The daily morning journal and courier., 1903-12-12

JIG C0lomDlan general nave won IoI
 him not only the confidence of the chief
 authorities, but also one of the highest military positions in the country"
 Captain Hilton has disappeared from view lately, but he is supposed to be still knocking about the Isthmus some
 where. He studied at Annapolis. but did not enter the navy. He became in turn a merchant seaman, a whaler and
 an official of the Pacific Mail Steamship company.
 Then he went into the Colombian ser-
 vice as skipper of the yacht-warship which Jeffries bought at Genoa. Sto- ries are told of him at Panama and Co.,
 lon which make the famous Captain Kettle look like a baby by comparison.
 Time and again he has fought for his life against mutinous crew or gang
 of well armed Latin-Americans.
 When he is asked the meaning of two
 deep scars running right across his face
 from cheek to cheek. he tells thrilling
 tale of how he fought, single handed,
 gang of Colombian wharf rats who
 wanted revenge because he made them
 unload cargo on saints day.
 One Of the Colombians slashed his
 face twice with knife. The next mos
 ment Hilton fractured the mans skull
 with blow of his fist
 Tt was his life or mine." says the
 skipper when he tells the story. ''The Colombians had their knives, but had only my fists and besides, was spoutr ing blood like whale.
 q had to hit him while I had my strength. If hadn't been losing blood So fast could have hit harder.
 When the others saw him fall dead you can just bet they got move on! If I had had a belaying pin would have followed them on to the wharf" The blow that killed the Colombian was of such force that Tilton's hand was broken in five places.
 Jeffrfes and Tilton-but especially Tilton-are good types of the soldiers of adventure who are to be found mix ing up in every Latin-American squab- ble. There were many of them on the Isthmus during the last revolution, and doubtless they are there still, helping to establish firmly the Panama republic. General Herrera, the commander-in- chief of the Liberal forces on the Isth- mus during the revolution, may be ex- Dected to become great man in the new republic. He is remarkable per- son, who has to be reckoned with in my consideration of Isthmian affairs. In his way he is a fine general, though he lacks dash, and somehow never managed to push his victories home. That was probably because he hates slaughter, and for Latin-Amer- ican general, is strangely careful of the lives of his men. ..t During the revolution he occupied a strong position forty or fifty miles from Panama, and all the efforts of the gov ernment for three years could not drive 2 him from 1t. His men knew every inch J Of the mountains. swamps and jungles over which they fought, and they prac- tised guerrilla tactics with deadly ef- # feet. Herrera's secret service was perfect. All through the war he knew of every 8 move of the government before 1t was \ made. Nine-tenths of the people in a Panama, being Liberal at heart, were
 ready to give him information.
 . He could have told you the number lof sheets of letter paper on the desk of
 the governor of Panama at any time, if
 The had wished One of his staff officers v actually became private secretary to . the governor for several months and, of r course, sent him copies of every dis " patch and every secret order issued by
 that official, delaying them when neces- e sary so that Herrera could get his am n bush ready first and surprise the expe- II ditions sent to surprise him. | . l. was captured by Herrera without firing
 shot-two thousand men, guns, bag. 1T gage, mule train. generals and all. IS Herrera pretended to retreat in con y fusion, and led the enemy a long march o into the middle of a mountainous jun l. gle. Then his troops seemed to vanish
 into thin air, and hunting for them was Is like looking for a needle in a haystack e The government general, In disgust l. ordered his men to camp. While they l. were doing so two men came down a the mountain side under white flag
 They invited the general to conference n with Herrera.
 l- "Ah," thought the Colombian, lat last 10 have trapped the fox, and now he ,r wants to surrender" .;.
 f16TFSFd I1let luc SeIeIdl diiI louh iliil J around his lines, showing him that his 1T guns and his troops were cleverly am 'e pushed in a complete circle on tht l. heights surrounding the army en,
 camped in the velley. Herrera had only y to give the order to fire and that force IS would be annihilated.
 d The government leader stormed ant IS swore for few moments, then sat dowr .e | on B. rock and cried like a child witI ,r sheer vexation. Ultimately he surren le dered. and most of his men enlisted 1T st Herrera's army.
 l. Herrera seemed to have things all hi y own way, and had practically got pos
 session of the Isthmus, when he unac s, countably surrendered and made '; st treaty of peace with the government. le During the four years of the revolu r. tion the government was put to despe 's rate straits to raise troops to keep III " the fight on the Isthmus where the Lib m eral insurgents made their longest ant
 most desperate stand. re Week after week, month after month to year after year, soldiers were poured a l Tel o1J 1.te, af