The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1898-09-18

Indianian by birth, his father having
been a member of congress and at the
time of his death United States minis
ter to Venezuela. After studying law
in Indianapolis and acting for a time
as the proprietor and manager of the
Lafayette Journal, Mr.. Wilson went 10
Washington and settled at Spokane.
Here he engaged in banking, and with
in few years made a fortune. He
suffered reverses, however, during the
recent panic, and had just begun the
making of a second fortune when Pres
ident Mckinley asked him to repre-
sent the United States here. He lives
very nicely in Santiago having a large
house in the most fashionable part of
the capital. His wife and mother are
with him, and he has three little chill
dren, two of whom go to the American
schools.
STAR-SPANGLED BANNER.
In connection with the pro-Spanish
feeling here a rather amusing incident
occurred in one of the Catholic churches
the other day. The interpreter of our
legation is fine organist and his serv
ices are in demand at several of the
best churches of Santiago. While he
was in attendance at one Of them sew
eral weeks ago, when the war spirit
was at it's height, the priest delivered
a sermon denouncing the United States
and praising the Spaniards. The Yam
kee organist could not, of course, reply
in words, although his soul was filed
with Indignation, but as the congrega-
ton rose to go he played The Star
Spangled Banner with all the force
that he and the great organ could sup
ply. I do not know that the tune was
a familiar one to the priest, but at this
writing the Interpreter still draws his
salary as the organist.
AMERICA AND CHILE.
The feeling here against the Yam
KEGS, as they call us, is largely due to
the ignorance Of the Chileans as to our
people, and to the remembrance that
Chile had to apologize for the outrage
Gus treatment of our soldiers in the
Baltimore affair." The Chileans are in
tensely patriotic. They have right to
be proud of their long, little country,
and they think so much of it that, as /
have said, the masses of them fear that
we want to conquer it for ourselves.
They cannot imagine a war that Is not
waged for conquest or revenge, and
they laugh at the idea that the United
States has been fighting Spain, not
from desire for Cuba, but for the sake
of humanity. On the other hand those
Chileans who have been to the United
States are our strongest friends Men
like Carlos Rogers, a wealthy business
man of Santiago, who was present at
the opening of the Philadelphia mu-
scum; Salustio Beeche, of Beeche G.
Co, Valparaiso; Jorge Asta-Buruaga,
ex-secretary of the Chilean legation at
Washington, and every other Chilean
diplomat who has been stationed in the
United States are our friends and sup
porters. What the two peoples need is
only a closer acquaintance to become
business associates and fast friends.
Chile might, by a little counting, give
us the advantage in commercial and
manufacturing line in many ways, and
that to our profit.
WHAT AMERICANS HAVE DONE.
Chile, in fact, owes a great deal to
the Yankees. The first of her railroads
was planned and constructed by a
Yankee, and this was the first railroad
built in South America. Her first great
steamship line was founded by Yam
kee, named Wheelright, who took
his scheme to New York, but could find
no one to support it, He then went to
London and there organized the Pacific
Steam Navigation company, which has
the most powerful fleet on the west
coast. 1t has sixty steamers, includ-
ing tenders, plying between Valparaiso
and all the ports to the ISthmus Of Pa
mama and also a steamship line be-
tween Valparaiso and Liverpool It
should pay big dividends, for with the
Chilean South American Steamship