Mr. Gummeré to Mr. Hay.
Tangier , May 19, 1904 .
(Mr. Gummeré reports that on the night of the 18th of May, about 8.30 o’clock, a band of natives headed by a bandit named Raisuli, who kidnaped Mr. Walter Harris the year previous, broke into the country house of Mr. Perdicaris, a prominent American citizen, and carried away Mr. Perdicaris and his stepson, Mr. Varley, a British subject. Mr. Perdicaris’s house is situated about 3 miles from Tangier.
The consul-general and the British minister have informed the Sultan’s deputy that the Moorish authorities are to be held personally responsible, and in order to secure the release of the captives they have insisted that any terms demanded by Raisuli be immediately granted. They are also dispatching a special courier to the court to have the Sultan’s deputy instructed to comply with such requests as they may make.
The consul-general regards the situation as serious, and asks that a man-of-war be sent to enforce the demands.)