Mr. Nelson to Mr. Seward.
Sir: Since the date of my last despatch, events of great interest have occurred in Chili. On Sunday morning, the 26th ultimo, the Spanish gunboat Covadonga, commanded by First Lieutenant Luis Ferri, was proceeding southward from Coquimbo, and at a few miles from the port of Papudo, (thirty miles to the northward of Valparaiso,) was overhauled and attacked by the Chilian corvette Esmeralda, and after a brief combat surrendered to the latter.
The Covadonga had a crew of one hundred and thirty men, and the Esmeralda one hundred and twenty-three. The former was armed with two 68-pounders, and one 32. Her small-arms consisted of three hundred rifles, one hundred revolvers, and a full supply of boarding axes, cutlasses, &c. The armament of the Esmeralda has not transpired, but it is generally supposed that she carried twelve 32-pounders. The casualties were few, being two killed and fourteen wounded on the Covadonga, while the crew of the Chilian corvette escaped uninjured, and the vessel herself nearly so, one sixty-eight pound shot passing through her bulwarks without doing any material injury. Both vessels fought under steam.
The news of this, the first naval combat of the war, was received in Santiago and Valparaiso with enthusiasm. Public buildings and dwellings were decorated with flags, and in the evening a general illumination took place.
[Page 363]On the 28th, by order of the archbishop, a solemn te deum was sung in the cathedral of this city, and the captured flag of the Covadonga was borne by the venerable Admiral Blanco to the church, and there deposited as a trophy. He was accompanied by a large number of military and naval officers, and escorted by the infantry and volunteer regiments of the garrison.
With the Covadonga were captured fourteen officers and about one hundred and fifteen men, who were sent at once to the capital, where they arrived at nine o’clock on the morning of the 29th, and were at once quartered in the barracks of the President’s guard. It was gratifying to observe that every consideration was shown towards the prisoners by the immense crowd assembled to witness their arrival. Neither outrage nor insult was attempted. The government had, however, taken every precaution, and a large military force protected the prisoners during their passage from the railroad station to the barracks, where exceedingly comfortable quarters are provided for them.
On the morning of the 26th, the Spanish gunboat Vencedora left Valparaiso for the south; up to the present no intelligence has been received of her movements. Heavy firing was reported to the south ward on the 28th, and it is supposed that she also had fallen in with the Esmeralda.
Although the capture of the Covadonga is in itself of comparatively trifling importance, the moral effect of the victory is great in inspiring the Chilian forces with confidence, and in demonstrating that they are in earnest in the conflict. The loss of the vessel, by depriving Admiral Pareja of the means of communication with the blockading vessels, will prove a serious inconvenience, and should the Vencedora be likewise captured, will render it necessary to raise the blockade of at least one of the ports.
The import and export trade of this section of the country is now carried on with great regularity through the port of San Antonio, thirty miles south of Valparaiso, and the war has begun to stimulate commercial transactions. The abolition of duties has caused great activity in the import trade, and some foreign productions are now to be purchased in Santiago at prices lower than before the war. The mail steamers resume in a day or two their regular trips to the south, and the commercial position generally of Chili is far more favorable than thirty days since.
I have the honor to remain, very respectfully, your obedient servant,
Hon. William H. Seward, Secretary of State, Washington, D. C.