The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1898-06-09
ADVENTURES IN PORTO RICO
HAZARDOUS MISSION OF AN
AMERICAN OFFICIAL.
Traversed the Island Under An As
sumed Name and On a Bogus
Passport-Arrest and Escape.

New York, June S.-Edward Emerson
jr., an attache of the war department
bureau of information, arrived here to
day on board the steamer Mariana
from St Thomas, after having per-
formed some hazardous service and un.
dergoing some thrilling experiences il
Porto Rico. Transforming his name in.
10 Emersohn, he secured a bogus pass
port and went to San Juan, ostens;bly
as a correspondent of the BerlineI
.Deutcher Zeitung.
at San Juan, said Mr. Emerson to-
day, they would not permit me to go
through the Notifications, nor would
| they allow me to make visit to the
newspaper correspondent, Haltstead
who is held in prison as a spy. 1 was
permitted to walk through the streets,
| however.
THE war department, I may say,
need have no fears of difficulty in TAX
| ing San Juan whenever the attempt is
made. While 1 could not see any great
damage that was done by the bonn
bardment of the city, the Notifications
are in such shape that they offer al
most no resistance.
L succeeded in penetrating to the ex-
act center of the island to a place call
ed CaguaS, when my papers were eX-
amined and the alcalde was not alto
gether satisfied with their regularity
L said that had been employed as the
oVerseer of sugar plantation belong
ing to German, situated beyond that
place, but l was promptly thrown in
Jail. The alcalde said he would have
to communicate with San Juan to find
out whether or not 1 was all right
How long will that take?' 1 in
quired. 1t may take two or three
weeks, he replied. We will have an
swer by the middle of the summer,
anyhow
This was not cheerful prospect,
especially as [ feared that my identity
had been discovered at San Juan 1
wrote a telegram to the German con-
sui and also offered to gay for a tele-
gram to the governor of San Juan.
This gave me a little better stand
ing with the alcalde and 1 was allowed
measure of liberty.
May % l walked some distance from
the prison at noon and found a number
OF horses standing outside black
smith shop. The hostlers were taking
their monday meal, and 1 appropriated
the best horse L could find and de-
camped. To get to Ponce I must go to
the west, but, as that seemed danger
Gus, went in an opposite direction,
riding bareback for two days and two
nights.
Il met a shepherd boy and offered
him jack-knife if he would draw me
map of the surrounding country.
From that grew the published state
ment that foreigner had compelled
boy to draw map, under threat of
Sitting his throat. The map | have
now in my possession for the war de-
partment and found it correct in every
detail.
when I rode again to the east
crossed range of hills, to find the en-
tire east of the island in the possession |
of the Insurgents The insurgents well |
coined me and gave me an escort to the |
coast, where 1 found a small schooner |
at anchor. Though this schooner be- |
longed to Spaniard, the captain was !
prevailed upon to take me away. We /
had just lost sight of land, on May 2S, !
when warship hove in sight that we
took for an American. Our captain was
greatly excited and began to pray, until
[ discovered that the stranger flew the
Spanish flag. 1t proved to be the tor
pedo boat destroyer Terror.
She steamed up alongside and an
officer was sent aboard who was dress
ed as a sailor and had taken a position
at the masthead. After an examina-
ton Of the books, the Spaniards left
her and we headed for Santa Cruz.
There l boarded the Madiana and
found a number of newspaper cores
Dondents and artists aboard.
THE Spanish alcalde had sent a tel
egram to the Danish authorities to hold
ne upon arrival, as a horsethief. Major
Moore, the United States consult at ST.
Thomas, positively refused to surren-
Ter me, and even took me in a boat
himself out to the Mariana
When Emerson left San Juan he saw
our Spanish warships in the harbor-
he Isabel II, Alicante, Concho and
Terror.