Battle In Mexico

Nº136

AHSRE L-E-936 F. 30

Washington Post, Washington, D. C.

27 de junio de 1908.

Battle In Mexico

Fifty killed when revolutionists attack Las Vacas.

Repulsed In A Hot Fight

Outbreak is spreading along the northern border.

Five Thousand Shots Exchanged With Federal Troops-Officers' Quarters Burned-Government Declares Previous Raid on Viesca Work of Bandits-Prisoners Released and Town Looted by Robbers-Hurrying Troops to Scene.

El Paso, Tex., june 26.-A special dispatch received here says a band of Mexican revolutionists attacked the town of Los Vacas, Mexico, early to-day.

About 5,000 shots were exchanged. i ele officers' quarters were burned and be-tween forty and fifty killed on both sides. The troop commandant was badly wounded.

Another outbreak is expected, as the revolutionists have well-armed cavalry.

All telegraph and telephone wires have been cut. The worst attack occurred at the custom-house.

The small garrison of Federal troops at Los Vacas were prepared for the raid, and offered strong resistance, aided by citizens of the town.

Repulsed after fight.

The attacking party were well mounted and armed. Their principal point of attack was the custom-house. The fixing on both sides was brisk for more than an hour, and resulted in the revolutionists being repulsed. They were pursued into the outskirts of the town, where they broke into small bands and fled into the chaparral It is reported that many of them have sought refuge on this side of the border.

It is fifty miles from Los Vacas to the nearest Mexican railroad point. Las Vacas is situated 160 miles north of Viesca, which was captured yesterday by the revolutionists.

Mexican arms found.

Eleven Mexicans were arrested here charged with fomenting a revolution against a friendly power on American soil. A search of the building in which they were taken revealed two cases containing rifles and revolvers, and also 1,000 rounds of ammunition. Letter and literature, said to be incriminating, also were found.

Among the letters were said to be several from Antonio Villarreal and Flores Magón, two alleged revolutionists, whom the Mexican government recently sought to extradite from the United States.

Some of the revolutionists are believed to have crossed into Texas. The Texas sheriff wired asking the governor if he could arrest any fugitives coming into the State. The governor referred the matter to the attorney general, who held that the

State officers could take no action, as the matter of political fugitives coming into the United States from foreign countries was a question for Federal authorities to deal with.

Calls it bandit raid.

City of Mexico, june 26.-Reports concerning a formidable and serious revolutionary outbreak in the northern part of Mexico were somewhat discredited to-day by telegraphic reports received from Gov. Cardenas, of the State of Coahuila.

According to these telegraphic advices, which were received by Vice President Corral, one of the boldest bandit raids ever attempted in the history of Mexico was successfully carried out when the town of Viesca was assaulted and looted yesterday.

The bandits, as the governor terms them, numbered fifty. All were armed and mounted, and swooped down upon the town without warning. A feeble resistance was made by the police of the place, but after three of them were killed and three more wounded, the marauders practically had things their own way. They first proceded to the jail, n teasing all of the inmates, some of whom joined the robbers.

The bandits next headed for the bank of Nuevo León, a branch of the main institution of that name, which is located in the city of Monterrey. They soon over-powered the employees there and robbed the bank of all the money they could get at. The sum is not stated in the official dispatches.

From there the robbers, with a hurrah, went to the government stamp office, looting it and doing great damage to the post-office. They then turned their attention to the express office, robbing it.

Population terrified.

By this time, the governor says the whole of the towns population was terrified. The bandits cut the telegraph wires and tore up some railroad tracks. Howewer, before communication was interrupted word was sent to the state capital of the as-sault.

Gov. Miguel Cardenas immediately reported the raid to the secretary of the inte¬rior here and dispatched local u-oops to the scene.

Alter imprisoning the municipal officers and further terrifying the inhabitants of the town, the bandits got word that troops were on the way to the scene. They then prepared to flee.

This morning they left, passing by way of the Hacienda Hornos and the town of Matamoros de la Guna. At this place, the governor says, they encountered the first detachment of troops sent to capture them. A lively fight ensued, in which one trooper was killed and several wounded. The soldiers succeeded in capturing one of the bandits, but the remainder made their escape and are now in the wilds of the state of Durango, having crossed the border between Coahuila and that state shortly after the battle. The captured bandit is now in prison in the city of Torreon.

Vice president statement.

In giving access to the official correspondence containing the above facts to the Associated Press correspondent, and in commenting upon the happenings, Vice President Corral to-day said:

"For over a score of years the republic of Mexico has been absolutely free of bandit raids or uprisings similar to the disgraceful affair which occurred at Viesca yesterday. For that reason we will mete out stern measures to those criminals, in order that they and the world at large may know that the days of the bandit in this country have passed.

"From private information which I have received to-day 1 am satisfied that most of the men concerned in the raid have spent terms in jail before. The men were trying to rescue some companion former railroad employes who had been imprisoned, and for that reason they first attacked the jail."

To-day the President called a special session of the cabinet, at which, it is said, conditions in the state of Coahuila were discussed at length.