Commander Reiter was lying in this open roadstead. so near to the American steamer that he could hear plainly the pistol shots. of which it is said some fifty or sixty were fired when Barrundia was killed. Let me ouote his own words. Commander Reiter says: About 2 p. m. it was thought that a number of shots were heard onlboard the Acapulco. Still he made no movement. There was an American ship lying close by him. She was carrying a political refugee. There was a disturbance on board and much firing. The duty of our naval force in times of peace is of course to look after our commerce and our ships and to perform police duty on the seas.