urgency required in making repairs renders it necessary that the steamer engaged in that service should, so far as possible, be exempt from entry and clearance, the certification of papers, and other formalities which in the case of such a vessel are productive of inconvenience and delay and are not likely to serve any useful purpose. For this reason it is believed to be the rule to treat cable repair ships in an exceptional manner. You are instructed to bring the subject to the attention of the Government of Chile, and to ask that it may receive all proper consideration and attention. I am, etc., WILLIAM F. WHARTON, NOTE.-A similar instruction was sent to the legations of the United States in Colombia, Ecuador, Mexico, Nicaragua, Peru, and Salvador. [Inclosure in No. 98.] Mr. Scrymser to Mr. Blaine. CENTRAL AND SOUTH AMERICAN TELEGRAPH Co., 37 AND 39 WALL STREET, New York, May 1, 1891. (Received May 2.) DEAR SIR: I have the honor to inform you that this company maintains and operates a line of submarine cables from Galveston, Tex., to Coazacoalcos, in the Gulf of Mexico, thence across the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, southward along the Pacific coast to Valparaiso, Chile, and for that purpose employs on the Pacific coast its repair steamer Relay. This steamer is stationed at Callao, Peru, and is at all times manned and equipped for immediate use. In Europe and the East cable repair ships are treated everywhere in an exceptional manner. In fact, they have all the privileges of war vessels, and are exempted from the formalities observed at Central and South American custom-houses in the matter of clearances, ship's papers, etc. The extreme urgency of the operations of cable ships is my excuse for asking that you will at your earliest convenience request the Governments of Mexico, Salvador, Nicaragua, United States of Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Chile to extend to this company's steamer Relay special privileges to the end that there shall be no delay whatever in observing the formalities in clearing and entering the ports of the countries named. I ask this because in many cases our cables are landed on the coast a few miles beyond the port in order to avoid the anchorage ground. It frequently happens that, in repairing a cable, tests have to be made at the landing places, and under existing custom-house regulations tedious formalities have to be observed before our engineer can land and make tests, which could be quickly accomplished were it not for the inconvenient rules of these foreign ports. Telegraphic communication being so essential to the commercial life of nations, any delay in its establishment caused by custom-house rules is sensibly felt, and frequently prolong interruptions through the repair steamer not being able to take advantage of a few hours of fine weather, causing much loss to the public and comparatively little gain to the customs department. As a rule custom-houses in these foreign ports close at hours which occasion much inconvenience and delay in the repair of cables. This I am hopeful can be avoided if the honorable Secretary of State will ask the governments named to issue special orders to their customs authorities exempting this company's steamer Relay from the existing rules of the ports so that she shall at all times be free to enter and depart. I also ask that the governments interested be requested to issue a special license to the steamer Relay according to her such special privileges. I have, etc., JAMES A. SCRYMSER, President. No. 99.] Mr. Wharton to Mr. Egan. DEPARTMENT OF STATE, SIR: I append on the overleaf a copy of your telegram of the 4th instant, conveying the gratifying intelligence that the Chilean Government and the revolutionists have cordially accepted the mediation of the United States, Brazil, and France in the interest of peace. Permit me to express the hope that the strife which has been going on in Chile may, through the combined efforts of the Governments in question, be speedily and happily terminated. T I am, etc., WILLIAM F. WHARTON, Acting Secretary. Mr. McCreery to Mr. Blaine. [Telegram.] CONSULATE OF THE UNITED STATES, Valparaiso, May 8, 1891. The president, managing director, and one other director of the South American Steamship Company declare before me that the steamer Itata is the property of said company, and that she was taken by force and is now in the service of the revolutionary party without the consent of the company. W. B. MCCREERY, United States Consul. No. 161.] Mr. Egan to Mr. Blaine. LEGATION OF THE UNITED STATES, Santiago, May 8, 1891. (Received June 25.) SIR: At the request of the Chilean Government I had the honor to forward to you to-day, in cipher, a telegram which stated in substance that the negotiations for peace had failed and reported the presence in a southern port of California of a Chilean steamer, recognized to be a transport belonging to the revolutionary squadron, and which had munitions of war on board. The above refers to the revolutionary transport Itata, now at San Diego, Cal., with arms and munitions of war for the revolutionists. In a few days I will report fully upon the subject of the peace negotiations. I have, etc., Mr. Egan to Mr. Blaine. PATRICK EGAN. No. 162.] LEGATION OF THE UNITED STATES, Santiago, May 13, 1891. (Received June 25.) SIR: Late last evening I had the honor to receive your telegram, the substance of which is as follows: dave Admirals McCann and Brown received the dispatches sent them in cipher on the 9th instant by the Navy Department? At the earliest possible moment I communicated the inquiry to Valparaiso, but Admiral McCann had sailed this morning to Iquique, on board the Baltimore, without having been able to reply to me, and Admiral Brown had not yet arrived. I am therefore not in a position to telegraph definite reply. I have, etc., PATRICK EGAN. Mr. Wharton to Mr. Egan. [Telegram.] DEPARTMENT OF STATE, Mr. Wharton instructs Mr. Egan that if insurgent envoys come within the jurisdiction of President Balmaceda, relying on offer of mediation or on invitation of the mediators, he will insist that under any circumstances they should have ordinary treatment of flag of truce. He is informed that it is reported in Washington that Balmaceda threatens to shoot such envoys if found within his jurisdiction. Mr. Egan to Mr. Blaine. [Telegram. LEGATION OF THE UNITED STATES, Santiago, May 16, 1891. Mr. Egan states that the report that the insurgent envoys would be shot grew out of a vague threat of the minister of the interior, made under excitement after a bombshell had been thrown at members of the Chilean cabinet; that the minister for foreign affairs has written most ample explanation and apology, and President and cabinet have disavowed any intention of molesting envoys; and that, although before the negotiations the envoys were concealed in Santiago, the Chilean Government has afforded them every facility to leave the country. No. 164.] Mr. Egan to Mr. Blaine. LEGATION OF THE UNITED STATES, Santiago, May 18, 1891. (Received July 7.) SIR: I have the honor to refer to my numbers 157, of April 27, and 160, of the 4th instant, in reference to the offer and acceptance of the good offices of the United States, Brazil, and France for the restora tion of the internal peace of Chile, and now beg to report as follows: On receiving your authority, on April 27, to act as mediator with the Brazilian minister and French chargé d'affaires I at once placed myself in accord with those gentlemen, and, as stated in my No. 160, our offer good offices was very cordially accepted by the Government on the one side and by the committee of the opposition or revolutionary party on the other. In connection with an effort made by the ministers of Great Britain and Germany to open negotiations, the admiral of the British squadron conveyed from the leaders of the naval and military forces in the north plenary powers to a committee of eight gentlemen ia Santiago to act in behalf of the opposition. Of the gentlemen thus named one, Mr. Alejandro Vial, had already sailed for Europe. My colleagues and I secured from the Government a safe-conduct for five others, Messieurs Melchior Concha i Toro, Eulojio Altamirano, Carlos Walker Martinez, Gregorio Donoso, and Pedro Montt; Mr. Belisario Prats did not need a safeconduct, and Mr. Eduardo Matte acted without one. I inclose a copy of the acceptance of good offices by the Government and concession of safe-conduct, dated May 2 (inclosure No. 1). The seven gentlemen composing the committee of the opposition met in conference in this legation on Sunday the 3d instant, and by formal document, a copy of which I inclose (inclosure 2), accepted the tendered good offices of the United States, Brazil, and France. After a number of conferences, from the 3d to the 5th instant, all of which were held in this legation, the committee agreed upon and submitted to us the bases upon which they would be willing to consent to an arrangement; but they imposed the condition that we were not to communicate those bases to the Government until we had first received from the Government, in writing, a statement of its conditions. I inclose a copy of those bases, dated May 5 (inclosure 3). Early in the day of the 6th the minister of Brazil, the chargé d'affaires of France, and I went to the Moneda and found that the minister of foreign relations, Mr. Ricardo Cruzat, was sick and not able to come to his office. In his absence we were requested by His Excellency the President to confer with the minister of interior, Mr. Domingo Godoy. Accordingly, we had a conference with that gentleman, in the course of which we were informed that the Government, while prepared to listen to and consider in the most benevolent manner any propositions that might come from the opposition through us, should absolutely decline to submit any conditions before having before it the opposition bases. In order to consult with the members of the opposition committee, with a. view to finding a way out of this difficulty, we adjourned the interview to 5 o'clock same evening. On my colleagues and I returning at that hour to the Moneda we found that just a few minutes before, while Mr. Godoy, four others of the ministers, the president of the Senate, and other gentlemen were returning to the Moneda from a meeting of the Senate, two dynamite bombs had been thrown at them by two young men on horseback, and that one of the bombs had exploded with terrific force a short distance from the ministers, but fortunately without doing any damage. On entering the Moneda and meeting Mr. Godoy, we felicitated him upon his fortunate escape and that of his colleagues, and at his invitation we continued the negotiations of the morning. In consequence of what had just taken place, Mr. Godoy was considerably exasperated against the opposition, and, because we were not prepared to come directly to the point with regard to the presentation of the opposi tion bases before receiving the conditions of the Government, he declared the negotiations broken off, and, becoming excited, he added that from that very moment the safe-conduct should be considered canceled, and that we might not be surprised if some of the parties were shot in the public square before morning, as he considered them re sponsible for the attempt that had been made against his life. We reminded him that the safe-conduct was a solemn compact between his Government and those which we represented; that one of its conditions was that we, the mediators, should fix the time when it should cease to be in force; and we urged him to consider well the nature of the responsibility which he was assuming, the more especially as the gentlemen named in the safe-conduct were entirely above suspicion of even the most remote knowledge of the foul attempt at assassination which had just occurred. As he continued obdurate, we requested to be allowed to confer with the President; but Mr. Godoy refused, saying at the same time that he spoke with full authority for the President and all of the ministers. We all three protested in clear and forcible terms, and left. We then took immediate steps to place the delegates of the opposition in safety, and within an hour we had conducted all of them within the legations. At 7 o'clock the same evening the intendente or governor of the city called upon my colleagues and upon me, and informed us in the name of the Government that the delegates would be safe from arrest or surveillance until 10 o'clock the next morning; to which I answered that nothing would satisfy me short of full and complete compliance with the terms of the safe-conduct. My colleagues returned similar replies. On the 7th instant the minister of Brazil, the French chargé d'affaires, and I were about to send identical telegrams to our respective Governments setting forth the facts, and also to address identical letters of protest to the Government, when by medium of Mr. Juan E. MacKenna, ex-minister of foreign relations, and also by another gentleman, we received from the President verbal messages to say that Mr. Godoy had spoken under excitement consequent upon the attempt of which he had been the victim; that in what he had said regarding the safe-conduct he had not expressed the sentiments of the President or the ministry, and that the safe-conduct should continue in full force until we should fix the time of its termination. On the 8th instant the minister of foreign relations, in the name of the President, addressed to us a note on the same subject, of which I inclose a copy (inclosure 4). I also inclose copy of my reply thereto, dated May 12 (inclosure 5). Finding it impossible, under the circumstances, to make further progress with the negotiations for peace, we abandoned the attempt for the present, and have addressed a joint note to the delegates of the opposition, of which I inclose copy, dated May 10 (inclosure 6). I also inclose a copy of a joint memorandum, dated May 12, addressed to the minister for foreign relations, fixing the termination of the safeconduct (inclosure 7). Of the seven gentlemen who composed the committee of delegates of the opposition, six had, previous to the issue of the safe-conduct, been concealed in Santiago and one, Mr. Prats, had been living here openly. The Government having accorded to the five who were named in the safe-conduct and to Mr. Prats permission to leave the country, I communicated with Rear-Admiral McCann, who offered to take them on board the Baltimore to Callao; but, before arrangements could be made for leaving, the Baltimore received orders from the Navy Department to sail on other duty. The generous offer of the admiral is, however, very highly appreciated here. Subsequently only two of the number, Mr. Pedro Montt and Mr. Eulojio Altamirano, elected to avail of the permission to leave, and those gentlemen were escorted to Valparaiso by |