El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1910-04-05
The. Truce In Nicaragua
ESTRADA FORCES ARE FORMING AGAIN.

\
! This accomplished the program as or
| iginalIy laid down by the rebels Why,
! then, did not Estrada accept the over
| lures of peace which were then made
I to him?
Estrada's friends make the following
| explanation: Under the Nicaraguan
/ constitution Zelaya was at liberty 10
| vacate the presidency temporarily, IN
! which case he might deposit the execu-
tive power in any member Of congress
on whom his preference rested But in
| the event of his resigning the preSl-
/ dency permanently, the office fell to
| the First Designate" or first vice pres
| ident, who happens to be Limo Oquei-
After the first vice president, the sue
| cession should fall to the ''Segundo
| Designado," RamigiO Virgil.
I But Zelaya did not-choose a congress-
man, neither did he commit his office
! to either OF CHE vice presidents. He went
| afield, lighted on Madriz. and forced
! congress to, ratify this selection Es-
/ trada's theory is that this was irregu-
/ lar. and that he could not conscien-
| tiously submit to such a violation Of the
1 plain letter of the law. That was the
reason-or so his friends say-that the
| first overture of peace was refused.
! The Town of Tisma.
Flushed with the victory at Recreo,
! Estrada resolved to attempt the capture
! of Managua. An expedition under Cha
| MORO started across country No rebel
! believed that the government would be
! able Ito muster sufficient forces to
| make any serious opposition to the in
/ yaders. No one who has not been in
Nicaragua can imagine the difficulties
/ under which the rebel advance was
! made
From the Atlantic seaboard far up the
slope of the mountains extends a will
/ derness so dense and terrible that even
men who have lived for years in At
/ RIGA. and for whom the painless jungles
/ of that continent have no awe. draw
! back daunted at the dismal spectacle Of
| the impenetrabIe .'icaraguan forest. To
| the Nicaraguan peasant these appalling
/ conditions are familiar. He knows how
to meet them. Hence, it was possible
| for Chamorro to ascend the Rama and
! Sigma rivers into the provinces Of
] ChontaleS.
Tisma. the point where Chamorro fell
| foul of the government forces, is little
/ town near the Tipitapa river, the stream
/ which joins Lake Managua with Lake
| Nicaragua. Chamorro's own account of
l the battle of Tisma is. Of course, very
| much to his credit. He says his army
! which at no time exceeded 1000 men.
was reduced to 923 men when he ar
rived ar Tisma. and that the govern
] hood with 1000 men under Gen. Lara.
The battle began at Z a m. and lasted
, till nightfall. when Chamorro found
/ himself out of ammunition At $50 D.
M, hearing that small body of the
enemy with ample stores of ammunition
! had occupied the village of Pipitapa,
Chamorro resolved to carry that place
1 with cold steel, and thus replenish his
| exhausted bandoliers-
RevolutiOnists Retire.
But Pipitapa proved an unpleasant
surprise The enemy's numbers were
about 700. and after a brief and bloody
struggle. at o'clock the following
morning, the revOlutio2ists had TO re-
tire Chamorro puts his own loss IN
both engagements a so killed and $50
wounded. and estimates the govern
ment's loss al 700.
ChamOrro ordered his army to dis
perse and join him at MuelIe de los
/ BueyeS as best it might The Estrad-
istas say that this was doneLthat of
the survivors of Tisma all have made
their way back TO the rendezvous. and
that a very formidable force is now
forming at that point again TO invade
( Chontales-
| On the other hand, the government
7 agents point to the fact that the ad-
vance on Managua was abandoned after
the battle Of Tisma, and that the revo-
/ 1utionists have Withdrawn from the ter
ritory into which they had penetrated.
Their theory is that Chamorro. having
risked everything, lost it all at Tisma,
! and that he has now no expectation
OF achieving anything beyond the de-
/ fence or Rama In support of this con-
tentiOn they point out that Estrada has
made no attempt to recapture Grey
| town. at the mouth of the San Juan
river, which continues in the hands OF
! the Madriz forces
3Iadriz for Peace.
After The battle of Tisma president
Madriz made new overtures of peace.
He is credited with offering the insurg-
ents p general amnesty, pensions for
/ the widows and orphans of the men
killed in the hostilities. payment for
the troops, and to satisfy the debts of
the revolutionists up 70 the sum OF
81 100000. He is also said to have Of !
fered TO call a general election for the /
presidency six months after the reStora- (
tion of peace.
Estrada declined to. accept these !
terms His friends explain this action /
on the ground that the principle in
volved-the manner in which Madriz I
came into power, as explained above |
is toa important to be ignored, and that /
no terms can be acceptable TO the revo- !
lutienists. until that point is satisfac-
torily settled
Replying 10 Madriz's proposition, |,
therefore, Estrada proposed that the !
United States be asked to name a pro-
visional president. and 10 call a gen.
eral election for president at once, and |
that meanwhile he (Estrada) should I
retain control of the Atlantic coast.
Madriz promptly turned down this coun-
ter proposition. That is where the ne
gotiaticnS stand today.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS in Honduras