No. 104.
Mr. Williamson to Mr. Fish.
Guatemala, April 25, 1874. (Received May 25.)
Sir: I have the honor to inform you a terrible outrage was perpetrated yesterday by the commandant of San Jose de Guatemala upon the person of Mr. John Magee, Her Britannic Majesty’s vice-consul at that place. He had Mr. Ma gee very severely flogged, inflicting on him, it is reported, over two hundred lashes.
The government here denounced the outrage as a disgrace to Guatemala.
The minister of war called upon me this morning to say that no effort would be left untried to arrest and punish the offender, and also that ample reparation would be made to the British government and the injured gentleman.
The British minister is absent on leave, but his chargé d’affaires is acting with promptitude and ability.
The perpetrator of the outrage, I am informed, is a renegade Spaniard from Cuba.
When I receive all of the facts I will communicate more fully.
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I have, &c.,