And State Papers 735 



gunboat Cartagena carrying between 400 and 500 

 troops. I had her boarded and learned that these 

 troops were for the garrison at Panama. Inasmuch 

 as the Independent party had not acted and the Gov- 

 ernment of Colombia was at the time in undisputed 

 control of the Province of Panama, I did not feel, 

 in the absence of any instructions, that I was justi- 

 fied in preventing the landing of these troops, and 

 at 8.30 o'clock they were disembarked. The com- 

 manding officers, Generals Amaya and Tobal, with 

 four others, immediately went over to Panama to 

 make arrangements for receiving and quartering 

 their troops, leaving the command in charge of an 

 officer whom I later learned to be Colonel Torres. 

 The Department's message addressed to the care of 

 the United States consul I received at 10.30 A.M. ; 

 it was delivered to one of the ship's boats while I 

 was at the consul's and not to the consul as ad- 

 dressed. The message was said to have been re- 

 ceived at the cable office at 9.30 A.M. Immediately 

 on deciphering* the message I went on shore to see 

 what arrangements the railroad company had made 

 for the transportation of these troops to Panama, 

 and learned that the company would not transport 

 them except on request of the Governor of Panama, 

 and that the prefect at Colon and the officer left in 

 command of the troops had been so notified by the 

 general superintendent of the Panama Railroad 

 Company. I remained at the company's office until 

 it was sure that no action on my part would be 

 needed to prevent the transportation of the troops 

 that afternoon, when I returned on board and cabled 



