cusack, the editor, was fined SlO0
for reprinting certain American newspaper
press comments on the Samoan SITUATION.
Captain Fritze, the German naval COM
maDder, on Jan. %. issued an order instruct
| ing all of the residents of Apia to turn over
| all guns or ammunition held by them. and
proclaimed right of search. Captain Mnllan'
or the American man-Of-war Nlpslc,
| protested against this action, stating
| that the American government had never
recognized Tamasese, and that no power
would allow them to seize arms unless used
| against friendly nation. German troops,
| acting as police In Apia. attempted to ar,
rest Klein, but on the advice of the United
| States consul he went on board the Nlpslc:
On Jan. %, Captain Fritze made demand
| he might be tried before German military
| tribunal. Captain Mullan replied that he
proposed to protect all American citizens
| in Samoa, and that Klein would not be sur
] rendered for trial and on Feb. l he placed
him on the Mariposa.
| The Mariposa brings the first mail adj
| vices from the Samoan islands since jan
uary 2, when the preceding steamship of
| left the Island of Tutuila on Feb. l.
| and brings official reports of the United
l States consul and American naval officers
| of the action of the German naval force iii
| Samoa since the engagement OF Dec. IL; be-
| tween the natives and Germans. which
| were forwarded in t0-night's mail to Wash
| ingtOn. At the time of the departure of the
Mariposa the necessity for the presence of
| the American men of-war ordered to the
scenes is claimed to have been urgent, as
| the operations of the Germans were di-
| rected more against the American and
English residents than against Mataafa
and his forces, whom the Germans affect to
| call a rebel The German consul visited
Mataafa's camp to induce him to accept
| German rule, while in the cases of the
Americans and Englishmen. the right of
| search OF vessels and private houses in Apia
| was embodied in official proclamations.
Formal declaration of war against King
| Mataafa was made by the German author
| tiles on Jan. 10, and martial law established
for the entire islands. On the same day
| English subjects were seized and taken on
war being prosecuted againt Mataafa and
| his followers, the Germans have neglected
them almost entirely and have confined
their. operations against American and
| January numbers of Tamasese's men began
| deserving, there being mutiny by one of
| his most prominent chiefs, who decided
that. while it might be legitimate enough
| to hight against their own people, yet they
| were not willing to join with the Germans
| in fighting the natives of Samoa. Apia
remained practically deserted: The, Ger
man officers from the war ships, and the
| beach in Apia. taking observations of
| Mataafa'S boats, which were drawn up on
| the beach. On the Sth day of January a
large boat, containing Tamasese soldiers,
| came from up the coast, and communicated
with the, German war ship. Adler. The
same night several deserters from Ia
! masese's side went to the camp of King
| Mataafa, at Maslagi, and informed him that
Apia, on the following night, and
| also assault Mataafa's party. The Germans
1 were to assist the rebels as much as pos
sible, and the American aud English resi-
Mataafa's men. The King at once informed
the American and English residents in Apia
of this fact, thus giving them an opportu-
| nifty to prepare for an attack. Lieut.. +. K.
| Fiilette, of the United States marine corps.
! in charge of the marine guard at the Amer
| lean consulate. was aroused by the sentry,
| that night, who Informed him that fire was
| in progress in Mataafale. He, with four
| marines, ran to the scene of the fire about
| one mile away, and was one of the first to
| arrive there. 1t was found. that the resi-
dence of the German consul, DR.. Knappe,
was in flames. In few minutes the fire had
communicated to the German postofice at
| the other end of the building, and reaching
across the street, the flames attacked the
| German consulate. A large force of sailors
from the United States war ship Nipsic was
sent ashore to fight the. fire. A few min
utes later detachment from the English
warship Royalist arrived, and half an hour
afterward large force of sailors from the
| German warships Adler, Olga and Eber ar
rived, each man carrying loaded rifle with
fixed bayonet. The American and English
sailors brought pumps and axes. The fire
| in the meantime had spread to the resi-
dence. of Mr.. Schmidt, the German vice.
consul, and the. Staadt Hamburg
residents (among the former being United
States Yice-consul Blacklock) fought the
| fire, which was only destroying German
| property, until they were nearly exhausted.
| The American and English sailors worked
using axes and saving property belonging
to the German Trading and Planting Com
pany. The store of Grevsmuhi & Co, and
the large store ana re residence OF An sue,
jail, three small German dwellings, several
| native houses and native church. While
the fire was in progress, Consul Knappe de-
| clared he thought the occurrence was en-
tirely accidental, due to the carelessness of
| several black lab0rers brought from other
| islands to work on the German plantations
| and who were hanging about his residence
at the time. Within five or six hours later,
however, Knappe expressed his belief that
| the American and English residents of Apia
were implicated in the business, Consul
Knappe established his Office in the premi-
ses of the German Planting and Trading
Company.
The German war ship Eber sailed for
Auckland on the 18th, taking dispatches To
be sent to the German government concern
ing the burning of the consulate A Mataafa
native was publicly whipped in the after
noon, In the presence of many Americans,
English, natives and a few Germans, for
having told the German consular clerk III
the street. a few days before, that Mataafa's
men would soon have his head. On the
afternoon of Jan. -, a boat belonging 10
| ex-United States Vice-consul T.. l.. Hamil-
| ton, manned by two natives, was seized by
| an armed boat from the German ship Adler
while in the neutral water of Apia harbor
| The boat was afterward released, and when
an explanation was demanded by Consul
Blackjack, Consul Knappe replied that II
| was because the boat had not displayed
| any national flag. The English merchant
steamer Richmond arrived in Apia harbol
| shortly before dark on the 18th. The vice
consul received no news, and the Ameri
| cans were left in the dark as to the inten
tion of the American government to protect
| its citizens.
e IL