The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1892-01-21
President Montt Says Every
thing Will Be Settled Soon.
FIGHTING WOULD BE EXPENSIVE.
Protest by the w. C. T. Z. Against
Attack Upon Poor Little Chile.
Ine Letters Secretary Tracy Gets Ad-
wise Conciliation-Messag Not Yet
Written-Yorktown Leaves valpa-
raiso-Schley on Procurator's Report.

pPeSial. II ne Herald can state poSltlveIy
that President Montt yesterday told an
Official high in the Chilean service that
there is not the slightest doubt that all
matters at present in dispute between the
United States and Chile will be amicably
settled within a short time.
1t is deliberate lie that the Yorktown
was fired upon
BosToN, Mass, Jan. 20.-Robert Burnett,
prominent member of the Democratic
state committee, who has spent two years
In Chile, said today;
1t would take at least 100000 soldiers to pro-
duee any effect whatever in Chile They would
have to be transported, and the cost would be
enormous. The Chieans are very rash. feel
sure that If war were declared it would be
long time before we secured the victory, and
the country would be put to great expense. The
cost for mere start would be s2,0O0,O0o
CHICAGO, Jan. 20.-Miss Francis Willard
received telegram today from Massa-
chusetts, asking if she could not collect
by telegraph the petitions of several hum
dred thousand women against war with
Chile and send them to Washington City
this week. Already the National w. c. L.
u. convention had formulated protest
and Miss Willard at once telegraphed for
its presentation to President Harrison.
The heads of a number of other female
organizations of the country have been
urged by telegraph to join 1.-The protest of
American womanhood against this need
less war proposed to be waged by 63, 600 900
people against 1000, 200"
WAsHINGToN Cry. Jan. 20.-While the
cabinet did not assemble for deliberation
today, the joint presence of Secretaries
Blaine, Elkins and Tracy at the White
House bore strong resemblance te cab
met meeting. They remained in" confer
ence with the president for some time, and
General J. W. Foster was called in. The
discussion related generally to the Chilean
affair, but the question most directly un-
der consideration was the character of the
presidents message to congress.
Secretary Tracy received a message
from Commander Evans today saying the
Yorktown will sail for Callao with the
refugees tonight This is regarded as an
indication that affairs are quiet In Chile at
present.
The members of both the House and
Senate committees on naval affairs held
conference with Secretary Tracy today.
A very accurate index of the popular
sentiment is obtained through the letters
that pour in upon Secretary Tracy from
all parts of the country. Whereas ten
days ago these indicated the development
of a decided war spirit, today there seems
to be change in this tone, and there is a
growing disposition to urge the secretary
to conciliatory course.
1t is quite apparent that congress may
not be enlightened on the Chilean contro-
versy for at least two or three days, for the
ia do ha tata do
partment that the correspondence may
not be sent in tomorrow. No date is fixed
for the submission of the message and
documents,
VALLEJO, Cal, jan 20.-Captain Schley,
of the Baltimore, was this morning shown
the report of the procurator fiscal of Val
paraiso. as published in the morning pa
pers. He said:
am not at sll surprised by this report II is
exactly what I expected. such conclusions
were rendered necessary to sustain the Chilean
contentious in the case, aud the only thing that
surprises me is that they did not convict and
sentence me to term of imprisonment
Captain Sehley then went over the re-
port and discussed it in detail. Regard
ing the rejection by the procurator of
Langin's and Johnson's testimony, on the
ground that their stories did not agree
perfectly, the captain said:
Those two men were our strongest witnesses,
testifying as they did directly to the shooting Of
Riggin by the soldiers. The court had 10 find
some plea for rejecting their evidence, aud hit
on the fact that they appeared not TO have
known each other before the riot occurred
This is very natural Iangin was not member
of the Baltimores crew at the time. He was
sailor on an American vessel wrecked in Val
paraiso harbor some days before. and enlisted
on the Baltimore week after the riot, As for
the statement that the men dined together in
an eating house on the day of the riot, il might
as well be held that two men could eat at the
same hotel without meeting each other. In
fact, there can be no possible doubt thaE Riggin
was killed By rifle bullet fred by some sol
dier Johnson was STOPPING over, supporting
Riggin on his arm. The soldiers fired at only
six feet distance The bullet pierced the shirt
and neckerchief covering the right shoulder of
Johnson and then struck Rigg,n in the neck,
ranging downward and iuiicting a wound
which, the doctor said. caused instant
death. Blood poured from the wound
and covered Johnson's shirt This shirt
was shown in the Valparaiso court, and yet the
procurator states that he objects 10 Johnson's
testimony because there were no bloodstains on
his sleeve. and there must have been If hts story
was true. The procurator's statement that no
one testified as to who fired the shot is false, as
johnson and Langin both testified that the sol
diers fired at them
Regarding the dispute as TO the weapon
from which the bullet that killed Riggin
was fired CAPTAIN Schley said:
This il what knew would occur as soon as
heard that experts had been summoned. The
day after the mob's attack Valparaiso paper
stated that one OF the Baltimore's men fred
pistol at a policeman. missed him and killed
Riggin This theory was at once seized upon
by the Chileans but when the examination Of
Higgins body was made il was found that the
bullet had passed through over nine inches of
the hrnesf tissues IN the human body; passed
through the yertebrse, shattering them; then
through the shoulder BLADE, and after all this
left the body the other side with such velocity
that the flesh was hardly torn. There is no
pistol in existence that could inhiet such q
wound as this. There is no possible doubt that
the ball came from rife. II was necessary for
the ChiIeans 10 prove that IL vas q revolver
wound I'm order 70 exOnerats the police, and
they therefore called in two physicians as ex-
perts As was expected, the men. only one of
whom was really a physician, the other being
merely hospital dresser and one WHO had
never examined Higgins body, testified that the
wound was inflicted by q pistol This gave
! the court an excuse 10 reject the
| entire testimony. Lieaten ant MeCrae.
and Or. White, OF the Baltimors. made careful
test By firing pistol and rife balls through q
| shirt and neekerchief Ike Johuson's into a
piece of meat. and found the rifle penetrations
| through bota cloth and meat exactly the same
| As those in ghe Riggin case. Or. White had
| lest treated 30 or 40 rife wounds. aud vas an
| expert on TIE subject Both MeCrae and
! aits tesnaed most positiYely before the