The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1900-02-16
HOW MACRUM
WAS TREATED.
A Correspondent Who Came
Home With Him Tells OF 1t
WAS HOUNDED BY SPIES.
Told That He Was on Leave of Absence
and Then Discarded While on the
Trip Home Passengers
CompIaIned.


the Washington correspondent of the
New York Journal, sent that paper the
following story of why Consul Macrum
refused to remain as U. s. Consul at
Pretoria:
Since Charles e. Macrum, the ex-Uni-
ted States consul at Pretoria has re-
fused to make statement as to his rea-
sons for leaving his post at so critical
a time. 1 think the time has past when
1t would be violating any confidence in
telling what little l know of the cir
cumstances.
1 met Mr.. Macrum for the first time
In the government building in Pretoria
about the middle of October last. met
him several times after that during
short trips to Pretoria from the front,
when / was attempting to get news
out of the daily events Of the war. When
declared my intention of going to Eu
rope and sending the news from the
nearest cable station, Mr.. Macrum ask
ed me If it void be convenient for me to
wait another week, as he was going to
| Washington on a short leave, and the
first five weeks trip up the east coast
would pass more quickly If we could
be together.
NO INTENTION TO RESIGN.
If one is permitted to judge from his
own observations, rather than reports,
can say that 1 am absolutely positive
| that Mr.. Macrum had not resigned his
post and had no intention of doing So
when he left Pretoria. know that he
left all his belongings in the consulate
| excepting the clothes that were neces-
sary for the journey and the reception
| given by the citizens Of the town the
night before he left. in which there
were Englishmen, Beers and Uitlanders,
besides the various representatives at
the Boer capital, was an indication that
his departure at that time had the sig
nificance only of a state mission which
was confidential. 1t all seemed very
natural.
The American and English interests
had been placed in the hands of Mr..
Hollis, who has had ten or fifteen years
experience in consular service in South
Africa. Mr. and Mrs. Hollismoved into
Mr.. Macrum's furnished house, leaving
the vice-consul in charge of the affairs
at Delagoa bay.
HOUNDED BY ENGLISHMEN.
In Lourenzo Marquee, British agents
bounded him and his family, and two
Englishmen paid passages to Alden on
the same steamer who attempted on one
occasion to get into the consul's trunk.
Finally it was necessary to place the
trunk and one grip in the captains cab
in, the grip being locked in the captain s
clothes press. The conduct ofthe En-
glishmen on board his steamer and also
the English treatment of the passengers
| .4zI L
Lourenzo Marquee so enraged the cap
tain of the Koenig that he refused to
raise the British flag at Zanzibar, where
an English boat saluted him, or to fly
the flag of Great Britain when enter
ing the harbor at Alden.
When the English passengers made q
formal protest against this act of dis
courtesy, the captain informed them
that they could be "-"and urged
them to file a protest with the ships
company.
When the boat touched at Alden, or
the coast of Arabia. and a dozen news
paper men locked on board with theil
pockets filled with clippings from En-
glish papers, some charging Macrun
with being coward, some with being a
Burgher of the Transvaal some with
being interested in speculations there
some with being a diplomatic agent
of President Kruger, and nearly all OF
them referring to him as being "the eX-
consul" he closed up like a clam and
, dismissed them all with more or less
, politeness.
At each subsequent port where the
boat stopped he was bounded. His wife
was bounded, and even his little daugh.
49,. Ii.
: conditions of newspaper men and wo-
men.
At Port Said the American consul, ar
Englishman, invited him to breakfast
and his wife drove Mrs. Macrum over
town, both of them attempting to learr
from the consul what his mission was
The consul there is a newspaper man
WAS BAITED EVERYWHERE.
At Naples, newspaper correspondent:
from Rome, representing papers from
all parts of Europe, crowed around Mr.
Macrum's cabin and waited for him t
get up. The ship had anchored during
+ the night. They showed him persona
attacks upon himself, and one handed
him a clipping deriding him for ever
3 refusing 10 speak to the Aemrican con
sui at Port Said.
el rTOlil ANdplSo W dIlo lie was lIdChct
!, and bounded like a criminal, but III
) kept mis- own counsel, refusing to mon
l ton South Africa or to deny a sin
gle chargeagainst himself. When ask
ed If he was q consul or an ex-consul
he said nothing. When shown a clip
, ping from the London Chronicle stat
/, ing that he was no longer connected
) with the state department, he still sa'C
{ nothing. In the parlor of the Hote
t Powers, at Paris, 1 was offered on
! thousand poundsto make a statement a.
to why Mr.. Macrum had left his post.
was told that l was his private secre
3 tary, because had his confidence, anC
} know it to be a fact that Mr.. Macrun
I was approached with bribe to maxi
! statement as to how much or how lit
I, tie he knew of the Tranvaal secret di
plomacy.
When Mr. Macrum arrived in Wash
ington and his friends gave him clip