PERU. 



653 



to the mouth of the Pichio, where a port is to 

 be established, the navigation is from eight 

 to ten days, judging, however, with only an 

 imperfect knowledge of the rivers explored. 

 These eight or ten days are employed in going 

 up rivers and only five in going down. Small 

 steamers may easily go higher than Mayro. 

 It has thus been established that vessels of con- 

 siderable size have been able to penetrate the 

 American continent to the foot of the Andes, 

 at a distance of ninety-five leagues from the 

 coast of the Pacific. The Morano, after having 

 crossed the Atlantic from England, ascend- 

 ed seven hundred leagues of the great river 

 Amazon, and two hundred leagues more of the 

 Ucayli and the Pichitea, rivers which, until 

 now, have never been navigated, save by the 

 canoes of the Indians. The banks of these 

 rivers are inhabited by tribes of savages, who 

 may be easily conciliated by the adoption of 

 proper measures to that end. As regards the 

 mountains explored, they are rich beyond con- 

 ception. 



In March, the Peruvian Government became 

 involved in a very serious difficulty with Spain. 

 The Cabinet of Madrid sent SeQor Mazarredo 

 to Lima, in order to arrange with the Peruvian 

 Government certain questions arising out of 

 claims of Spanish residents against Peru. Ac- 

 cording to the Lima papers the claims of the 

 Spanish Government originated in a local dis- 

 pute at Talambo between some Peruvian land- 

 owners and some colonists whom they had im- 

 ported from the Basque provinces of Spain, 

 leading to violence, in which two persons were 

 killed and four wounded. The important point 

 to be noted is that the Spanish Government in- 

 terfered while the Peruvian courts of justice 

 were still occupied with the matter. There 

 was no pretence for accusing Peruvian justice 

 of needless delay, as the conflict at Talambo 

 only took place in August, 1863, and there had 

 been a rapid succession of judgments and ap- 

 peals, and the highest judicial authority had 

 still to pronounce final sentence, when the 

 Spanish Admiral Pinzon and Sefior Mazar- 

 redo interfered in the name of Spam. < 



As soon as Mazarredo arrived in Lima, he 

 claimed that the Peruvian Government shoula 

 recognize his character of Commissioner with 

 which he was invested. The Peruvian Gov- 

 ernment offered to assist the Commissioner 

 in the fulfilment of his mission with all the 

 means in their power ; but at the same time, in 

 order to avoid farther difficulties, it declared 

 that it would be convenient to define the sense 

 of the word Commissioner, as the international 

 law does not recognize amongst diplomatic 

 functionaries Royal Commissioners, a title 

 which until now has been given to agents ap- 

 pointed by the Spanish Government to arrange 

 a certain class of affairs in their colonies. To 

 admit Mr. Mazarredo in the character of Com- 

 missioner seemed to admit that Peru was a 

 colony of Spain. In order, however, that this 

 demand should not be interpreted as a refusal 



to enter into relations with the Spanish Com- 

 missioner, the Government of Peru declared 

 that it would recognize Sefior Mazarredo as 

 Confidential Agent. This did not satisfy SeQor 

 Mazarredo, who retired from Lima, addressing 

 to the representatives of the foreign powers a 

 memorandum, in which the charges of Spain 

 against Peru were summed up. On the 12th 

 Sefior Mazarredo left Callao in the Covadonga, 

 and arrived at the Chincha Islands on the 14th 

 in the morning, exactly at the same hour when 

 the frigates Resolucion and Triunfo arrived 

 from Valparaiso at the islands. 



On the 16th the Spanish squadron appeared 

 at the port of Callao with the intention to 

 seize the Peruvian squadron which, not being 

 in condition to accept the combat for want of 

 munitions, put itself under shelter of the bat- 

 teries of the fort " del Puente." Admiral Pin- 

 zon sent a despatch to the Minister of Foreign 

 Affairs, in which he declared that the conduct 

 of the Peruvian Government toward Spain 

 had obliged him to take possession of the Chin- 

 cha Islands until further orders arrived, from 

 the cabinet of Madrid, and furthermore that he 

 retained as hostages several officers of the Pe- 

 ruvian navy to be answerable for any injury 

 inflicted upon Spanish subjects. To this note 

 was added a declaration, in which, after stating 

 that truce only continued between Spain and 

 Peru, the independence of Peru not being recog- 

 nized, and that right of property to the Chincha 

 Islands could be revindicated by Spr.in. Messrs. 

 Pinzon and Mazarredo signified that they had 

 resolved to take possession of all the islands and 

 vessels of war of Pern. 



Pinzon and Mazarredo having agreed to- 

 gether, and the Spanish vessels having an- 

 chored at the Chincha Islands, they summoned 

 the Governor and the Commander of the trans- 

 port Iquique to surrender, allowing them a 

 term of fifteen minutes, and threatening to 

 bombard the island in case of resistance. The 

 Peruvian force on the islands amounted only 

 to 150 men charged to guard 200 convict pris- 

 oners. The Governor protested in the name 

 ,of the Government and the Republic against 

 such an abuse of power, and the Spaniards 

 landed to the number of 400 to 500, taking pos- 

 session of the islands, hoisting the colors of 

 Spain, and arresting the governor, the cap- 

 tain of the port, and the commander and offi- 

 cers of the Iquique. 



The report of these outrages produced an ex- 

 traordinary excitement throughout Peru. In 

 Lima the different officers of State, the scientific 

 bodies, the colleges, the societies of all kinds, the 

 corporations of all trades, all classes of society, 

 offered to Government their lives and proper- 

 ties in defence of their fatherland. The muni- 

 cipality and the functionaries of the courts of 

 justice equally protested, and offered then- ser- 

 vices for the defence of the country. The 

 Archbishop of Lima, the ecclesiastical Chapter, 

 the regular and secular clergy, also gave proofs 

 of great patriotism, offering their moral, and if 



