Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1913-02-25
Official Versions of Staying
OF Deposed President and
Vice President Fail to
Agree in Detail.
PORFIRIO'DIAZ TO
RETURN TO MEXICO.
Would Make No Comment
on Killing Of Madero and
Awaits Peaceful Time, to
Come Back From Egypt.

Mexico City. Mex, Feb. "a. rhe
official investigation into the deaths
OF Madero and Suarez Saturday Is t0
be begun at once. but the general be.
lief prevails that 1t will substantiate
the official versions OF the occurrences.
The fact that the bodies OF! the two
statesmen were recovered In the rear
or the penitentiary was explained to-
| day by the statement that q second en-s
counter occurred close to the building.
1t Is said the automobiles ran along q
side road and that Madero and S,lurex
Jumped out and were running VIXEN
! they were caught between the fire OF
the guards and the attacking party,
| this accounting for wounds being In
flicted on them from different direc-
tions. L
Provisional President Huerta, and
the other authorities here are earnest
In their declarations that the govern
ment was acting in good faith and thai.
the death Of the prisoners was due
solely to the unforeseen circumstances.
Madero and Jose Pine Suare7, de-
posed president and vice president.
are dead. In a midnight ride, under
! guard from the national palace to the
penitentiary, they were killed.
The circumstances surrounding
their death are unknown, except 40
given In official accounts which do
not conform in all cases. The only
| witnesses were those actually con-
cerned In the killing
Says Prisoners Tried to Escape.
The provisional president, Gen. VIC
tortano Huerta, says the killing OF
the two men was incidental to figh.
between their guard and a party at-
tempting to liberate them
The minister of foreign relations 4
Francisco de la Barra, adds that the
! prisoners attempted TO escape
Neither makes definite statement,
as to which side fired the fatal shots.
It Is not impossible that neither
knows.
| An official Investigation has beet
ordered to determine the responsible
| ity and solemn promises have heen
made that the guilty will be punished.
Public Remem ley Fuga"
Not unnaturally great part az the
public regards the official VERSIONS
| with doubt, having In mind the ,se
for centuries Of the notorious s'',ey
fuga," the unwritten law which is iii.
voked when the death Of a prisoner
| is desired. . X
After its application there is writ
ten on the records. Prisoner shot
while trying to escape" sss
Sonora Madero, widow of the ex.
president, received the first definite
Information of his death from the
Spanish minister, Senor COlegan "
Colegan. She already had heard re,
ports that something unusual and
serious had happened, but friends
| endeavored up to that time to prevent
her from learning the whole truth
The tragedy occurred shortly after
midnight. Madero and Suarez, who
had been prisoners in the national
palace since their arrest last TUESDAY.
were placed In an automobile, which
was accompanied by another car. and
escorted by 100 rurales under the or.
ders Of Commandant Francisco Car
denas and Col Rafael Pimiento.
With instructions not to outdistauco
the escort, the cars moved slowly,
| No incident occurred until they had
reached a point near the peniten-
tiary, where In an open place the
guards attention was attracted, ac-
cording to the official version to
group of persons following.
Escorts Attacked by Mob. &!
Shots were fired at the escort out
Of the darkness. The rurales closed In
and ordered the prisoners out Of the
car.
Thirty of the guards surrounded
the prisoners, while the remainder
disposed themselves to resist an 1T
tack.
| About fifty men, some afoot and
some mounted, threw themselves
upon the detachment guarding the
cars and the exchange of shots lasted
twenty minutes, when the attacking
party fed.
The bodies Of Madero and Suare5
were then found.
With the passing Of Francisco Ma
dero, the general opinion prevails
that the tension Of the situation haA
been relieved. There is a marked
tendency on the part of all classes to
accept the new order Of things. From
various parts of the country reports