The Daily bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Hawaii]) 1882-1895, 1891-12-31
AMERICAN LETTER.
SAN FRANCISCO, Dec. %. 1891.
WARS AND RUMoRs.

trOntler IN order TO be out OF lhe
way of the next German conscrip-
ton. Care is taken to provide these
patriots with employment.
a special from Shanghai December
10th states that placards have been
posted in many parts of the pro
vinces of the Christian missionaries.
A serious attack has been made on the
missionaries in Human, but no de-
tails have yet reached Shanghai. The
rebellion in the North has apparently
been subdued.
An order has been issued by the
Secretary of the Navy that hereafter
all information concerning the move
ments of naval vessels shall be given
to the press by Assistant Secretary
Solely, and by no other officer.
The Grecian Minister of Marines
at Athens has resigned because he
was not allowed TO build several men
of-war.
A Washington special says:
Active preparations for war still
continue in every department. Steps
have now been taken TO secure the
most available vessels in the mer-
chant marine for possible service in
Chilean waters. Arrangements have
been made in New York and San
Francisco to charter, if necessary,
from thirty to forty vessels to be
used as transports and colliers, pre-
parations, so far as the regular naval
vessels were concerned, having been
made as complete as possible. The
Bureau of Naval Intelligence, acting
under Instructions, has prepared a
list OF merchant vessels in case war
against Chile is declared. An offer
from a New York ship-owner of a
score or more of small vessels to
carry coal has met with the thank
of the Department, and the request
that he hold his vessels ON the coast
that they may be made ready on
"a hours notice has been made.
The Naval officials are also looking
about in New York for vessels to be
used in the torpedo service. They
report that the most available craft
for this service are the fast private
yachts of the metropolis. 1t is
urged that they can be very quickly
converted into torpedo boats and
cruisers, and the belief is expressed
that they will prove fully as effective
as the torpedo craft of the Chilean
Navy.
Our Naval authorities say that our
weakest point is the lack of tor
pedoes. Orders hurrying up the
two firms who have contracted to
furnish torpedoes have recently
been issued. The firms, spurred on
by these constant appeals, have re-
piled that they are bending every
energy to furnish the torpedoes as
rapidly as the contracts call for them.
The William Cramp & Sons Ship
and Engine Building Company has
notified the Department that they
are now ready TO furnish two briggs
Schroeder rapid fire guns day. The
activity of the Department with re-
spect to torpedoes and general war
material has been known for some
time, bet the fact was first made
puhlic last Saturday morning that
the Navy Department had taken
steps to utilize the vessels of thu
merchant marine. The available
vessels on the Pacific coast are 2l7
steam vessels and 285 sailing vessels
above POO tons register. The aggre-
gate tonnage is: steam, 1865, 845,
and sailing, 20,9l7,760. 1t is likely
that the Pacific Coast vessels would
be sought after, and communication
has already been had With one Of the
largest ship-owners in San Francisco.
1t is represented that the army will
be able to furnish 10000 men for
transportation either a. San Fran
cisco or Galveston, and fully this
number of men would be required.
One OF The strategic moves would be
to seize sandy Point, Chilean port
in the Straits of Magellan, and place
sufii ;ient troops there to hold it as
base of supplies and as coaling
station. The bulk of the troops
would be landed at Iquique to CAP
ture and hold the nitrate beds,
which are Chile's greatest source of
revenue, and from which our indem-
nifty will be obtained. In spite of
the extreme measures that have been
taken by the Army and Navy De-
partments, the general belief is that
Chile will yield to the demands of
the United States, although it is be-
lieved that she will 90 to The eleventh
hour before admitting that she has
been in the wrong. Naval officers
VINO have served in Chilean waters
think it is very doubtful whether
Chile will apologize until she sees
the war ships of the United States
and hears that W has been de-
clareu.
Late news from London says the
rupture Of the diplomatic relations
between Frauce sud Bulgaria on the
preteXt Of the expulsion of the
French journalist, Chadouine, now
provo tn Wee the initial step of a
French d.f,Dm'Gc scheme to ask
the Su'"n'o use al, suzerain right
to interfere N Bulgaria in the Rus