THE LOJA TRAGEDY
OWING to the interception of six letters from Matamoros, already mentioned, many of the facts connected with the diabolical scheme concocted at Granada, to inculpate him in the political insurrection at Loja, would not have appeared in the present work were it not for the recent publication of a brochure by Messrs. Nisbet, from which I give the account of this infamous tragedy:—"In the beginning of July, 1861, an insurrection broke out at Loja, a quiet little town situate between Granada and Malaga. Nine thousand men, displaying a republican standard, and proclaiming democratic principles, appeared in arms. At a given moment they destroyed the telegraph, intercepted the post, and cut off all communication with Granada, and the rest of the chief cities of Spain.
“When first intelligence of these things reached Granada, public opinion was unanimous in attributing the movement to purely political motives, but the enemies of Protestantism in Granada, taking advantage of the surprise and excitement of the public mind, wrote immediately to the government papers at Madrid, affirming that the insurrection, besides being republican in its character, bore evident marks of a Protestant origin, the rebels having raised the cry, 'Death to the Pope.' The public feeling being very much opposed to this sudden and unexpected outbreak, the reports industriously spread of its having originated with the Protestant party, affected most injuriously the cause of the prisoners, which was beginning to be regarded with interest and favor by the more enlightened portion of the public wailing themselves of the panic produced, the enemies of Matamoros resolved, if possible, to incriminate him and his fellow-prisoners. For this purpose the authorities had recourse to a wretched convict, condemned for robbery to seven years at the galleys, to whom they promised liberty and 8000 reals, if he would supply information against the Protestant prisoners. This man, fetched back for the purpose from the galleys, was employed to carry food and water to the cells of Matamoros and Alhama. Whilst thus engaged he contrived to steal a letter written by, and others addressed to, Matamoros, all of which he carried to the authorities. These letters were purely of a religious character, and contained no allusion to politics, yet they were used as a pretext for action.
"Early on the next day, July 8th, Matamoros was roused from his bed and hurried off to a most loathsome dungeon. Alhama, too, and Trigo were removed from the cells they were occupying, and placed 'incomunicados.' At the same time the governor of the prison and ordinary officials were suspended, made prisoners, and shut up; new officials being appointed by the military fiscal, who was one of the most bitter enemies of the Protestants. These officials were to exert themselves to find among the prisoners some who, on a promise of a free pardon, would come forward as witnesses against Matamoros and the Protestants. But to return to Matamoros. He, as has been already said, was hurried off to a loathsome den, without daylight or air, where the filthiness and stench, together with the distress and anxiety of his mind (for he knew not of what he was accused), so affected him that he fell ill of violent fever.
“For three days he struggled on, but on the night of the 13th of July he was so ill, that he begged for medical aid; it was refused; he asked for medicine, that also was denied him. For eight days he lay there unable to rise, but at last, through God's mercy, the fever abated, on the thirteenth day of his imprisonment in this place. On July 25th, at five o'clock in the morning, he was dragged out to be examined by a military commission. He was eleven hours under examination, and for the first time, by the questions put to him, he discovered of what he was accused.
“The accusations against him were:—
“I. That he had, in his prison, projected and planned the insurrection at Loja, and that the leader of the insurrection had visited and held a conference with him in the prison.
“II. That he had furnished the insurgents with large sums of money.
"III. That he had intended to put himself at the head of the insurrection in Granada, and to have given liberty to the prisoners, with the cry of Death to the Pope.'
“IV. That in order to effect all this, he had bribed the former governor with the sum of 30,000 reals (£300), and had likewise suborned the rest of the officials.
“V. That two persons who had visited Alhama on the 6th and 7th of July were conspirators. That one of them had an interview with Matamoros, in order to arrange with him what cries should be raised in the revolution, and that the other had brought to him large sums of money.
“The means resorted to for obtaining evidence in support of these charges may be judged of from the following incidents:—
“On one occasion, the convict aforementioned, who had been appointed to attend upon Matamoros, came to his cell, accompanied by the newly-appointed deputy-governor. The man told Matamoros that it was to the deputy-governor he owed the privilege of being visited, and that he deserved some acknowledgment. Matamoros accordingly gave him a gratuity. The deputy-governor went immediately to the fiscal, whose agent he was, showed him the money, and declared that it was given him by Matamoros as a bribe to silence him, as well as to secure through him the silence of certain criminals whose evidence he feared.
“These wretches, having been previously instructed, when called upon by the deputy-governor, immediately corroborated the accusation. At another time, Matamoros, being in need of some food and some cooling drink, employed his convict attendant to purchase it, giving him some money for the purpose, and a few reals additional as a recompense fox...the service. The man, who was employed as an informer and spy, carried the money to the fiscal, and declared that Matamoros had given it as a bribe to prevent his coming forward as a witness against him.
“On another occasion, this same man stole a handkerchief from Matamoros, and carrying it to Alhama's wife in token that he had been sent by Matamoros, asked for the letters and manuscripts that Matamoros had committed to her care. She replied that she had none, that Matamoros had not committed any letters to her care. The man, disappointed in his scheme, went nevertheless to the fiscal, declared that she had the papers and would not give them up, and succeeded in obtaining her arrest and imprisonment, 3s well as the imprisonment of Alhama's aged mother.
“Some difficulty being apprehended in consequence of the agreement of Alhama's declaration with that of Matamoros, the following means were adopted to destroy the value of this accordance. Alhama's cell was under that of Matamoros, but had no communication with it. One night the deputy-governor came to the cell of Matamoros, and caused a small aperture to be made through the floor into Alhama's room below, then went to the military fiscal, and reported that there were means of communication between the cells. While these things were taking place, the leader of the insurrection at Loja was yet at large. A prisoner named E—came forward and declared that he had not only seen the chief of the insurrection conversing with Matamoros before the rising at Loja, but that since that event he had again seen him talking with Matamoros through one of the windows of the prison.
“When called on to describe the rebel chief, he gave a description which agreed closely with that which had been published in the newspapers. There was also in the prison a parish priest named R—S—, imprisoned for various robberies and crimes of a disgraceful nature. This priest being cited by E—in his declaration, came forward, and not only corroborated what E— had said, but added fresh
charges. They accused Matamoros of having endeavored to induce the prisoners to rebel against the military fiscal and governor of the prison. Twenty prisoners were called forward, who, to the consternation of Matamoros, all confirmed the testimony of E—and the priest, one man showing the money which he declared Matamoros had given him. But the good providence of God was watching over Matamoros. The cause was not decided by the military tribunal, it was passed on to the civil court. There the chief evidence, the person on whom the enemies of Matamoros chiefly rested, turned against them. E—, conscience-stricken and repentant, after making two attempts at his life, made solemn recantation before the civil tribunal of all that he had said against Matamoros, and gave a clear and explicit narration of all that had been carried on against him in the prison, and told of the bribes and instructions given by the military fiscal and his agents. It scarcely need be said that the result was the triumphant acquittal of Matamoros and the Protestant prisoners. The military fiscal, who, before the unexpected failure of the cause had been rewarded (somewhat prematurely) with promotion, was now disgraced and sent away from Granada. Here, then, there was an opportunity for the government of Spain to have come forward and recompensed Matamoros for his unmerited suffering by frankly abandoning the religious charge. Their agents had conspired against his life. If the political charge had been established, he would no doubt have been put to death. But the government whose agents had woven around him that complicated web of falsehood, felt no shame, no contrition. They in no respect recognized themselves his debtors. His reward was continued imprisonment, and in prospect aggravated, not lessened, punishment.”