The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1891-07-02
THE Dl( ,TATOR OF CHILLI
GROSS CRUELTY OF TYRANT
BALMACEOA.

fortunes Ri9alipg Those OF the Inquisi-
ton PractIced on Political Offenders
Fingers of Victims Pounded to Pulp and
Tacks DriFen in Their Hands-Poor
Place to Talk.
Many startling facts in connection
with the evolution now raging in Chilli,
which throw eght upon the ferocity and
despotism df Balmaceda, are given to
the public by three gentlemen, two of
whom are |Chilians, who arrived last
week. The stories show that Balmaceda
is we'll term ed "the tyrant." In Santi-
ago, where bis headquarters are, no one.
dares to utter word against him. He,
has caused a. cross of red to be painted
on the house IS of all people whom he sus-
poets of being not in sympathy with him,
and into these marked residences his po-
lice and soldiers go at any hour of the
day or night They ransack the rooms
on the ground that they are looking for
revolutionisls who are supposed to be
hidden there. The soldiers demand wine
and food, and after having~as good a.
time as they wish depart only to repeat
the offenSe alt some other marked resi-
dence.
Ii laboFer is caught on the street
going to or from work without tag
showing for whom he is working he is
gobbled up by the soldiers of Balmaceda
and impressed into his service. This
system exists in Valparaiso also. One
Of the gentlemen referred to was walk
ing along the street past jail yard. He
heard some terrible shriekS from some
one on the bther side of the wall He
inquired of a soldier the cause and was
told that Sc ME of Balmaceda's soldiers
were Furnishing a man who had refused
to work for him by driving tacks and
pins into his hands and fingers.
The next day he saw horrible pun
ishment meted out to CHILEAN who had
been Overh card to say that he was
willing to work his hands off for the
revolutionists It's. The poor fellows hands
were placed on block and his fingers
pounded to IA jelly by big ,mallet in the
hands of soldier. He was then told
that he cOu Id go and work his hands any
way he war ted to for any one.
The New Yorker denounced the affair
to friend a resident of Santiago who
was with hi m. The next day his friend
was missing. nor did he show up again.
The New York man returned to Val
paraiso, and Just before he sailed he re-
ceived message from his friend saying
that he had been locked up by Balma-
ceda's men, accused of being d revOu-
zionist symbathizer.
The weak point of the revolutiOniStS
is the lack of arms and ammunition.
The forces Of the revolutioniSts number
at present 5000 men. fully armed and
equipped Could the necessary arms be
secured the number would at once be in
creased to ITO, 900 men. There are now at
HuascO, Va enar, Frairina and CarriZaI
bodies of 1hen-in all some 9,000-whO
are only Waiting to get arms and am
mun1tion be fore they take up the march
against Bahmaceda. At the smaller
places on tt e coast as far north as africa
are similar bodies of would-be soldiers.
The arms for these men were on the
ltata, and Had they secured them, with
what ANN hnition the Itata carried, the
CHILEAN rev olution would have been set
ted in Short order.
Balmaced as army consists Of $4,000
men, we'll equipped. OF these only 5000
are of the old regular standing army;
the rest are recruits forced into the
service.
"Balmaceha, " said one the gentlemen
from whom these details are obtained,
"calls these men volunteers To give
YOU an idea of how voluntary the services
of these men are have seen patches of
them numbering from twenty-five W HIGy
each brought into Valparaiso tied to
each other hnd surrounded by soldiers
with fixed bayonets. This l have seen
more than twenty times. l also saw a
letter from the intendente of one of the
southern Or bvinces written to Balmace-
da. in which the intendente said Il re-
greet being nable to send you larger
number of volunteers, owing to the
scarcity of handouts; so you can see
what sort OF fighting material Balmace-
da has to COUNT on. He pays the officers
of his army extra wages to keeptthem in
good humor and to have. them rule the
troops with an iron hand.
"Before VIE left Valparaiso was al
most convinced that Balmaceda would
win the fight, so great did his power
seem. but dhe further north we got the
more | was Impressed with the numbers
and determi naton of the revOlutionists. "
The generals of Balmaceda's army, as
we'll as the principal officers, are said to
be superior in military training to those
of the revoI utionary forces.