Papers Relating to the Foreign Relations of the United States, With the Annual Message of the President, Transmitted to Congress, December 4, 1893
Mr. Thompson to Mr. Gresham.
Petropolis, January 12, 1894. (Received February 8.)
Sir: I have the honor to transmit herewith correspondence relating to that part of the proclamation of Rear-Admiral Saldanha da Gama, in which he declares his intention to bombard the city of Rio in certain events, and to the withdrawal of protection by the foreign fleet in view of the said city’s being a fortified town.
[Page 102]You will observe that the Brazilian minister for foreign affairs reiterates on behalf of the Government that the cannon on the several heights are not mounted on batteries, and the agreement to deprive the insurgents of every pretext for bombarding the city of Rio has, at no time, been violated.
I have, etc.,
Minister of Foreign Affairs to the Diplomatic Corps.
Rio de Janeiro, January 5, 1894.
The minister of state for foreign affairs had the honor to receive the verbal note which the representatives of England, Italy, the United States of America, of France, and of Portugal, addressed him on the 31st of last December, to communicate to him the reply which the commanding officers of the foreign naval forces in the bay made to a letter from Mr. Saldanha da Gama of the 23d of the same month.
Mr. Saldanha da Gama declared that he had decided to bombard the city of Rio de Janeiro with cannon of heavy caliber as soon as the first shot was fired from the heights or from the Island of Bom Jesus. The commanders replied to him that the facts enumerated by him would not constitute a provocation of a nature to justify the threat of bombardment, and that the fire of the batteries established on Bom Jesus, an island completely outside of and distant from the city, could not be considered one of the war measures from which the Federal Government had agreed to abstain. The commanders added that for the time being they held in the question of bombardment the position taken with regard to Mr. Mello in their note of the 1st of last October.
In consequence, the representatives express the hope that the Federal Government will continue to deprive Mr. Saldanha da Gama of every pretext for bombarding this city, but they beg at the same time that a previous notice of at least two days be given them in case, contrary to every expectation, the bombardment should become, through provocation, inevitable.
The vice-president of the Republic sees with pleasure that the commanders have not allowed the strange pretention of Mr. Saldanha da Gama with regard to the Island of Bom Jesus, but he considers it his duty to remove all idea of lack of faith on his part with reference to his agreement not to mount batteries.
This agreement is observed, and the representatives recognize it when they ask the Federal Government to continue to deprive Mr. Saldanha da Gama of every pretext. But the Government has not deprived itself of the right to prepare to act against the insurgents energetically, according to circumstances.
If, unfortunately, the case, not of provocation but of action, present itself, the representatives may rest assured that they will be informed in good time. The Federal Government would do so spontaneously.
Diplomatic Corps to the Naval Commandants.
The representatives of England, Italy, the United States, France, and Portugal have the honor to inform the commanders interested that they have not failed to properly follow up their note of December 25. They have the honor to inclose herewith for the information of the commanders the note dated December 31, which, in consequence, they have addressed to the minister of foreign affairs. They likewise inclose herewith the note of the 2d of January, which they addressed to Mr. Cassiano do Nascimento as a sequal to the information which the commanders kindly submitted to them in their two notes of the 1st of January, which reached them on the same day.
Diplomatic Corps to the Minister for Foreign Affairs.
On the 23d instant Rear-Admiral S. da Gama addressed to the commanding officers of the foreign naval forces in the hay a letter, in which he announced to them that he has decided to bombard the city of Rio de Janeiro with cannon of heavy caliber if acts of aggression occur, not only from the heights of the said city but even from an island in the bay known as Bom Jesus.
The commanding officers of the naval forces of Italy, England, the United States of America, France, and Portugal have thought it necessary to reply to R. A. Saldanha da Gama that the facts enumerated in his note could not constitute a provocation of a nature to justify the “threat of a bombardment of the city of Rio de Janeiro; that the fire from the batteries established on Bom Jesus, an island of the bay, completely outside of and distant from the city, could not be considered as one of the acts of war from which the Federal Government had agreed to abstain. The commanders have, in consequence, signified to R. A. Saldanha da Gama that for the time being they intend to hold in the question of the bombardment of the city the position which they had taken with regard to R. A. de Mello in their note of October 1 last. The commanders, in submitting to the representatives of England, Italy, the United States of America, France, and Portugal the above-mentioned agreements, have added that, as a consequence of the notification which they have just addressed to R. A. Saldanha da Gama, the fate of the city of Rio will remain subject to strict regard for the agreement entered into by the Federal Government not to mount cannon on batteries in the city. In consequence, the representatives of England, etc., express again the firm hope that the Federal Government will continue, by its attitude, to deprive R. A. Saldanha da Gama of every pretext for bombarding the city of Rio. In case, contrary to every expectation, the bombardment should become inevitable because of provocation, the representatives of the above-mentioned powers would ask that a previous notice of at least two days be given to assure the safety of those of their countrymen who reside in the city as well as all the property floating on the bay.
Naval Commandants to the Diplomatic Corps.
Rio de Janerio, Brazil, January 1, 1894.
The senior commandants of the naval forces of the United States of America, France, Portugal, Austro-Hungary, England, and Italy have the honor to bring to the knowledge of the diplomatic representatives of their respective governments, that if it be the intention of the Brazilian Government to fire on the insurgents from the batteries erected on the heights in the city of Rio de Janeiro, and in so doing to endanger the foreign vessels in the harbor, the above-mentioned senior commandants would request that the diplomatic representatives of their respective countries obtain from the Brazilian Government a previous warning of at least forty-eight hours in order that all foreign vessels in the harbor may be removed to a place of safety.
Signed by above-named senior commandants.
Naval Commandants to the Diplomatic Corps.
Rio de Janeiro, January 1, 1894.
The senior commandants of the naval forces of the United States of America, France, Portugal, England, and Italy have the honor to bring to the knowledge of the diplomatic corps that they have in their possession authentic and positive information that on one of the heights in the city of Rio de Janeiro, known as Morro do Costello, there have been already mounted some large guns ready for use; that in the same place there are also other large guns in the process of being mounted, and that [Page 104] there are a number of guns of smaller caliber, all of the guns being in batteries protected by bags of clay. The vice-president of the Republic of Brazil announced through his minister of foreign affairs to the diplomatic corps, and through it to the senior commandants, in a note dated October 5, 1893, that the Government was going to give the order that the guns be removed from the batteries in the city of Rio de Janeiro.
The senior commandants of the aforesaid powers can, therefore, only regard the mounting of these guns on the Morro do Costello as a breach of the agreement expressed by the Brazilian Government on October 5, 1893, and as giving to the city the qualities of a fortified town.
Under these circumstances the senior commandants have the honor to state that they can no longer consider themselves under obligations to adhere to the attitude which they expressed in their communication of December 25, 1893, to Rear-Admiral Saldanha da Gama.
- Augusto Aubey,
Italy. - F. J. Foley,
England. - Augusto de Castilho,
Portugal. - De Barbeyrac,
France. - H. F. Picking,
United States of America.
Diplomatic Corps to the Minister for Foreign Affairs.
The representatives of England, Italy, the United States of America, France, and Portugal have received from the commanders of the naval forces of their respective countries a communication notifying them that the said commanders are in possession of authentic and positive information from which it appears that upon one of the heights of the city of Rio de Janeiro, known as Morro do Costello, cannon of heavy caliber have been mounted, and that at the same place there are others that are about to be mounted; that at that place there is a number of cannon of smaller caliber, all on batteries protected by bags filled with earth.
Moreover, the commanders add: “The Vice-President of the United States of Brazil announced through his minister of foreign affairs to the diplomatic corps, who, in a note dated October 3, 1893, transmitted it to the commanders of the foreign naval forces, that the Government would give the order to withdraw the cannon from the batteries established in the city of Rio.” The commanding officers of the foreign naval forces, in consequence, can not but regard the remounting of these cannon on the Morro do Costello as a rupture of the agreement entered into by the Brazilian Government on the 5th of October, 1893, and as giving to the city of Rio the quality of a fortified town.
Under these circumstances the commanders of the foreign naval forces declare that they can no longer consider themselves obliged to maintain the position which they assumed with regard to Rear Admiral de Mello in the communication addressed to him on the 1st of October, 1893, a position likewise assumed with regard to Rear-Admiral Saldanha da Gama in another communication to the latter on the 25th of December, 1893, and which the representatives of the powers interested brought to the knowledge of His Excellency M. Cassiano Nascimento, the minister of foreign affairs, in a note dated the 31st of December last.
The representatives of the powers interested, in referring to their above-mentioned note of the 31st of December in its last paragraph, and, besides, as well from sentiments of humanity as from care of the interests with which they are charged, come to-day to ask the Federal Government, in order to assure the safety of those of their fellow-countrymen who reside in the city of Rio de Janeiro and that of foreign ships anchored in the bay, to kindly grant a delay of forty-eight hours at least before firing from the batteries established in the said city.
Minister for Foreign Affairs to the Diplomatic Corps.
Rio de Janeiro, January 8, 1894.
By their verbal note of the 2d of the current month the representatives of England, Italy, the United States of America, France, and Portugal have communicated to the minister of state for foreign affairs that the commanders of the naval forces of their respective countries are in possession of authentic and positive information from which it appears that cannon of heavy caliber have been mounted on the Morro do Costello, and that at the same place there are others that are about to be mounted and a number of cannon of small caliber, all on batteries and protected by bags filled with earth; that the Vice-President of the Republic having announced on the 5th of October last that he would give the order to withdraw the cannon from the batteries, the commanders can not but regard the mounting of cannon on the Morro do Costello as a rupture of the agreement of the date mentioned, as giving to the city of Rio de Janeiro the quality of a fortified city; that under the circumstances the commanders can no longer consider themselves obliged to maintain the position which they assumed with regard to M. Mello and recently M. Saldanha da Gama.
The commanders are well informed when they assert that new cannon are being placed on the Morro do Costello, but they will permit this rectification, that the cannon are not placed on batteries, but are, like the old ones, behind the batteries, which does not indicate the intention of using them immediately and is not contrary to the agreement of the 5th of October.
The Vice-President of the Republic would be lacking in his duty to the nation if he permitted the insurgents to act freely in the pursuit of their criminal enterprise. Four months have elapsed since M. Mello arose against the legal government of his country, and during all this time the city of Rio, which was considered open (unfortified) in spite of the existence of cannon on some of the heights, has been subjected to a lively bombardment. In this almost daily bombardment the insurgents have not confined themselves to attacking the troops that defend the shore, but have fired upon the interior of the city.
M. Saldanha da Gama threatens to use cannon of heavy caliber. He will have changed the instruments of destruction, not the method. The agreement has been broken on his side for a long time.
The representatives desire that, for the safety of their fellow countrymen who reside in the city of Rio de Janeiro and the foreign ships anchored in the bay, the Federal Government will allow a delay of forty-eight hours at least before firing from the batteries established in the said city. On this point the minister of state for foreign affairs has only to repeat the assurance contained in his preceding note.