The San Francisco call., 1899-07-09
SAYS LETTER
WAS ALTERED
New Version of Car
ranza's Expulsion.
GEORGE F. BELLS AFFIDAVIT
DECLARES THE SPANISH EP1S-
TIE WAS CHANGED.
Chief Wilkie Denies the Sensational
Story, and Avows That Bell
Was Never in His
Employ.
Special Dispatch to The ca!l.

MONTREAL. July 8.-A strange sequel
IN the theft of the letter written mere py
Lieutenant Carranza, attache OF 'he
former Spanish legation at Wasmhstoh'
to his cousin, a Spanish admiral at tne
beginning of the war, has just appear Gu 5
George Frederick Bell has made an am
dovit dated Waterloo, July 4, that the
1a++er submitted by the United states
Government to the British Government
which resulted in the deportation OF Lieu
tenant Carranza and Senor Duposc Aioll
Canada was an altered copy. fur1ne[, ne
svears that he stole the letter wflch Gar
rama wrote. took it to washington alu
gave it to Chief Wilkie, who had II trans ans
lated It proved to be quite harmless
and according to Mr. Bell, experts were
cent for who distorted its meaning anu
Who then made changes in the orlSlhal
Carranza letter - d
AS a result, Lieutenant CaIl ailZo' CIV
Senior Dubosc were deported from Caldu"'
and on their arrival in LONDON an actloh
for damages for expulsion tIoi1 ,.ad t e@ainst
without Just cause was entereH as9oiiI97s s5aiI7s
the Canadian Government II MI ILi DeLt ,
sworn statement is true, IL WIZ oe of tbsa
interesting to the GoVernItepIrgi Gt pri+oin m and
United states, (ahaod' vi
0pdrl'B Mr. Bell says in his affidavit that being
in the United States at tle tbe its,is snv svs
fem of the Spaniards in Canada ana m
thought he had a plan which mlg1I NJ; oe
useful to the United states; ne saw ~, md
vas giyer a letter TO Detective NeHeis
of M6ntreal telling him to use him II
necessary, as he was an American ana
AfTer telling of the theft of the letter
from Carranzas S house here, Bell adds:
~ took the train at ST. Lambert that
leaves Montreal at Cos and arrived III
New York Sunday mornlng' May - +,,a
telegraphed TO Chief Wilkie to be at INC
station to meet me, and crossed over 70
Jersey City and took the tram Ior w iISm7 7llo.
ington. Wilkie was at the sIatIon auu Ho NC
took a cab to the hotel thought ne
would upbraid me for taking the letter;
hut he did not He examined IL, askea
questions and teleSraphed to New I oIk.
chief WiIkie, Don GonZalo Quesada and
an expert penman named CaVanna que
sada translated Carranza's letter and II
was then copied but 1 ehe seprs c9pies that MtT VII
kie would pay him no money, ,s he iI then
threatened to expose the affair If not paid
Wilkie replied: Go ahead-you Will only
be arrested for theft and get seven years
WASHINGTON, July S.-"The whole
thing is rot. Some one has sold Mon
treai paper gold brick"
This was Chief Wilkes comment wnen
7 gave him the substance of the story
alleging that the Carranza letter 9ad oeeh
altered. >,
employ in Montreal. and | do not Know th9
man spoken of as Cavanna, either.
Senor Ouesada declared the story alb
surd when | saw him tonight. - never
saw the Carranza letter; sald Quesaua'
pers at the time. | did not Know Chler
Wilkie then or until a long time after
ward. In fact, | have seen him only once
to know who he is, and that was when L
called on him about two weeks ago to
speak to him about man who was seek
ing employment in the secret service.