The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1900-09-09
ANOTHER WAR IS N SIGHT
OVER THE "ALSACE-LoRAINE" OF
THE WEST COAST OF SOUTH
AMERICA
CHILE, PERU AND ARGENTINE
Three-Sided Conflict May Occur
Among HOt-Hended Descendants
of Pizarr0 Over the Peru
Wan Provinces.

Correspondence of the Associated Press.)
VALPARAISO, Chile, Aug. IA threa
sided conflict is in prospect on account of
the Tacna-Arica question, which has re-
manned in allegiance since the treaty of
Ancon. which terminated. in 1884, the vic
torious war of Chile against Peru and
Bolivia. 1t was agreed that the victor
was to occupy the Peruvian provinces of
Tacna and africa for ten years, after
which a plebiEcitum was to decide
whether those provinces wanted to be in
corporated with Chile or returned to Peru
The date passed off, however, without any
plebiscitum being taken. The ChiIeans
put it off under this or that pretext. be-
cause, it is claimed, they wanted to colon
ize the provinces with their own people,
and thus secure a majority in their favor
at the holding sof the plebiscitum. 1t Is
asserted they sent their soldiers and all
kinds of people from the slums of the
Chilean seaports, but Peru held that only
legitimate natives of the two provinces
should be entitled to vote. and that the
method of voting and the qualifica tons of
the voters should be determined by a spe-
cial protocol as provided in the Ancon
treaty. Chile at last consented to this i'm
1888, at time when she anticipated n
war with the Argentine Republic and
feared Peru might side with the latter.
The BiIlinghurst-La Zorro protocol was
then signed at Santiago and approved by
the Chilean senate, But Chile suisse
quently arranged her dispute with Argen-
tina, and her chamber of deputies did
not even discuss the proposed protocol,
which being approved only by the senate,
remained a dead letter. The question
of the final ownership Of Tacna and
africa has thus remained unsettled and
Chile still occupies the province with the
deliberate intention, according to
the expressions Of many Chilean pa
pers and PUBLIC speakers. of keeping them
forever. Still, some of the most authori-
tative statesmen and diplomats of Chile,
like Messrs Javier Solar, Bulnes and
Luis Aldunate, who have resided as min
listers in Peru, have declared that the
Contamination of the two provinces has
produced no effect. and that they are az
strongly attached to their mother country
as on the day when they were taken
from her They add that it has been no
use for Chile to prohibit in Tacna and
africa the celebra ton of the Peruvian ma
ttonaI anniversaries, for instance, or to
close Peruvian schools; that the two prov
inces are eagerly waiting for the day
when they will be freed from Chilean
domination Peru makes an appeal for
the final ownership of these two provin-
ces And here comes the point where
the United States and the Argentine Re
public are dragged into the dispute. The
United States government having invited
all the SpaniSll-American countries TO
participate in the second pan-American
congress to be held in the City of Mexico.
in October 1901e must have been surprised
to receive from the Chilean government
a conditional acceptance, Chile being
aware that the conditions were to propose
arbitration as the only method to settle
disputes on this continent, answered that
it would send Representatives to the con-
gress only on condition referred excln-
sively to future disputes. The acceptance
of such condition it is pointed out,
would leave Chile free to act as she pleas
ed with reference to Tacna and africa, and
establish in America the principle Of ter
ritorial conquest as condition of war
1t is said that Senior Vicuraa the Chi
lean minister at Washington has obtain
ed from Secretary Hay a declaration that
the United States would not interfere
with affairs on, the Pacific
No wonder that amid this mess the con-
fiicting governments are making prepara-
tons for wa While Chile has sent ia
Germany her favoTite general Korner. TO
buy guns and powder, Peru mas dispatch