Gran Colombia, H1/1910

[Sachmle]

I like him, some one should offer him a commision in the Columbian Navy.. ;D

[The Rock Doctor]

6 April 1910:  NW of Havana

"Good, come over to investigate.  We're in dire straits, you know", the master of the coastal freighter muttered under his breath.  The other ship, another tramp by the looks of her, had been drawn this way by the oil black smoke roiling up into the blue sky.  The other ship, presumably being honest mariners, would soon be offering assistance in fighting the fire. 

"Are we sending to them?", he asked aloud.

"Twice now, with no response", the younger man at the signal light replied. 

"Being cautious", the master grunted.  In a low sing-song, he murmured, "Don't make me chase you.  You won't like that."

The other tramp was drawing closer, on an oblique closing course, but it seemed to be in no hurry to draw too close.  "Colombian", a lookout called out.  "Don't see any weapons on her."

"Finally", the lamp operator sighed as his counterpart on the Colombian ship began flashing a message his way.  "He's asking our name, flag, and if we need assistance."

"You know what to tell him", the master replied.  "Let's have a few sparks from the fire!", he called back.  The order was passed into the aft hold, and the hands there tossed a mix of grass and cardboard onto the carefully tended blaze.  Embers drifted up with the smoke soon enough.  The master nodded approvingly.

"Looks like they're going to pass us to starboard and then come up our port side", the lookout noted. 

"Checking out our nameplate", the mate said.

"That's fine", the master replied.  It was possible that the Colombians had managed to shut down the observer team in Havana - the lack of wireless information suggested it - but even in the worst case, there was no way they'd be able to tell their merchant marine which ships were involved in this particular campaign.  Not secretly, anyway.

The tramp passed them at two thousand yards.  "Stern chaser", the lookout replied.  "Probably one of their sixty-fives.  Looks functional." 

"Put your telescope away", the master said.  "We should be too busy fighting the fire for you to be glassing them."  He glanced aft, from his own concealed position.  The bucket brigade was tireless passing buckets - mostly empty - to the hold, where the senior hand carefully poured it into the hold away from the fire.  "Good work", he called out.  The mate nodded; he was in the open, playing the part of the master in this charade.

The Colombian freighter circled round their stern at seven knots.  The master could sense the anticipation of his crew, felt it himself.  It had been far too long since the last set of sacrifices, and he felt the weight of the Eye upon him.  Please or perish, he thought.  "Perhaps we can look forward to some passengers", he murmured.  The helmsman grunted his approval.

"Signal them to hurry up - we're going to lose the ship if we can't get the fire under control.  Mess up a couple of characters - you're panicky."

The lamp operator clacked out the signal.  The Colombian was quick to respond.  "He says they're coming as quickly as they can.  He noted that they have to be careful about pirates."

The master chuckled. 

"I'll mention the irony of that to him if we take him alive", the lamp operator added.

The Colombian began to come up alongside, about two hundred yards off.  Their gun wasn't manned, but a few men were on deck with axes and a fire hose.  The other ship's speed was dropping as it matched his own - a talented man at the helm, the master reflected.  "Stand by", he growled, and the order was quietly passed along to the concealed quick-firing guns and machine guns, and to the boarding party waiting inside the superstructure. 

The Colombian was edging in now, and the bucket crew started receiving full buckets to maintain the charade.  The tramp could still sheer off if they didn't like what they saw.  One man out of place, one crate not quite in the right place, and the easy kill would become a chase.  At one hundred yards, he'd give the order and the bulkheads would drop and the crates slid out of the way.  From the Colombians' perspective, it'd probably look like a series of corner-of-the-eye movements.  Yes, pretty much like that, the master thought, as on the Colombian freighter a boat slid aft and a net full of crates suddenly jerked upward.  Although...

[The Rock Doctor]

7 April 1910:  Cartagena

Capitan Augustin Friere walked up to the gatehouse of the embassy of the Confederate States of America and returned the salute of the Marine corporal in charge.  "I'm with the Armada's Naval Intelligence Division", he said.  "I would like to meet with Captain Morris, please."

The marine asked, "Do you have an appointment with the Captain, Sir?"

"I do not", Friere replied, "But it is important that I see him, nonetheless."

"I will see if he's available, Sir", the marine replied.  "Please have a seat over there."  He turned to another marine and said, "Private, see if the Naval Attache is available, and whether he is able to meet with Captain Friere of Colombian Naval Intel."

"Yes, Corporal", the private replied. 

Friere watched the young man march down the laneway to the red brick building and disappear around its side.  "Shouldn't take too long, Sir", the marine corporal assured him.

The private returned eight minutes later and reported to the corporal in a quiet tone.  The corporal said to Friere, "Captain Morris is available, Sir.  He'll be out momentarily to see you."

"Thank you, Corporal", Friere acknowledged. 

Morris came marching down the laneway soon after.  A tall, handsome fellow, he was considered a bit of a prize in the capital's social circle, and a few Cartagenan families had embarked on elaborate but ultimately futile attempts to match him up with eligible young women.  His file back at Friere's office indicated this was probably to avoid the risk of being honeytrapped, since some of those young senoritas were considered quite the catch.

"Afternoon, Captain", Morris said in a soft drawl.  "What can I do for you?"

"Good afternoon, Captain", Friere replied.  "On behalf of the Government of Gran Colombia, I am instructed to hand over to you this package."  He held up a thin briefcase.

Morris looked at the briefcase, then back to Friere.  "Alright then - we do have some protocol on that kind of thang, so I'm going to have to call for the Deputy Ambassador.  Sorry - it'll just be a sec."

About ten minutes passed before the Deputy arrived.  Friere noticed that the marine corporal kept the briefcase in his sight at all times, as if ensuring that nothing untoward was taking place.

"Good afternoon, Sir", Friere reiterated to the Deputy Ambassador.  "On behalf of the Government of Gran Colombia, I am instructed to hand over to you this package."

"Thank you - what is it?"

"This is a summary of information obtained during anti-piracy operations over the past month.  It includes a partial list and description of vessels believed to be in the employ of a piracy operation being controlled out of Mesoamerica, as well as a summary of reports on incidents that we can document.  There is also some information on the manner in which their operations were controlled and coordinated.  They may be of use to your navy in suppressing the pirates harassing your traffic."

The Deputy Ambassador's eyebrows poked up and he glanced at his own naval attache before asking, "Where did you get this information?"

"The information was gathered by a joint military/civilian operation that included the capture and interrogation of several Anahuac pirates", Friere replied.

"The Anahuac have a reputation for being...uncooperative", Captain Morris observed.

"They were persuaded to be cooperative", Friere replied.  "My civilian counterparts are satisfied that the facts in this briefcase are indeed truthful."  The Confederate diplomat frowned at this, but the naval attache merely nodded.

"Thank you, Capitan", the diplomat replied.  "Do I need to sign for it?"

"Please", Friere said.

"Fair enough.  We've got paperwork of our own to be filling in now, too."

"Of course", Friere agreed.



Note:  Similar packages are delivered to other land-holders in the western Caribbean, specifically Rohan and France.  Each package contains exactly what Friere said it did, but considerable care has been taken to remove any mention of the various unsavory means employed by Gran Colombia to actually acquire the intelligence...

18 April 1910:  Belem, Brazil

While the Colombians were well dressed and clean shaven, the Brazilians ranged from "well kempt" to "fresh out of the jungle" in appearance.  Neither group seemed bothered by the disparity, as they had dealt with similar people in the past.

"So - welcome to Belem", Lourenco de Fonseca said loudly, cutting off a couple of side-conversations and prompting the Brazilian closest to the door to get up and close it.  "Welcome to Belem", he repeated. 

"Thank you", one of the Colombians replied.  "Perhaps we should begin with a round of introductions?  I am Alfonso Sagasta, from Bogota."  The other five Colombians, from different parts of the Republic, then introduced themselves.

Fonseca introduced himself at that point, and was followed in turn by the other eight Brazilians, all of who were from the state of Para.

"Thank you", Sagasta said.  "And our thanks also to agreeing to this meeting.  As you are probably aware each of us is here on behalf of a mining company or grubstaking syndicate back home.  Like most mining companies, our employers have remained focussed on their home jurisdiction as a result of familiarity with the legal regime and the generally harsh excise and tax laws that apply to foreign mining operations in most countries.

"Of course, the situation has changed rather significantly in Brazil in the past eighteen months, as your government has passed its Mineral Exploration and Mining Act and just recently its Foreign Investment Act.  Our employers have concluded that Brazil's mineral sector is now open for business, and we're looking for investment opportunities that can impact on our bottom lines.  At the same time, we recognize the value of local partners and expertise, so wish to establish friendly and productive collaborations."

Fonseca smiled.  "And it is good that this is the case", he replied.  "No question the entire extent of Brazil - and Para in particular - is rich in mineral wealth, but drawing in the capital needed to exploit our resources has been a challenge.  Much of the domestic-raised capital flows to the Philippines, unfortunately."

"That is the consequence of electing a left-leaning local government", Sagasta noted.  "The Philippines did not make the same mistake."

The Brazilian did not contest the point.  "Still, there is a strong capitalist tradition, as can be seen in the growing strength of the Partido Progressista."
"This is true", Sagasta agreed. 

"So, the question at this point becomes - which metals interest you and your colleagues?", Fonseca inquired.

"We've heard of the significant iron and bauxite deposits in the region, which I gather are mainly unexploited due to lack of local refining opportunities and, until recently, the limited demand for these elsewhere in Brazil.  With trade into the Republic now an option, we think this will change", Sagasta said.  "Tin is of interest because much of the world's supply is currently located in the East Indies.  Since the owners of that part of the world are not on the best terms with your government", and a couple of the Brazileans snickered, "We suggest local production to be in Iberia's strategic interest."

"Plus there's gold, of course", one of the other Colombians added.

"And we're always interested in that", Sagasta confirmed.

"So essentially you are interested in everything to be found in Para", Fonseca observed.

"Essentially, yes", the Colombian agreed.

"Excellent", the Brazilean replied.  "That allows the widest opportunity for deals.  Shall we give you a summary of the geology of the state, then?"

[The Rock Doctor]

6 May 1910:  Cartagena

"Before we meet with the Admiral to discuss his long terms plans, what's the latest on the piracy situation?", President Alizandro asked his uncle.

"There have been no reported incidents since the eleventh of April", Ricardo Alizandro answered.

"That was the incident northeast of Matanzas?"

"Yup", Ricardo affirmed.  "It wasn't entirely harmless, since several passengers on the ship did get killed, but most were saved before she sunk.  It's been good so far as media's concerned, though, especially in Jamaica.  There's nothing worse for a piratic tramp freighter than a spanky new cruiser full of angry Jamaicans."

"So that's three pirates sunk?", Rey asked.

"Er, five, probably", Ricardo corrected him.  "I say 'probably' as I haven't received the official report from NUS on the one incident."

"What have they got to do with this?", Rey queried.  "There're no Anahuac down that end of the continent.

"They offered to send up a few ships to work out of Colon during the big sweep, and I agreed to it.  Apparently, they managed to pick off a pirate early last month."  Seeing Rey's puzzled expression, Ricardo added, "I sent you a briefing note on their deployment."

"I didn't see it", Rey replied.

"Well, I sent it.  Check with your correspondence person", Ricardo said.  "Anywho, they got one, there's Matanzas, there's the one we grabbed during the big op on the twenty-first of March - that was the wireless relay ship.  There's also the one from the eleventh, like I said, and there's a catch we didn't make public from the sixth of April.  One of the Armada's new 'miscellaneous service' vessels nabbed that one and took a few prisoners.  They've been handed over to your friend, the Carpenter, for some working-over."

Rey nodded.  "That's fine, it produced results last time.  What's your sense - are we winning this?"

"Yes, so long as we keep up the pressure", Ricardo agreed.  "Bear in mind we've moved ships out of Cartagena and Cromwell to help out in this work - they won't be there indefinitely.  The question is whether we can catch enough of the bastards to make them give up before we resume our usual deployments."

"And what're we hearing from abroad?"

"Not so much.  The Confederates, Rohirrim, and French received their packages but I've seen no official response.  They have picked up the pace of their ops, too, however."

"And the larger international community?"

"Some interest - the Baltic and Hapsburgers have been talking, and the former does have some cruisers in the region, but there hasn't been much pirate activity - that I know of - in the eastern Caribbean.  Frankly, it's almost entirely concentrated in the Gulf and in a broad circle around the Yucutan - which doesn't help the Mesoamerican's case at all."

"How heavily is this affecting international trade?"

"According to Sebastien, traffic's down about five percent at the canal.  That's really not such a big drop - fact is, a lot of shippers aren't willing to send their ships around the continent, so they're just re-routing ships to either skirt along our coast between the Antilles and the canals, or between the canals and the gap between Cuba and Haiti.  They're further from Mesoamerican waters, and we and the other regional powers have a good handle on that part of the sea."

Rey nodded.  "Alright then.  Let's go talk about ships with the Admiral."

[The Rock Doctor]

14 May 1910:  Cartagena

A week ago, it had seemed that the pirate problem in the Caribbean was going away; several ships had been caught, and their crews either killed or captured (and then killed).  However, reports from western Cuba had shaken this assumption, and had prompted President Alizandro to call in the Mesoamerican consul for a discussion.  Xicotencatl Tezozomoc now sat at the far end of the table, facing not only the President but all of his Ministers, seated along the table with their chairs angled to face him.  This arrangement - combined with the shorter chair provided to Tezozomoc and the position of the morning sun behind Rey's shoulder - made for a somewhat uncomfortable occasion for the Mesoamerican diplomat.

"Thank you for seeing me on short notice", Rey began the conversation.

"You are welcome, Mister President", Tezozomoc replied, completing the formalities.  "How may I assist you today?"

"I wanted to inform your government on the current status of our anti-piracy operations", Rey replied.  Tezozomoc nodded, as if expecting to hear this.  "Over the past six weeks, the Armada and a NUS contingent have combined to sink or destroy a total of six pirate vessels in the vicinity of Cuba.  Some of these episodes have been near-run things, while others have not; the action three days ago, in particular, was little more than a live-fire exercise for the armored cruiser in question."

"I was only aware of four such victories for you, so I offer my congratulations to you on these additional triumphs", the Mesoamerican responded.

"We are managing communications on this file very carefully", Rey noted, "To the point that we are providing falsehoods to the press in order to suit our purposes."

"I'm surprised to hear this", Tezozomoc said, somehow managing to sound sincere.

Rey sipped at his coffee, then continued.  "Now, it turns out that in five of the six incidents, the Armada took prisoners, who were subsequently questioned by police."

"...by which you mean tortured, Mister President?"

Rey smiled.  "We gained a considerable amount of information from the prisoners, not the least of which were such mundane details as places of birth - all of which, interestingly, happened to be within your borders.  We also learned the names of other vessels, which were turned over to other governments even as the Armada began actively hunting these ships.  Many of the prisoners happened to bear tattoos similar to those borne by Anahuac warriors at El Dorado some years back.

"On a separate tangent, our investigations determined that all of the vessels captured or sunk to date were of Mesoamerican registry.  Three could be traced to collectives in which the Mesoamerican government is a legal partner, and a fourth is owned outright by a Mesoamerican Crown Corporation.  One vessel had received an overhaul in a Mesoamerican port seven months earlier. Three bore blank cargo manifests which were nonetheless stamped and certified by Mesoamerican harbour authorities.  In short, we have amassed sufficient evidence to say with certainty that your government is, at the very least, proving grossly negligent in combatting this problem, if in fact you are not actually rendering it active assistance", Rey summarized.

"So you may claim.  Given that you are lying to your own media, I see no reason to think you'd do otherwise with my government", was Tezozomoc's acidic retort.

"Fair enough, but whether or not your government believes what my government asserts, the underlying problem for you remains the same:  a large and powerful neighbour of Mesoamerica is asserting Mesoamerican culpability in the rash of pirate attacks.  These have cost me hundreds of civilian and military lives, a number of civilian vessels and a military patrol boat, and have caused some difficulty to the economy of this nation.  The attacks have also cost me internationally; apart from drawing the competence of the Armada into question, it's also prompted a significant and entirely unwelcome European naval presence", Rey continued.  "Under the circumstances, I think you'd agree that Gran Colombia's response to the pirate problem has been measured, proportionate to the threat, and respectful of international law and borders."

"I suppose", Tezozomoc concurred.

"Good", Rey said.  "Now, you may not be aware of this - as the media has not been informed of this - but in the past week, there have been two instances in which remote fishing villages in western Cuba have been razed and their inhabitants slaughtered.  A total of one hundred sixty-eight people have been butchered, ranging from infants to elders.  Under the circumstances, and in the absence of evidence, my government would automatically assume the pirates - and therefore Mesoamerica - are to blame.  Happily, the raiders left more than enough evidence behind to confirm that this is the case:  the bodies of their dead, dropped weapons and equipment, shell casings, graffiti, specific desecrations of the dead, and over thirty witnesses who managed to outwit or outfight their assailants."

Rey paused to let Tezozomoc process this latest information.  "This will not be tolerated, Senor Tezozomoc; I have had enough.  I am holding your government responsible for these atrocities, and will consider any further attack on Colombian soil, shipping, persons or property to be causus belli on the part of Mesoamerica.  At that time, Gran Colombia's reaction will not be measured, it will be dis-proportionate to the threat, and it will certainly not be respectful of your border." 

After several long seconds of silence, Xicotencatl Tezozomoc quietly replied, "I will convey your message to my government."

"You do that", Rey said.

[Borys]

Note from Habsburg Embassy

In light of evidence of Satanist involvement in Carribean piracy, is there any manner in which the KuKK government or military can be of assistance?

[The Rock Doctor]

"The Republic of Gran Colombia thanks its Hapsburger friends for their offer of assistance. 

"The Armada is confident that it has inflicted a serious defeat upon the pirates in recent weeks, so we do not feel military assistance is necessary.

"Your assistance would be appreciated in convincing the Mesoamerican government that its interests are best served by actively combating those elements of the pirate organization operating out of Mesoamerican territory.  The alternative is for Gran Colombia to do this on their behalf, and El Dorado can be considered a useful precedent in demonstrating how Gran Colombia might go about this.  We believe that the Mesoamerican government will, understanding this, opt to do the right thing and take up the struggle against the pirates."

[ledeper]

Note from the Baltic Confederation:
The Confederation offers any military and diplomatic assictance in curbing the pirate menace in the Carribian area

[The Rock Doctor]

"The Baltic Confederation is thanked for its generous offer.  We do not believe military assistance is necessary at this time, but as your own Caribbean territories could conceivably be affected by the pirate problem, it may be advisable to exchange naval liaison teams. 

"Some information gathered through prisoner interrogations is provided in the accompanying package, and may be useful for BC shipping engaged in the protection of its trade and territory (OOC Note:  this is the same package sent to CSA, France, and Rohan earlier in this thread)

"Finally, we think it would be helpful if the Baltic Confederation were to use its political and economic influence to convince the Mesoamerican government to take a more active role in combatting those pirates based in Mesoamerican territory."

[Tanthalas]

The Imperial Navy has already agreed to conduct Joint antipiracy patrols with the CSA, we would offer the Same to GC. (aka I have 2 of my 28 knot 8" cruisers and 2 of my 10" cruisers in the gulf, More ships could be sent if Necissary)

[Carthaginian]

To GC President, via Confederate Embassy:

WISH TO DISCUSS ESTABLISHMENT OF ANTI-PIRACY PATROL ZONES STOP MEETING WOULD COMPRISE ROHAN, CSA, GC STOP ITALIA VOLUNTEERED SERVICES AS WELL INTEND TO ACCEPT STOP REQUEST GC FORCES REMAIN SOUTH AND EAST OF ROHIRRIM POSSESSIONS UNTIL ZONES CLEARLY DEFINED STOP INITIAL RECOMMENDATION FOR PATROL ZONE NEAR CUBA AND LESSER ANTILLES DUE TO LARGE COLOMBIAN POSSESSIONS STOP WILL INDICATE CONFEDERATE FORCES PATROL NEAR EAST DRM COAST AND ROHIRRIM FORCES IN NB AREA STOP ACTIVITY CONFINED TO GULF ONLY ACCORDING TO OUR SOURCES IN DRM STOP TR SENDS STOP GOD BLESS

[The Rock Doctor]

I see I have a fair bit of correspondence to be thinking about on the long commute home...