New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1889-08-24
THE STRUGGLE IN HAYTl'
y PEACE MISSION THAT FAILED
1 WEEK OF rreHrrse-A HEAVY BILL
IA oour-nrrrOIITE SURROUNDING


THE CAPITAL
n-..s Hsyti, Aug. l3 CSpeclaD.-ihe
forvru-, ..a.s mission of the Englsh 0ohSui
semi-onicial cr;sb Consul-General failed as Hyp-
ana lhe "a ot first have nothing TO 90 WIN
poh'e W.. \. finally gave his terms instead oil
thenn' p' those of Legitime. His ulumatum
hs'en,ne .hs troons in Portau Prince were to lay
was LII" - arms. that he, with his escort was
down .s, outside the Portal ST. Joseph by the
a,;c ~ todv and by them escorted TO the gates
- ,he ctv where the city officials were 10 sur
,.,der the capital TO him Internationally lie
..nonnced that he would have sufficient force with
him n protect the lives and property oil the
o;,;zens Iecitime in the meantime having left
tho CITY with those of his cOunseliors who dd not
care 20 remain Legitime agreed to this, put 'he
man who controls him, Ces Maison, the French
Minister. forced him 20 decline, saying that such
,erms were diseraoeful and the English eunboat
Forward carried that answer back TO Hyppolite
at St Marc the next day.
The fight at LeoZane between the gunboat Jac-
mel sometimes called the Mercedes, under com
mand of Captain Compton, formerly OF the Hayden
Republc. the man who threatened few nights
since to lombard Port-au-Prince, and the Dessa-
lines. under Captain Salini, was fully described
in la Democratic" a newspaper published at
the slightest knowledge of man. of-war. the ac-
count Is laughable. yet the euloey on Captala
salni ends with " This last stroke describes the
man. after telling how he had defended his ship
during the whole day. and finally brought her safe
INTO port Captain Salini, who is Corsican by
birth and naturalzed American citizen, was
,een a few DAYS after the return of the DessanneS
10 Port-au-Prince. lie was then private citizen,
having resigned his commission in the Haytiah
Navy, and his account of the fight was very
different from that of the newspapers lie salu
that the Jacmel came up on him suddenly az
Leozane at a time when his boilers were IN pao
condition and repairs were being made that pre-
vented his having steam on and that Captain
Compton placed his vessel in such position that
none of the guns of the Dessalines could be
brought 10 bear the enemy. Compton fired
about dozen shots at him. three OF which took
effect, two in the rigging and one in the hull
lie then sent down to his room and got sheet
from his bed and hoisted it as IA flag in token OF
surrender, but whether Compton could not make
out the color of the Gag was afraid of
treachery he did not know; but the result was
that the Jacmel kept up the fire at intervals, until
Salini came to the conclusion that he must try
some other plan. lie then sent his gig ashore
with hawser and swung his ship so that the
heavy guns were brought TO bear on the enemy,
and a few shots drove Compton of. He had also
now succeeded in getting up steam,
and steamed slowly toward Port-au-Prince until
picked up and towed in by the Panama. The rest
Of the fleet steamed down to Jeremic on Sunday,
August IL, presumably to see if that town had
gone over to Hyppolite 1t is generally supposed
that they went to capture the Jacmel and the
Carondelet. They have not since returned here.
On Saturday, August 10: the heaviest fighting
of the war took place at La Coup. Hyppol1tes
forces had been gradually drawing near TO that
place and threatening the road to Bizoton, which
would give them communication with the forces
coming up from the south legitlmc began the
attack, which RACED around La Coup, or Petiou-
vile, all day The evening found Hyppolite in
possession of the road. The losses on both sides
were about the same, 90 killed and $50 wounded.
That night Legtime's general III charge Mon
plaisr, burned the pretty town around which they
had been fighting all day, the inhabitants having
fed to the mountains during the combat lie
kindly promised that they should all be indemnifed
for their losses.
Hyppolite's line now reaches entirely around the
capital, and the general impression among the
forei ign population j. that he will enter from the
south when the final downfall comes, as the fort
at BizotOn amounts to nothing and Is being slowly
strengthened.