Señor Don George Williamson to Hamilton Fish, May 4, 1874

No. 105. Mr. Williamson to Mr. Fish.

Sir: I have now the honor to lay before you a full statement in regard to the outrage committed upon the British vice-consul, Mr. John Magee, at San José, by the commandante of that port, on the 24th ultimo, and of which I advised you in my No. 139, dated the 25th ultimo.

I also inclose you with this dispatch copies of all the papers that have come into my possession concerning it. Among them you will notice particularly the statement of Mr. Edwin James, consular agent at San José, No. 8, which I have reason to believe, although defective by the omission of some details, is substantially correct.

I hope his conduct in using every exertion to prevent the infliction of a barbarous outrage upon an innocent official of a friendly power, and to preserve the life of a fellow-creature, will meet your approbation. He evidently ran great personal risk in throwing any obstacle in the way of such a madman as the commandante of San José seems to have been. Your attention is respectfully called to inclosure No. 7, in which the victim, Mr. John Magee, officially acknowledges his indebtedness to Mr. James for saving his life.

Among the inclosures you will find several telegrams from this legation. The one marked No. 1 was sent at the urgent solicitation of President Barrios, whose prime minister called on me about 8 o’clock on the morning of the 25th, and stated that the conduct of Gonzalez was a disgrace to Guatemala; that his government was extremely anxious to make every reparation in its power to the British government, not only by trial and punishment of the commandante, but in other satisfactory ways.

He also said that General Solares had arrived, or would arrive, at San José within a very short time, and that the commandante was a deserter from the army and a fugitive on board of an American ship lying at the port of San José. He urged me to order the delivery of Gonzalez to General Solares. I replied that I had no right to order his delivery, but would request it, which I thought would be quite as effectual, as the ship was lying in Guatemalan waters.

The telegram was then written and presented to him to read. He said it was perfectly satisfactory, and that he would take it himself to the telegraph-office to have it dispatched forthwith.

Gonzalez had already been shot, it seems, before my telegram was wait ten. At all events, Mr. James and the agent of the ship tell me it was not received on board. At the time of the prime minister’s visit, he seemed to be as ignorant as I really was of the fact that Mr. James had taken the commandante on the ship. Had I known that Mr. James had agreed to take the commandante on board of the ship, under the protection of the American flag, (although his only warrant in so using the flag was a generous impulse to save Mr. Magee’s life, by placing his persecutor and intended murderer in safety,) I should not have thought of making a request that implied a disposition to violate the agreement.

The statement made in the telegram, that Mr. Gonzalez “has committed a grave outrage upon the persons of American citizens” was based upon the minister’s declaration to me. He said the commandante, in his fit of madness, had struck in the face an officer of an American ship, and afterward imprisoned him for an hour or two; furthermore, that he had grossly insulted the consular agent at San José.

To this declaration I simply replied my countrymen would probably receive ample redress after their case was duly investigated. The oral and verbal report of the consular agent shows the minister was mistaken.

About 11 o’clock on the 25th the prime minister, Mr. Samayoa, again called upon me, and stated that Commandante Gonzalez bad been mortally wounded while attempting to go on board the Pacific mail steamship Arizona, by a Colombian, resident in Guatemala, named Don Pedro Vazquez, and that his government wished me to telegraph to the captain of the ship to deliver that gentleman to the military authority at San José, General Solares. I declined either to order or request his delivery, but stated I would telegraph to the consular agent for full particulars, and after getting his report, would decide whether to make a request. He said that would be entirely satisfactory to his government.

The ship sailed, as you will see by inclosure No. 5, before my telegram was received.

The commandante, Gonzalez, was not mortally wounded, as was supposed. He is now in this city in the hospital, and is said to be recovering. His alleged aiders and abettors, a Mr. Bulnes, Viteré, and Corso, all officials at San José, are now here in prison.

Mr. John Magee, the vice-consul, is also in this city, and, though confined to his bed, is “doing well.”

The outrage gave rise to quite an active correspondence between the British chargé d’affaires, Mr. Henry Scholfield, and the government, which resulted, on the 1st instant, in the protocol No. 10 which accompanies this dispatch.

The minister of foreign affairs and the prime minister, Mr. Samayoa, express much satisfaction with the result, and seem to feel a decided assurance that the British government will not claim any indemnity or demand any further satisfaction than that which is agreed upon in the protocol.

They called to see me, and in an interview invited my opinion.

I had none to express, except that, in my judgment, they might well congratulate themselves on their diplomatic tact in the management of the affair.

Mr. Scholfield also frequently called upon me, and explained his proceedings, which, assuming he had the authority, met my approbation up to the time of the protocol and his letter No. 11.

In the unreserved confidence of official correspondence, I beg leave to say again, assuming he had authority to arrange so important an international question without definite instructions from the foreign office, that he has been somewhat behind the Guatemalan officials in his diplomacy. It is true, Mr. Magee’s rather singular renunciation in advance of any claim to indemnity presented a serious and perplexing embarrassment. It is equally true the promptness of the government in arresting the guilty parties, as well as its elaborate professions of a determination to make every reparation in its power for the outrage, made it more delicate to deal with the question. I might have done much worse.

It is probable the parties charged with the outrage will be held in prison until a favorable answer is received from the British government.

After that their friends will probably find no serious obstacle in the way of their escape from the punishment of the laws. Justice has not become a blind goddess in Central America yet.

Although in this entire transaction American influence has not been impaired, I cannot but share in some degree the apprehension generally expressed by foreigners in regard to its effect upon the conduct of officials of the government toward them in departments under jefe politicos who are distant from the capital. All of them express the opinion that no punishment will be inflicted on the offenders. If, they say, a vice-consul of one of the most powerful nations can be whipped by a commandante of a little post of thirty-five soldiers, right under the eye of the government, and connected with the capital by telegraph, what must be expected in distant departments, where it takes weeks to communicate. If, they say, such an official as Gonzalez is a type, (and they allege he is,) what guarantee have foreigners that they will not be dealt with both unjustly and cruelly throughout the state, in all instances in which a drunken or crazy jefe politico chooses to take offense and apply the lash.

They talk indiscreetly of President Barrios having set the example to his officials by using the whip as a punishment upon some of the best families in the country, whose only crime was that they differed from him in political opinion.

There is no doubt that foreigners are apprehensive of unpleasant consequences if the British government ratifies the agreement of the protocol and the criminals go unpunished, as they say they expect.

The feeling against the government at present is by no means favorable, and the reactionary or conservative party enjoys its sneers in pointing to the outrage as an evidenc of the “liberalism” and humanity of a government which met the approval of foreigners as long as the whipping was confined to the old families of Guatemala. It must be confessed there is some justice in the sneer.

Such an outrage, in my opinion, could scarcely have occurred in any other Central American state.

Mr. Magee might have been shot in other states, but not flogged.

* * * * * * *

I lay the facts and suggestions before you for your consideration, and beg leave to add that, in my judgment, it would be well for the Secretary of the Navy to consider the propriety of ordering the commanders of our men-of-war in the Pacific to call at Central American ports as often as the interests of the public service will allow, whenever they are passing up or down from San Francisco. Such an order might prevent much trouble.

I have, &c.,