APPROACHING DEPARTURE OF GENERAL MITRE.
Having fulfilled the objects which obliged me to resume the reins of
power, and notwithstanding that the forces which I brought away from the
seat of war to crush the rebellion are not yet ready to return to
Paraguay, I have the honor to inform your honorable chamber that, in
virtue of the authority given me by law of May 17, 1865, I am about to
absent myself from Buenos Ayres, and leave the territory of the
republic, in accordance with the necessities of the campaign in which we
are engaged against the Paraguayan government, delegating, in the mean
time, the national executive to the Vice-President of the republic, as
the constitution directs.
May God preserve your honorable chamber.
BARTOLOME MITRE.
It is anticipated that he will reach Itapiru to-morrow, doubtless at a
critical moment, when everything must be in the greatest confusion, as
the main army of the allies has shifted its quarters preliminary to the
long-talked-of decisive movement. The heavy rains and the repeated
reconnoissances made by means of the balloon, seem to have been the
cause of a change in the operations first intended. General Osorio’s
division, which was originally destined to invade Paraguay by Itati, has
advanced to Itapiru, where it effected its junction with the main army
on the 12th instant. The general is said to have brought with him 2,500
foot and 4,300 cavalry, the former of which crossed the river Parana a
little above Itati, and the latter at the Paso de la Patria. He will
now, it appears, take command of the first division of the army, forming
a column of attack composed of 18,000 Brazilians, 2,000 Argentines, and
800 Orientals, and threaten the extreme left of the army, to the right
of Tuyuti. Another column of attack is to be placed under the orders of
General Gelly y Obes, while the old encampment in the Estero Bellaco,
strongly fortified, will be defended by 10,000 men under Porto Alegre.
According to the latest advices, the long prepared combined attack of
the Marquis de Caxias is daily imminent, in which— while the Brazilian
fleet is to run the gauntlet of the forts Curupaiti and Humaita, under
cover of the iron-clads, as Admiral Farragut at Mobile, the main army,
deploying to the right, is intended to outflank the extreme left of the
Paraguayans at Las Rojas, and force its way to the rear of Humaitá, so
as to cut off General Lopez from his supplies—a strategic movement
which, if
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successfully carried
out, may lead to a decisive engagement and final struggle on terms more
favorable to the allies than at Tuyuti. But, putting aside the dangers
to which the fleet will be exposed, the very extended line of
communication which the allies will be obliged to maintain in the
enemy’s country in order to secure their supplies from the river base,
and the risk they will incur of being attacked by the Paraguayans in
their own rear, will make the movement a very critical one, the more so
as a field less favorable to military operations could scarcely be
selected for an invading army, the line intended to be forced by the
allies passing through the dense forests and treacherous marshes and
jungles of Paraguay, which the foresight of General Lopez has rendered
still more dangerous by torpedoes and all kinds of artificial
hindrances. It is consequently open to doubt if this grand plan of
attack will fully and finally accomplish the stipulations of the secret
triple treaty, and will not have to be followed up by many subsequent
attacks, with still further sacrifices of blood and treasure.
The interior provinces continue to be afflicted by the rebellious
Montoneros, who appear and disappear, and require forces ten times their
numbers to follow them up. By last advices it was reported that Generals
Paunero and Taboada were preparing for a grand battue against them. The province of Tucuman has been for some
time past groaning under the military despotism of a Catholic priest,
Señor Campos, who, notwithstanding his sacred character, is a keen
politician, and being minister of the government, kept the province
under arms, having appointed himself general-in-chief of its forces. The
Tucomanos, availing themselves of the absence of Minister Campos, who
had come on a mission to the national government here, rose en masse, on the 30th ultimo, against their
despotic ruler, and the constitutional governor, Dr. Posse, * * * having
wisely given way before the manifest will of the people, and voluntarily
resigned, a provisional governor was elected in the person of Don
Octavio Luna, and the revolution triumphed without shedding a drop of
blood, or the disturbance of public order for a single day. In the
province of Mendoza the constitutional governor, Señor Arroyo, had also
resigned and the president of the provincial legislative chamber
succeeded him provisionally. In congress here the chamber of deputies
has held two secret sittings, in which it has been engaged in examining
and discussing the articles attached to the treaty of the triple
alliance. Next week is fixed for the debate on the question of the
permanent seat of government, and it would appear that a large majority
is pledged to vote in favor of the bill which establishes it in
Rosario.
My daily memoranda of political events in the River Plata, from the 13th
to the 25th of July, in enclosure D, to which I beg respectfully to
refer, contains further detailed information with regard to the march of
political affairs here since my last report.
I have the honor to be, sir, very respectfully, your obedient
servant,
Important decree of General Mitre.—Penalty of officers
deserting.
War Office, Buenos Ayres,
July 11, 1867.
1. All commanders and officers belonging to the army in the field,
and at present absent from headquarters, whose furloughs may have
already expired, or having previous passports, or who may be
suitable for bearing arms and have not joined their regiments, shall
be treated as deserters and forthwith put in prison, besides being
suspended in rank and sent for trial, or otherwise disposed of as
may be found convenient.
2. Any who may evade this decree shall be likewise suspended, and a
list of them drawn up, to treat them according to their deserts as
soon as they be arrested.
3. Whatever commanders or officers (as stated in Article 1) may be
absent from their regiments when the next engagement occurs shall be
set down as deserters, and submitted to trial as provided in Article
2.
MITRE.
JOSÉ M. MORENO.
July 15.—With reference to the gunpowder plot
by which, as appeared, it was intended to blow up the government
house in Montevideo, the following manifesto of General Flores has
been published:
Manifesto of General Flores.
Fellow-citizens: Providence always defeats
those criminal designs which involve deplorable consequences, and
has just saved the republic from the immense and incalculable
misfortunes that must have attended the diabolical plot recently
discovered.
Designing and turbulent men plotting against my life, which is of so
little value compared with the public welfare, did not hesitate to
hatch in cold blood, and with murderous hearts, a most infernal
conspiracy, which would have thrown half the city into mourning and
caused numberless unoffending victims. This gunpowder plot will fill
a black page in the annals of the river Plata.
Accustomed, as I am, to disregard all personal interest in fulfilling
the sacred duties imposed on me by my beloved country, this horrid
attempt will nowise influence me to falter in my fixed resolve of
sustaining, by every means in my power, the cause of law and
order.
In this sense I feel it my duty once again to assure my
fellow-citizens and the republic at large that I shall remain firm
in the programme of revolution and liberty, nowise deterred by
whatever obstacles may rise up in my path, but upholding, with a
steady and vigorous hand, the palladium of popular rights, till such
time as a constitutional government can be safely inaugurated, which
period I hope is not far distant, when I shall lay down the
provisional powers now vested in me, and await with a quiet
conscience and unalterable faith the sovereign decision of the
people’s representatives on my various acts.
VENANCIO FLORES.
Montevideo,
July 10, 1867.
The following is taken from the letter of the Standard’s
correspondent from Rio de Janeiro: During last month (June) the
following re-enforcements were despatched from this port to the seat
of war by the imperial governments:
| On the 4th by the transport San José |
400 |
men. |
| On the 15th by the transport Galgo |
233 |
men. |
| On the 22d by the transport Presidents |
300 |
men. |
| Total |
933 |
men. |
Consequently during the first six months of the present year no less
than 8,829 men have been sent forward to re-enforce the Brazilian
army in Paraguay.
The Bourgoyne, the first of a new line of mail steamers between
Marseilles and Buenos Ayres, arrived here yesterday, bringing 183
passengers and a full cargo.
July 16.—The newspapers from Chili announce
that General Saa, with various other Argentine exiles, had embarked
at Valparaiso for Cobija, with the intention of entering the
Argentine Republic by Bolivia, to continue the civil war which has
lately raged in and is still disturbing the upper provinces.
The arrival at Montevideo of the transports Itipiru, Guapari, and
Arinos, is announced, bringing 600 more recruits from Rio Janeiro
for the army in Paraguay.
July 17.—The Standard publishes to-day the
translation of a note addressed by President Mitre to Congress,
dated the day before yesterday, in which he announces that in virtue
of the authorization granted to him by the law of May 17, 1865, he
is about to leave Buenos Ayres to resume his post as
commander-in-chief of the allied army against Paraguay, delegating
in his absence the executive into the hands of the vice-president of
the republic.
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The following second decree on absentee officers has also been
published to-day:
Second decree on absentee officers.
War Office, Buenos Ayres, July 15, 1867.
Article 1. All furloughs without fixed
date, given to commanders and officers on service in the field,
shall be considered to have terminated to-day, and all such officers
shall be allowed 24 hours from this date to present themselves at
the Inspeccion General de Armas to receive their passports.
Article 2. The only exception to the above
shall be for sick and wounded actually under treatment, or who may
have received special license to look after their health, but all
such parties must produce the army surgeon’s certificate in proof of
their condition.
MITRE.
JOSÉ M. MORENO.
One of the local papers of this city states that the late losses of
ammunition and fodder suffered by the allies in consequence of the
floods were caused by Lopez’s having opened some sluice-gates and
thus completely inundated their camp. The same paper asserts that
the Paraguayans are aware of Osorio’s intention to cross the Panama
at Itali, and are raising fortifications at that place.
July 18.—The Proveedor, arrived yesterday from
Corrientes, brings news that on the 12th instant Osorio had
disembarked at Itapiru with nearly 5,000 men. On the 8th instant the
balloon made a second ascent with the Polish engineer Major
Chosadiewiez, and a Paraguayan officer, Lieutenant Cespedes, who
commands the guides in the service of the Argentine Republic. The
balloon remained two hours in the air, and Major Chosadiewiez
obtained a very clear view of all the Paraguayan fortifications. The
Paraguayans fired at the balloon, but it was beyond the range of
their artillery, and they only succeeded in killing four of the men
who were at the ropes holding it.
A revolution had broken out in Tucuman on the 30th ultimo. It was
made by the liberal party, and having been supported by the national
guard en masse,had triumphed without any
effusion of blood. It was expected that the deposed governor, Dr.
Posse, would resign, and that a change of government would be
effected without disturbing public order.
July 19.—Official despatches have been
received by this government from that of Chili announcing that
General Saa has undertaken a new expedition against the Argentine
provinces, having started from Cobija for Salta. General Taboada,
with a column of 1,000 foot and 300 horse, was, by latest accounts,
moving against the city of Rioja, where Varela has his
headquarters.
The national senate, in its yesterday’s sitting, has confirmed the
following promotions made by the president: to be brigadier general,
General Paunero; to be generals, Colonels Conesa, Dominguez,
Arredondo, and Martinez.
July 20.—Pursuant to a decree of the president
of the republic issued the day before yesterday, enacting that, as
he was about to absent himself on public service, in accordance with
the leave granted by Congress on the 17th May, 1865, the
vice-president should take his place during his absence, the chief
magistracy of the republic passed yesterday into the hands of
Vice-President Paz.
The committee of the national house of deputies to which had been
referred the bill of Deputy Quintena, for fixing the capital of the
republic in Rosario, has agreed, by a majority of three against two,
to recommend a new measure, enacting that the capital shall be on
the line of railway between Rosario and Cordoba, but not in either
of those cities.
It is announced from Montevideo that General Flores will arrive here
to-morrow, for the purpose of conferring with President Mitre prior
to the departure of the latter for the seat of war in Paraguay.
July 22.—President Mitre embarked to-day at 12
noon to resume the command-in-chief of the allied army in Paraguay.
He was accompanied to the mole by the vice-president, his ministers,
the members of the provincial government, and a large concourse of
people.
It appears that Dictator Flores changed his mind about coming to
Buenos Ayres, and has sent in his stead Colonel Bustamente, chief of
police, and his private secretary, D. AmadeoErrecart, to confer on
his behalf with General Mitre.
The provincial chamber of deputies of Cordoba has sanctioned a bill
authorizing the governor to offer that town to the national congress
as the future capital of the republic.
July 23.—It appears that matters are rather
unsettled in Montevideo, owing to which General Flores was prevented
from carrying out his intended visit to President Mitre. His son,
Colonel Fortunato Flores, who, by his brutal conduct, has become the
terror of Montevideo, has been banished to Europe, and was to have
left to-day.
Her British Majesty’s gunboat Dotterel will leave for Paraguay on the
26th instant, carrying Mr. Gould, the secretary of the British
legation. Through the kindness of Mr. Buckley Mathew, the British
minister, she will take despatches and papers from this legation for
the Hon. Chas. A. Washburn, United States minister in Paraguay.
Some of the Brazilian papers received by last mail seemed to be
alarmed at the intention of the Argentine government to fortify the
island of Martin Garcia, as shown by the vote of
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congress authorizing the expenditure
of 400,000 hard dollars in the purchase of heavy artillery.
According to their views the fortification of the island would be in
direct violation of the treaties of 10th July, 1853, and 7th March,
1856.
July 24.—The press of Buenos Ayres has lately
been discussing the question of fixing the permanent seat of the
national government, and all the papers, with the exception of the
Nacion Argentina, advocate the change from Buenos Ayres. In congress
it appears that the majority is in favor of Rosario, and it is
expected that the question will be settled in the course of a few
days.
Late accounts from the interior show a very unsatisfactory state of
things in the provinces, more particularly in those of Rioja and
Catamarca. Rioja is said to have suffered terribly not less from the
rebels than from the liberating forces of General Taboada. Within
the last seven months Rioja has had no fewer than 15 governors. In
Catamarca the vicissitudes of administration have been scarcely less
remarkable; the liberal party have put into power 17 governors in
less than four years.
July 25.—The mail from the interior brings
news that the revolution in Tucuman had terminated peacefully, as
was anticipated. The late governor, Dr. Posse, had resigned and a
provisional governor named for two months, who had assumed power
without public order having been disturbed, and without the loss of
a single life. The rebel Varela had been again defeated by the
national forces. The following official account of this action is
taken from the Standard:
Captain Maldonado reports having defeated Varela, as follows:
“General Antonio Taboada:I beg to inform
you that, in fulfilment of your orders to pursue the bandit Felipe
Varela, I overtook him and his forces at Chilecito. We had a
dreadful fight in a carrol,my troopers having
dismounted, and after killing nine of the enemy, and taking 30
prisoners, besides all their horses, we were masters of the place.
Varela, Brandan, and two Chilian officers, with the rest of the
rebels, cleared out towards the mountains, my men pursuing, although
they had neither eaten nor slept for two days. My men fought
bravely, and we had not a single man killed or
wounded.”
The statement, however, of the reporting officer, that his men after
a dreadful fight had become by their bravery masters of the field,
and then pursued the enemy, although they had neither eaten nor
slept for two days, while after all these deeds of valor not a
single man of them was either killed or wounded, sounds too much
like exaggeration to deserve much credit.
