THE WAR BETWEEN CHILI AND PERU.

Hawke's Bay Herald, Volume XXI, Issue 5447, 30 July 1879, Page 3

THE WAR BETWEEN CHILI AND PERU.

The Peruvian ironclad ram Huascar recently bombarded the Port of Caldera *" arid made a descent upon the town of ' Autofogasta. She succeeded in silencing the shore batteries, Avhich -were armed with heavy krupp guns, but failed in- the object of the attack, which contemplated the destruction of the water condensers necessary for the garrison and town, which is the base of the operations of the Chilian army of invasion. The Chilians had forty-eight hours' notice of the attack, and protected the condensers with bags filled with sand and nitrate. The Huascar captured two Chilian ships, copper laden, and sent them to Callao. She also ■ cut the cable connecting Antofogasta with Caldera, and tt en sailed to Iquique, from whence she had barely time to escape when the Chilian squadron, which had gone to Callao, appeared in the offing. The Huascar's superior speed enabled lier to escape, after exchanging a few harmless broadsides. Admiral William. Reballedo, with the Chilian fleet, approached Callao to eaeouriter the Peruvians, when he learned that the Peruvian fleet had sailed south with President PracTo, who was landed at Arica. During their cruise tho, armor-plated ship Esmeralda was rammed by the Huascar and sunk. Capt. Thomson, of the Esmeralda, sprang on the deck of the Huasear, followed by 25 men,- all, of whom fell fighting on the enemy's ship. Captain Thomson was a Chilian of British descent. The Nautilus and - two other German war vessels are ordered to the Chilian coast, arid tho German Government have demanded the release of the steamer Luxor, which was detained at Callao by the Peruvians, upon the. pretence that she was carrying articles contraband of war. The British Admiralty ordered the detention of several Peruvian boats which put into Sheeruess for repairs.