New-York tribune., 1893-12-24
Talk WITH MINISTER MENDONCA.

IL NsIsTENCIEs IN THE DISPATCHES ABOUT
TIE rEAzIIIAN SITUATION POINTED OUT
v.,eb,,ofon Dec. 25-Minister Mendonca found
so,aru communications from the Brazilian Gov
c~--,cr; awaiting him at the Legation when ne
,nt,-T,el 10 Washington to-day from New ork'
rrey were not Of special Importance. however,
bo informed a reporter for the United Press, but
,,.rc ,articuarlv satisfactory to him in that they
,io,iel bv their own existence the report Of the
cao,ure Of Rio by the insurgent forces and the
subsequent resignation of Peixoto when read
in New-Yorl Yesterday" he said. the Associated
Press dispatch stating that Da Cana had captured
Rio ard that Peixoto had resigned said That
c,r,o, he Won may tell me that Peixoto has
been in battle ard will say. very probably but
he is not of the resignng sort
The Minister was asked what conclusion he had
reached as to the situation of arairs IN brazn
ate: reading the various accounts OF pattieS
rrinted this morning. THE news is very con-
nctinc" he answered "ard all the statements
cannot be possibly true. And they or some OF
them conflict with previous reports respecting the
movements of the rebels under General Saralva
You will remember that some days ago SaraNa
was reported to be on the eve Of attacking sac
paulo with force variously reported at from
Go0 TO 5000 men Now have this same force
attacking the Government troops AT ItaJahEE; @ XIV, d
dreds Of miles distant from Sac Paulo The re-
suit unknown but the reports sta s,a'ea venn snn.
nent troops badly penned in that s9Ilehqeg thr
seemed unavoidable. That ~ quite prooapie' 'he
rabci force numbered 5000. while the Government
force in the whole State OF Santa Ca'harlna "u'"-
bered only 1000" . ~. ,,ouo.s
..Rut the same dispatch said: Another OF Mello
steamers the MeteorO is reported ashore at 5aILd-
Itanabv While she recOnnoitrng the haIpoi
en- trance she ran aground. and the GoVernneh,,
force of artillery there which has forty guns hteu
uDon her and kept up the cannonahe tiii an ntl
crew were killed / do not see how II is possioie
for both these things TO be true. Either one Is
within the range of probabilities but not Do.n
Another dispatch" continued SENIOR Mehoonca
dated Bahia has reported a battle near Boa ls,a
the result OF which also. had not been asceriaheu
The only Boa Vista l know Of Is one OF tne i O,,
palaces i'm the northern suburbs of Rio The onLy
forces that could engage each other there are lne
froops defending the city and body OF marines
from Da Gama's boats and forts In the harDor
At the very outside he could not mass over 5p men
al anv one point. and to me the idea that WINS
number could reach the heights of Boa vista anu
make a respectable stand against the loyal FORCES
is impOssibe. For three months many attempts
have been made by the rebels to land In Nictheroy
across the bay from Rio but these have all beeh
repulsed by the 5000 militia defending the place
Does II seem feasible then, that 800 men coui9
land in Rio scale the hilsides and make a stand
against the 5000 troops which Pexoto has deiehd-
ing the city, - - ,,os
Minister Mendonca declined to answer any ques-
tion about the report that he is negotiating Tor
additional vessels reinforce the meet now az
sembling in Brazilian waters 10 engage the Vessels
under Mello and Da Cana In the course or the
day ne visited the State Department for con,
ference with Secretary Gresham. but failed 10 nnd
him, II being a half-holiday.