The Greatest Misunderstanding of the Century

April 19, 1880. The Austrian Central American Colonial Army was hunting down the "fierce bandits" within its territory and pursued them all the way into Panama.

Because of heavy fog, a misunderstanding arose with the Colombian garrison, triggering an armed clash that left several thousand dead and wounded.

The local populace could attest that thick fog had indeed descended upon Panama on April 19. Before the army entered Panama, the colonial government had even sent people to communicate with the local government, and they had agreed to jointly dispatch troops to wipe out these utterly evil "fierce bandits."

Unfortunately, someone within the Colombian Government had colluded with the "fierce bandits" and leaked the news. The "fierce bandits" cut the local telegraph lines and ambushed and killed the messengers along the way.

The garrison had not received the news in time, and the two sides failed to communicate effectively. With visibility impaired by the heavy fog, what had been a joint bandit-suppression operation ended with each side mistaking the other for the enemy, resulting in an accidental exchange of fire.

This was the "truth" announced by the Austrian Central American Colonial Government. Whether the Colombian Government could accept it or not, its troops stationed in Panama were finished.

After the "4.19 Incident" erupted, the Austrian Central American Colonial Government immediately announced that it would take responsibility for the incident. It apologized for the casualties caused by the accident and stated that it was willing to pay pensions and compensation for the dead and wounded.

Such a proactive and responsible attitude would have left people with nothing to criticize—if only the Austrian army had not remained there, stubbornly refusing to leave.

Of course, the Austrian army had its reasons for staying. Although the main force of the "fierce bandits" had been surrounded