The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, May 21, 1900, Page 1

Tall, VOLUME LXXXVII-NO. 182, SAN FRANCISCO, MONDAY, MAY 21, 1900. PRICE FIVE CENTS. KRUGER SAID TO HAVE PROPOSED TERMS OF PEACE TO SALISBURY Report That He Has Sent a Message Couched in an Exceedingly Humble Strain. British War Office Yet Without Official News That the Siege of Mafe- king Has Been Raised—-Many Free Staters Surrender Their Arms and Give Up The Struggle for Independence. L i o e S S S Beiosobeiesbetosieiotoidesiosdotosedoiodoedeidotbod ONDON, May 21. 3:10 a. m.—Displayed in the most conspicuous style in the Daily Express is the dominant war news of the morning: SCENES AT THE SEAT OF WAR IN SOUTH AFRICA. B R e sieteb et e ettt ei et et et o | | * + “ * ! $ } $ + ¢ + ° I e IR BoRR » “We have the best reason for stating that in the last twenty-four hours a telegram has been received at the Foreign Office, addressed personally to the Prime Minister, from President Kruger, proposing terms of peace. message cannot be stated, but we believed it is couched in an exceedingly humble strain. The exact terms of the It is inconceivable, of course, that Lord Salisbury can have sent any reply except the one that stands ready on the lip of every Briton—unconditional surrender. A special dispatch from Kroonstad says that General de Wet has sent word that he is prepared to surrender conditionally with his entire command. The War Office has announced that Lord Roberts has not yet received official information of the relief of Mafeking. The following is the text of Lord Roberts’ dispatch: “KROONSTAD, May 20, 3 p. m.—No official intimation has yet been received, but Reuter states that the relief of Mafe- king has been effected. “Rundle reports having occupied Bresler’s Flat, Trommel and Clocolan, the enemy falling back on Senekal and Ficks- burg. Fifty rifles and 3000 rounds were surrendered by the Free Staters to a battalion of yeomanry working along the telegraph line from Boshof to Bloemfontein. A field cornet and eighty-six burghers surrendered at Boshof yesterday. “While at Hoopstad Methuen secured 250 rifles and between 400,000 and 500,000 rounds.” A dispatch to the Daily Telegraph from Mequatlings Nek, dated May 16, says: “General Brabant is reported to have captured 1500 Boers at Clocolan A dispatch to the Daily Mail from Lourenzo Marques, dated Sunday, says: “On Thursday the entire Boer force around Mafeking, including the guns, was captured by the British.” ONDON, May 2L.—The b r the new Al in b st from the Castl principal resolu Mr. pr am, disturbance an volunteel ing called upon windows of inued the Barrac) was damaged e .nAlH.I’)ll' 4 the local a buildings come yerd the T district ned the station mas d the 1 of Ol ata ibs the opponents of the neeting practically an amendment to te were called out. Royal windows the buflding on fire t police were un- bers and sent vho made some , but free fights porters of the e royal in- | busy dressing caused by | A number of | finally the magis- hief constable to call on Highlanders | en cleared the nts, wce of Rev, Alexander Web- Cronwright-Schreiner Boer sympathizers wsion of shipyard employes , and there were some disorders e business establishment of ember of the local Cham- by & mob. pe with the riillery and As the riot- Artillery to suppress the mob, adjoining Mr. : PLOT TO DEPOSE Rebuked by Salisbury’s Son. | Rev. Lord M. Cecil, a son of the Premier, preaching yesterday in Gray's Inn Chapel, | London, before the Australian leprmmni delegates and other notables, referred to the demonstrations &® violence and said: “The popular enthusiasm prevailing ! throughout the country is dangerous. The Hine between good and evil is soon over- run by the imthinking crowd. The out- burst is evil in so far as it is the same | spirit which animated the Roman crowds | in the Coliseum while the gladiators pur- sued each other to the death; hut it s good | in so far as it Is a protest against one of the greatest evils of the age—the love of momey."” Speclal pravers of thanksglving were offered yesterday in the churches of the | United Kingdom. The Lord Bishop of| London, Dr. Mandell Creighton, who preached before the Queen at Windsor, alluded to the relief of Mafeking, and | clergymen generally found in the event their topie for the day. Details of the relief are still wanting, | the military authorities being without dis- patches, Lord Roberts wires that he | knows of the relief only through a press agency. Lord Lansdowne, however, an- nounces that the War Office expects d.l-' rect news to-day. WS The AR OO TR O TR T SURRENDER THE TRANSVAAL Special cable to The Call and New York Herald. Copyright, 1900, | suppliea. | President 0 KRUGER AND * 1Y) * 0 x by the Herald Publishing Company. * CAPE TOWN, May 15.—A telegram from Durban asserts confidently % plot has been disclosed at Pretoria which has as its object the de- () * f President Kruger and his executive council and the surrender of » v j svaal to Lord Roberts at an early day. Many progressive Dutchmen, called out. also members of the judiciary, are said to be parties to the move- O Aberdeen from 7| ¥ ment . * evening around -war” meeting | @ AT AR TR AT RS RS RS KK > e S P Mr. Cronright- Sy g iRe i =8 ve Schreiner. A ! Brown's were smashed. Numerous ar- The situation in the field has changed others tried to | rests were made. but little since Friday. Lord Roberts’ troops are in fine form and abundantly Indications seem to point to an early moyement. His cavalry, riding over several hundred square miles in a semi- circle bewond Kroonstad, have received the submission of hundreds of Free Stat- ers. It now appears that the De Wet who offered to surrender with 1000 men was not the well-known General De Wet, but Com- mandant De Wet. He stipulated that his men should be allowed to return to their farms. Lord Roberts replied that the sur- render must be unconditional, The Botha who was captured the other day was Philip Botha. Those surrender- ing are solemnly warned that if they break the oath of neutrality their houses will be burned and their farms confis- cated. Such as do yield do it for pro- tection. Reports flow into Lord Roberts at head- quarters of the discouragement of the Boers and of their willingness, even in the case of the Transvaalers, to give up. Steyn is described as having Jost his head several times recently. The original of the telegram addressed to the burghers at Ventersburg urging them to hold out was really written at Petersburg, a place which surrendered early in March. President Steyn, who was last reported as leaving Pretoria after a consultation with \ the Transvaal Government, gone to the front. A Cape Town correspondent reasserts that the Irish-American ambulance corps from Chicago suffered heavily during the fighting at Kroonstad, and that United has again | States Consul Hay had protested vainly to President Kruger against corps on the fighting line. General Buller Hesitates. General Buller is In front of Laings Nek hesitating to attack positions of enormous natural strength. The reports that the Boers have blown up portions of the tun- nel are confirmed. Although everywhere else they are reported as retiring, out- fronted, they have effected their retreats without losing their convoys or guns or prisoners to any extent. Were they dis- organized they would strew the line of retreat with booty. General Colville's base 1s Winburg, General Rundle is advancing on Ficks- burg, trying to catch up with the retiring Boers. Vrede, whither the Free State capital has been removed, 1s a village of 200 inhabitants in the extreme mérth- eastern portion of the country, on the road from Hellbron to Bothas Pass and the Drakensberg. President Stevn, when twitted about the migratory capital, is reported to have sald the Americans dur- ing the war of independence changed their capital nine times and yet defeated the British. The British are confiscating the cattle of the rebels in the district about Aliwal North. Colonel Ady's men have driven in 2800 head. The London papers are speculating as to what will be done to reward Colonel Baden-Powell. It is understood that as soon as the official news of the rellef of Mafeking is received the rank of super- numerary major general will be cabled .sm, and at the same time he will be ad- wanced to the rank of knight commander of the Bath. Possibly a baronetcy will be conferred upon him. London paid an all-day call upon Colonel Baden-Powell's mother yesterday. Telegrams, letters and flowers arrived every minute. It took six policemen to keep the crowd in order. Mrs. Baden-Powell appeared upon the using the Continued on Second Page. o+bed et ese® DEATH FOR HE NAVARL MUTINEERS Filipino Natives Avenge the Tragedy Aboard the Vessel. EXECUTE THE RINGLEADERS b AT + | Stern Justice Meted Out by Simple- i Minded Islanders to the Mur- | : derers of Captain Acosta | . and His Wife. -4 —_— | 54 Spectal Dispatch to The Call. T' TACOMA, May 20.—Hongkong advices | & | recelved here to-day tell of a remarkable sequel to the tragedy aboard the brigan- ! tine Navarro, whose native crew mutin- € |ied while the vessel was in Philippine wa-~ + nd put to death Captain Acosta, his | wi \d the first ma hese advices report the trial of the mutineers and their execution by native officials of Mindoro Island, one of the largest of the Philip- pine group. $hough their countrymen are at war with the United States, these | simple-minded islanders resolved to pun- | ish piratical acts against merchant ves-| sels. Mindoro has not been occupied by | American troops, and the action of the patives was taken upon their own in- itiative. The Navarro had left Sorsogon for Ma- | nila with a cargo of hemp. When two days out the boatswain commenced quar- reling with the mate, who he claimed had abused him. The mate ordered the boatswain sent helow. The boatswain re- taliated by combining every member of the crew in a plot to kill the mate, to- gether with Captain Acosta and wife. It was deemed necessary to kill these that the crew might escap: The next morning t execution. The boatswain and nine other members of the crew, armed with guns | and knives, marched to the cabin and or- dered the three victims to appear on deck When they came out they were given five minutes to prepare for death. Mrs. Acosta declared that she would not wish to v after her husband’s death. She charac- terized their action as worse than inhu- man, but would not beg for mercy from <. All three were promptly knives and their bodies thrown overboard. The mutineers then ran the vessel into plot was put into the mouth of the Lucol River, in the Mindora Island. Two days later two na- tive women, servants of the murdered woman, told the story of the tragedy to the native officlals, and the entire crew was taken into custody. After a short trial the boatswain and two others were to prison. SRR | Mindoro, though one of the largest of the Philippine groups, and lying only ten miles south of Luzon, from which it is separated by San Bernardino Channel, and less than a day's steaming from M nila on the route of the Viscayas, has as vet received but little attention from the American army of occupation. This is due to the fact that it is very sparsely populated. It has an area of 3934 square | miles, with 30000 inhabitants, most ot ,m are clustered about the town of | Calupan on the northern coast. } Chicago and Milwaukee, were So far as reported, the Americans have made no attempt to occupy and adminis- | ter the affairs of the island, but have left | the people to themselves and their own government for the time, NINETY-SEVEN COUPLES | MARRIED IN A DAY Michigan Pastor Overworked Tying Nuptial Knots for Chicago and | Milwaukee Elopers. Special Dispatch to The Call ST. JOSEPH, Mich., May 2 ords were broken to-day, when seven couples, most of them elopers from married. The local Justice of the Peace had his hands full, but the most interest centered around the home of the pastor of one of the churches. There couples stood in line awaiting their turn. As the hour for the morning service drew near the pastor announced to the waiting line that he would return imme- | diately after dismissing his congregation | and finish his work. Protests immediately | filled the air. Those who had stood in | line for a long time became vehement in their language. They sald they had money to pay the fee and did not believe in being married except by a minister; but if the performance was to be inter- rupted they would be obliged to go to a Justice of the Peace. The pastor was per- suaded to send his wife to dismiss the congregatlon, and the good work went onl until 4 o'clock this afternoon, when the last couple were married in time to catch | the last Chicago boat. BUBONIC-INFECTED COFFEE FOR CHICAGO Special Dispatch to The Call. pNEW YORK, May 20.—In an interview | to-day Michael C. Murphy, president of the Board of Health, made the sensational statement that the cargo of coffee brought from the bubonic plague-infected port of Santos, Brazil, by the steamship Taylor last autumn, and which the authorities would not permit to be landed in this city, was loaded In cars at Weehawken, N. J., and secretly sent to Chicago, where it was consumed. “The people of Chicago,” he sald with a smile, “drank that bubonic-infected cof- fee. They did not know it, but they drank it."” KRUGER URGES BOERS TO MAKE A FINAL STAND LONDON, May 20.—The Lourenzo Mar- ques correspondent of the Times, tele- graphing Saturday, says: “Recent ar- rivals from the Transvaal declare that the burghers have lost all confidence in their ability to withstand the British; 20.—. | | | | that they are disheartened, disgusted and sick, and that their predominant desire is to return to their homes. President Kru- ger, anxious to prevent the war fizzling out, i8 using his influence to bring about one last herolc stand. The future tactics of the Boers are a mystery. The foreign officers urge the defense of Pretoria. “A fracas occurred between the Portu- guese police and some sallors of The Netherlands cruiser Freistand. Three saflors were injured by the bayonets of the police.” D R e e S S I SIS Y ) WIFE ATTEMPTS TO KILL RIVAL Miss Mattie Ralph Shot At " Her Apartm Joseph in ents by Mrs. Sawyer. Superior Strength Saves Assailed Woman From Being Mtirdered by Her Maddened and Desperate ITH avowed murderous intent Mrs. Joseph Sawyer of 120 Eleventh street fired a shot from a 38-caliber revolver at Miss Mattie Ralph last Thursday morning in the room of the last named at 119 Ninth |'street. ‘Miss Raiph had a Harrow escape [ both hands to ‘the right wrist from death. That the bullet did not reach the intended mark is due to the fact that the two women were engaged in a desperate struggle at the time the shot | was fired, Miss Ralph having grappled with the woman who wanted to send her out of the world. nightgown were burned by from the pistol. The cause of the shooting was mad jealousy on the part of Mrs. Sawyer be. cause of her husband's attentions to Miss Ralph. Mrs. Sawyer calmly says she is sorry her bullet did not accomplish work intended for it. She says she has suf- fered wrong for three ars at the hands of Miss Ralph, and after repeatedly warn- ing her to have nothing more to do with Sawyer had made up her mind to kill her. Miss Ralph is forewoman at L. Horo- 751 Market street. Sawyer is a stereotyper, and up to a short time ago was foreman in his department for one of the evening papers. He lost his posi- tion, but secured another one a few days ago in Los Angeles, where he is at present time. Mrs. Sawyer's desperate attempt to kill Miss Ralph, which would doubtless have succeeded had not the last named been heavier and stronger than her as- sailant, occurred between 5 and & o’clock in the morning. The aggrieved wife awoke Landlord Gillespie at that hour and asked him in an unexcited and natural tone of voice where Miss Ralph's room was. His place being an entirely re- spectable one, in which people were not usually sought for purposes of siaugh- ter, Mr. Gillespie promptly informed the visitor that Miss Ralph occupled room No. 9. He then returned to his bed to resume his interrupted slumber. Mrs. Sawyer went to the door of No. 9 and hammered on it with her fist or the butt of the revolver, but at any rate she hammered noisily. There was no answer, and, beating harder, she shouted: “Open the door, or I'll break it down.” Miss Ralph must have thought the door was being attacked with a sledge ham- mer and that the threat would be carried out, for she opened it. Gillespie, alarmed by the racket, had by this time got into his clothes and started for the scene of the disturbance, when he As it was her neck and | the powder | the | the | it is not known which, | Antagonist. | | | | . ey ey e e . > * s . S > * * ® - . . PS > ? * k3 > * Rl * * @ @ s . £ & . * > - . . % e * * “» > . . ® )8 . . * * > £ . - & > ¢+ Miss Ralph’s Strength Alone Saves Her From Dea‘h. 4 i I B e e o e e e E ol e e S el e e e e e ] | was startled by the sound of a pistol shot, | screams and the splintering of glass. He | ran into Miss Ralph's room and there be- held an exciting scene. | The woman who had so narrowly es- | caped death was clinging desperately with of the angry wife, whose hand clutched the still smoking revolver. The women swayed back and forth as they struggled for pos- | session of the weapon, Mrs. Sawyer all the time flercely striving to get anather shot at her riv The bullet had gone past the head of Miss Ralph, the pistol be- ing held so close that the powder burns already mentioned had been made, passed | through a gas globe and into the wall near the ceiling on the further side of the room Gille dragg e at one 1 Mrs, e seized the revolver and Sawyer away. Balked In her efforts to avenge in blood the wrongs she claimed to have suffered, the mad- dened .wife poured forth imprecations on the head of Miss Raiph until she was ex- hausted. Then she departed. “I had a right to kill Mattle Ralph,” said Mr: wyer yesterday, “and am sor- Ty id not succeed in my attempt. I have suffered three years st cat h. wrong from her. For been usurping the affections of my husband. 1 have only known of their intimacy for a year, and during that time I b pleaded many times with her to have nothing more to do with him. Finally I could endure it no longer and gave her warning, but she did | not heed it. I have been a good wife to him, and he would never have neglected | me but for her. “I knew when he stayed away from me Wednesday night that he was with her. He had prepared to go to Los Angeles the next day. Thursday morning I watched the Gillespie h and saw him come out of it. Then I went up. determined to kill her. I am sure Mr. Gillespie did not know Sawyer went up there.” Mrs. Sawyer says her hushand went to Los y afterncon by made arrangements for her to come this week with their little girl. He promised her again seek the compa The injured wife talks with the { composure of one who has su | much as to care little for what pen to her. She said she did not care whether or not she was arrested. | Miss Ralph. who is well spoken of by | Mr. denies any intimacy with | Sawyer, and says his wife's jealousy Is | entirely unfounded. She says M Saw- yer is subject to ‘‘dreams. Ralph | announces that she will not prosecute Mrs. Sawyer, being too thankful for her escape from death. PRESIDENT'S HEALTH NOT OF THE BEST Physical Condition of Mr. McKinley Causes Some Alarm. Special Dispatch to The Call. NEW YORK, May 20.—Republican members of Congress who were in this city to-day said that the selection of a candidate for Vice President to run with President McKinley was as perplexing a problem as ever, and that a new phase had been given the question. This is caused by the state of the President's health. Information that comes from Washington is that, while the President's condition is not alarming, yet it Is of a character to cause uneasiness among his intimate friends to whom the true facts are known. They will not even breathe the doubt that the President is P - likely to serve four years more, yet they are satisfled that more than usual care must be taken In providing for the Presi- dential succession. Usually the Vice Presidency has been thrown as a sop to the defeated faction. This will not be the case this year. The Vice President, it is said, will be nomi- nated with equal reference to his fitness for the Presidency from an Ohio stand- point. his ability to acceptably presids over the Senate and his strength and pop- ularity with voters. This may explain, so ‘Washingtonians hint, the recent lack of interest on the part of Senator Hanna and the President in the Roosevelt boom. Reperts that the President’s health was cn the point of a serious breakdown wers spread months ago, and they were denied from Washington with great emphasis, and the President made It a point to show himself in public frequently. He was seen to possess great physical vigor, but his appearance was that of a man who had been and was undergoing a great mental strain. The trouble now is explained to be merely “tobacco heart.” due to the Presi- dent's smoking. The fact remains, how- ever, that his condition is being taken in- to consideration with great seriousness in the selecting of a man for sacond place. WATER IN DESERT LAND. Hitherto Worthless Property Near Indio May Become Valuable. ANAHEIM, May 2.—A colony has been formed to take up desert land near Indio, where an advance party has struck a strong flow of water at 50 feet. Thou- sands of acres, it is sald, will be redeemed by this find.