Evening Star Newspaper, February 22, 1898, Page 1

THE EVENING &TAR. PUBLISHED DAILY EXCEPT SUNDAY. AT THE STAR BUILDINGS, 31€1 Penreylvania Avenue, Cor. 11th &t., by The Evening Star New: Company Ss. £. E UFFMé i, Pres’t. New York Office, 49 Potter Building. ening Star Is served to subscribers in the tiers, on their own account, at 10 cents er 44 cents per month. Copies at the certs each. By maii—anywhere in the States «r Canada—postage prepaid—50 cents per month. Saturday Quintuple Sheet Star, $1 per year, with 2 pestage A. $3.00, tered at the ce at Washington, D. C. ) 11 mail subscriptions must be paid in advance. f advertising made known on application. AGREEMENT WITH WRECKERS Secretary Long Insists on Beginning at Once, Mo. 3zments of the South Atlantic Squadron. HOWN The plans of the wrecking expedition for the relief of the Maine were comp Gey, after long conier Long and the rep atives of the M t & Chapman Company and the Bos- ton Tow Boat Company. The companies had expecied to begin work in Havana narber in about a week, but at the last monzent Secretary Long insisted that pro- should be made for sending forward at once at least one large wrecking boat, with divers and equipment. This was agreed to, and a d h was sent to the tain of the sea wrecker Right Arm, now at Key West, to suspead his private work new in progress, and proceed at once to If the Right Arm has sfarted rth a torpedo boat will be sent after her. vision in Hevi na. At the same time a dispatch was sent to the New York offices of the company to nd two of the most experienced divers by train to Key West, where they will go to Havana and join the divers and wreck- ers on the Right Arm. ‘The commander of the Right Arm ts or- dered to place himself, with his divers and wechinery, under the orders of Capt. Sigs- bee, who will thus be free to avail himself of their services in the recovery of bodies or any particularly desirable piece of equipment or property before the regular wrecking operations begin. These are emergency steps, which precede the main wrecking expedition, which will be out- fitted at Boston, New York and Norfolk, with a view to beginning extensive opera- ticns within a week. Terms of the Contract. The terms of the contract as concluded and signed today, provide for the payment to the wrecking companies of the sum of $871 a day for their regular plant, and ar additional payment of $500 a day for the use of the floating derrick Monarch while the latter is actually employed. An express provision is made that the government may terminate the contract at any moment. It is also provided that the compensation shall not exceed the sym of money ($200,- 000) appropriated by Congress for this pur- pose in the joint resolution passed yester- day. Finally, it is provided that if the companies succeed in raising the Maine and towing her to New York, they shall re- elve a bonus of $100,000. Largest Wrecking Expedition. In view of the large first cost of the Maine, about $5,000,000, and the national desire that she shall be raised, as evidenced by the prompt and unanimous action of Congress upon the joint resolution, Secre- tary Long believes that he ts fully justified in making the above terms with the wreck- ers, though at first thought the per diem seems large. It must be borne in mind, however, that this will constitute the larg- est wrecking expedition ever equipped in this country. Moreover, the wreckers ex- pressed a willingness to go to work in the usual way that they serve underwriters, namely, to do the wrecking and then take the award of a board #& arbitration. This plan, however, was not open to the govern- ment, which is required to fix exact terms in advance. A clause of the contract re- quires the compantes to proceed with all dispatch and in a businesslike manner with the work of wrecking, and though this haste adds to the cost of the work, it is believed to be necessary, in view of the possibility of the early appearance of yel- low fever at Havana harbor with the ap- proach of the rainy season next month. The Fo: © Employed. Capt. Humphreys and Mr. Chapman, rep- resenting the two companies who will do the work, explained the plans they will adopt in wrecking the Maine. In addition to the emergency work to be prosecuted by the Right Arm, the main expedition will be made up of about 100 men, including six skilled divers; the wrecking steamer Un- derwriter of Boston, of 600-horse power; the wrecking steamer John G. Jones of Norfolk, of similar power; the iron barge Lone Star of Boston, capable of carrying 3,000 tons; the floating derrick Monarch, capable of lifting 260 tons, the largest floating derrick in the country, and an- other derrick capable of lifting thirty tons. The forwarding of the boats, derricks and men will begin at once. Telegrams were sent today to begin the outfitting, the taking on of coal and the assembling of men and equipment. The boats are ready to start at any time, but it will take a day or two to get together the exceptional facilities required for this large undertaking. To Rush the Work. ‘The wreckers say it will be impcesible to assemble this material and get it into Ha- vana harbor ready foe work for a week. They will make every effort, however, to expedite the work, and on leaving Secre- tary Long at 1 o'clock they took trains tor New York and Boston with the deter- ination of rushing the work. The Underwriter has a crew of-seventeen men, including her own staff of divers, who are veterans in their line of work. The Jcnes has a like crew and equipment of divers. The crews are available for wrecking work, but aside from these there \ She Even ee ee ny Star. No. 14,034. “WASHINGTON, D. will be forty experienced wreckers. Each wrecking vessel has a large complement of pumps, anchors, iron masts with heavy hoi & gear, cables, &c. Who will com- mand the expedition has not been deter- mined thus far, as the companies have sev- eral experienced wrecking masters avail- able. Capt. Thos. Kivlin ef New York is men- ticned among those likely to be placed in charge. He is a man of long experience, of ccol judgment and exceptional ability in deep-sea wrecking. Capt. Chittenden of New York, another wrecking master, who is thought of for the cormmand of the expedition, has a spe- cial for-e for hauling off beached vessels. He directed the work of haultng off the American liner St. Paul when she was beached near New York. The wrecking master will be in ccmplete charge, as the government will trust entirely to the ex- perience of the wr-ckcrs, although a naval cfficer will be detailed to inspect the work as it proceeds. Probabiy Lieut. Commander Wainwright, the executive officer of the Maine, now in Havana, will be assigned to this duty. Inspection of the Wreck. The wreckers stated that after tne exped!- tion was assembled in Havana harbor, a ccmpleze inspection of the wreck would be made and the exact line of work determine1 upon. The fz cilities will be so ample that all of the divers will be able to work at one time on different parts of the wreck. Most of the lifting will be done by the smaller Gerrick, which is of sufficient capacity for the lighter upper works of the Maine, but it will take the monster derrick Monarch to lift the huge turrets of the Maine and the guns mounted within them. Capt. Hum- ph stated that the purpose was not to separate the big guns from the turrets, but te lift them as a whole. This wiil be a tre- mendous undertaking, as the combined nt ef cach turret and guns is 166 tonsa, onarch can Hft 260 tons; so there Js Je margin of lifting power, even in the c: of the turrets. It is not expected that this larger piece of work can be reach- ed for some time after the operations begin, The kers were loath to express an wre opinion as to their ability to raise the hull of the Maine. Mr. Chapman and Capt, Humphreys stated that nothing but a clo: personal inspection would permit a decision on that point. They are most hopeful, how- ever, that the ship can be brought to the surface. The iron barge Lone Star will be used to receive the turrets, guns and wreckt~ age, and as fast as loads are made up #he wil! be towed to the Norfolk navy yard, The most potent sign that the firat and exciting stage of the Maine disaster haw been passed was the fact that mot 2 single cablegram was received overnight or this morning at either the State or the Navy D2partments relating in any mannor to that event. In fact the only telegram re ceived since yesterday afternoon was one that came from Admiral Siearl at Kay West asking whether certain pisces of metal, intended to effect repairs to tha tor= do boat Porter, had been shipped. Those castings are to replace a broken propeller strut, and the department notified the ud= miral that these had been ehip from Herreshoffs, the builders at Bristol, R. L, on the 18th instant, and shouid be at Mo- bile now. As this was a legal holiday v>-y few per- sons were at the State or Navy Depart- ments. Acting Secretary Day spent some time at his office, but he haa hitt'e to com- municate. He had recetv3d bul one dis Patch since yesterday from Consul General Lee, and that related io the shipment of Cuban tobacco to the United States. The d2partment has heard nothing of the re- ported revival of the Weyler edict prohib- iting the exportation of tobacco from Cuba. On the contrary, Gen. Lee's reports show that the movements are in regular prog- ress, or at last had not been checked up to the 19th instant. He telegraphed as fol- lows: “HAVANA, 2ist. “Filler tobacco, February 10th, to New York, 503 baies, 46 barrels; 16th, to Tamp: 69 bales; to Key West, 250 bales; 17th, bales to New York, 71 to Philadeiphia; 2 bales to Tampa, 76 to N2w York, Baltimore and 38 to Chicago. Judge Day had received no news of the rumored capture of the Dauntless, and in fact the above telegram was all that he had had from Havana in ine last tweaty- four hours. Nothing Exyected From Havana. In th2 Navy Department there were a few more officials who came down in the morning to look over th mails and open any telegrams that might have beer re- ceived. Secretary Long himself spent s2v- eral hours in his office icck.ug after his pri- vate mail. He said he had had nothing from Havana and 11d not expect anything. The naval regulations under which the court of inquiry was proceeding at Ha- vana absolutely preciuded the conveyance by any member of the co: as a body to any person, even the Secre- tary of the Navy, of any facts developed during the progress of the inquiry, unless the action of the department was reces- sary upon some developaent to further the invesugation. For this reason tie Secre- tary does not expect to earn anything offi- cially or unofficially for several days from any of the members of the court, and as Capt. Sampson, the presideni of that body, has given notice at Havaus that the pro- ceedings would b> kept secret there, the officials here do sot se: fAvw any one can know what the court is Joi Work on the Terror. In explanation of the order given yesicr- day to the Norfolk navy yard officiais to Lave the Terror in conaition for service, Secretary Long said this order had been given to replace the Maine, 1t being deemed desirable that the armored fleet should not fall belcw a certain number. There was very little to be done on the Terror, and forty-eight hours should suffice to per- form all of their werk on her. She is the most powerful dovble-turreted monitor, and although aot as effective as a sea boat as 2 battle ship, she will probably be able to hold her cwn in the smooth waters of the harbor against almost any craft. The South Atlantic Squadron. The navai officiels assert that the report to the effect that the movements of the South Atlantic squadron, now under way, are with 2 view to the early assembling of the vessels near Havana 1s without founda- tion. This movenient, they say, is in direct accord with the plan outlined in December last by Capt. Chester of the Cincinnati, in command of the squadron, and approved by the department. This plan was about as foliows: After the smaliér vessels were docked at Buenos Ayres he would assemble the squadron and proceed up the coast of South America for squadron drill, visiting all the ports where American interests exist, going as far as Para. Upon the return of the squadron from the north he would make a lengthy visit to Rio Janeiro with all the vesseis, Near Rio is the harbor of Isle de Grande, where the vessels would have tar- get practice and other squadron exercises. < or the court This would also give the smaller vessels an opportunity for torpedo practice. The fact that the Cincinnati and Castine have | gone from Para to the Barbadoes is due | to the prevalence of yellow fever in the former port, and because Barbadoes is the | nearest healthy port where they can coal. | Gen. Lee SUll at Assistant Secretary Day today that, so far as he knew, there was no truth in the report that was published in New York pa- pers of this morning that Consul General | Lee had left Havana for this country. The story was that General Lee left Havana last evening on an important mission to Vashington; that he was on a government ship and that he would be brought from Tampa to Washington by a special train, which was held in waiting for him. Judge Day said the story was all news to him, inasmuch as he had had no communi- cation on the subject with General Lee one way or the other. It is not usual, he ex- plained, for a consular offiger to leave his post without asking for leave, and it is not likely that General Lee wouid do such thing under cxisting conditions without at invana. | that Capt. S | taneous combustion theory, though it does least notifying the department. A tele- gram was received from General Lee late last night and it made no reference to his coming home. TO AVOID YELLOW FEVER. Why the Cincinnati and Castine Sail- ed North Frém Para. It was reported this morning that the Cincinnati and the Castine had been or- dered to proceed from Para to Barbadoes In order to have them nearer Cuba in the event of trouble. Captain Dickins, acting chief of the bureau of navigation, told a Star reporter that the northward move- ment of the fieet was in accordance with @ program outlined by Captain Chester, the commander-in-chief, last December. At that time it was probably not contem- templated extending their operations far- ther north than Para. On reaching that port, however, the vessel found that it was infected with yellow fever, which disease also prevailed in the Brazilian ports far- ther south. A report to this effect was made to the Navy Department with the request that the vessels be allowed to leave the station to coal in cause such a course became neces- sary. In yeply Cept Chester was authorized to prcceed to the nearest healthy port for the purpose of coaling. No port was indicated, and Cam. Dickins says that Capt. Chester himself elected to proceed to Barbadoes for the purpose indicated. It is not be- lieved at the department that the fleet will remain at Barbadoes any longer than is necessary to coal and provision, after which they will repair tv the Isle of Grande, near Rio, for target practice and other exercises, The plan is to arrive there early in April, by which time, it is believed, the danger of infecticn of yellow fever will have passed. ‘APT. SIGSBEE’S REQUEST. Cc Wa 3 a Drawing of the Mainc, Which is Sent. The following telegram was received at the Navy Department this afternoon from Capt. Sigsbee: “Send to Forsythe for Sigsbee transverse sectional drawing of Maine through for- ward ten-inch magazine and shell room, showing pocket coal bunkers.” This re- qvest was immediately complied with. it ts supposed that Capt. Sigsbee wants these drawings to assist ir the work of wrecking the ship, as they would be of great aid to the divers. They will also be useful as, the basis for the testimony row being taken by the court of inquiry at Havana. The fact that it is deemed essential that. tho drawings shall show the pocket coal bunk- ers which abut on the magazine is evidence ee has in mind the spon- not follow by any metns that he is com- mitted to it. TENDERS HIS SERVICES. Dr. Munroe Willing to Serve an Ex- pert in Maine Investigation. Dr. Charles E. Munroe,professor of chem- istry in the Columbian University, has ten- Gered his services to the government as 2x- pert in high explosives, to determine the causes which ld to the demolition of the warship Main> Dr. Munree was seen by a reporter of The Star today and said he had tendered his services by telegraph from Atlantic City when he heard of tne catastrophe, but th government had replied that at the present time his services wer2 not required. Dr. Munroe is an ciminent expert on high explosives, and has rendere1 th2 govern- ment signal service in such matters. He said today that while he had read every- thing of the Maine diga8t€r, he~hgad_ferm- 2d no opinion, nor would be 'fintil aff the evidence and data “werg presented to him. He denicd that he dd been retained by the government as“its >xpert, but express- ed his entire willingness to scrye, if neces- sary. Knights of Maryland Ready. The Knights of Maryland, an organiza- tion composed of fifty well-drilled men, have offered their services to Governor Lowndes in case of war with Spain. The members of the company are Russians, who have been in this country for a number of years. They wish to be given an op- portunity of showing their patriotism for their chosen country. The organization will make application to the state for arms and equipment. CLEVELAND HOTEL, BURNING. St. Charles in- Flames, and Guests Fleeing for Life. CLEVELAND, Ohie, February 22.—A dis- patch from Steubenville, Ohio, says that the St. Charles Hotel is im flames and will be totally destroyed. Thé fireis a danger- ous one and threatens to spread. People are being cafried out of the building. —_s+ MILITARY OPERATIONS. Not Proceeding on Expéc! : Outbreak of Hon#flities. Acting Secretary Meikiejehin hms made a statement in regard to the,military opera- tions, in which he said: :% “The War Department is not proceeding on the assumption that there ig shortly to be an outbreak of hostilities tween the United States and Spain.er “any other country. Perhaps it cannot be. said that there is any greater activity inghe various bureaus of the department;tham there has been for many months pagt. ‘Fhe depart- ment at no time failed tq appreciate the necessity of increasing the military re- sources of the ceuntry to as ggeat an ex- tent as the available appropriations per- mit. Perhaps it is befter to:say that the department authorities are not allowing any opportunity of putting ot ives in as good condition as or. an _emer- gency to be neglected.” = & * China Borrows Loddon Bank. that the Chinese “ot London Enveloped im Snow. ~ LONDON, February. 22—Bnow continues and C., TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 1898—FOURTEEN PAGES. oF THE RESOLUTE. ; History of a Desk in the President's Room. The destruction of the British ship Reso- lute has been referred to since the de- | struction of the Maine. The cases are not | similar, but the fact is now recalted with interest that one of the desks of Presi- dent McKinley is made from timbers of the Resolute. The same desk has been in use since the Hayes administration, hav- ing been presented to this country by Queen Victoria. Every time Fresident Mc- Kinley looks at the desk he probably re- calls to mind that the destruction of the ship was made the occasion of pleasant correspondence between this country and England. A steel plate on the front of the desk is covered with the story of the ship. On the plate is the following: “H. M. S. Resolute, forming part of the expedition sent in search of Sir John Franklin, in 1852; was abandoned in lati- tude 74 degrees 41 north, longitude 111 de- grees 22 west on the 15th of May, 1854. She was di: Vvered and extricated in Septem- ber, 1855, in latitude 67 degrees north by Captain Buddington of the United States whaler George Henry. The ship was pur- chased, fitted out and sent to England as a gift to her majesty, Queen Victoria, by the President and people of the United States, as a token of good will and friend- ship. This table was made from her tim- bers when she was broken yp, and is pre- sented by the Queen of Great Britain and Ireland to the President of the United States as a memorial of the courtesy and loving kindness which dictated the offer of the gift of the Resolute.” The inscription was put on the steel plate in England. The desk was received during the administration of President Hayes. It sits in the room known as the President’s room. In the first part of his administration President McKinley used it all the time. Every morning it was or- namented by a bouquet of flowers. The President now uses the long desk in the cabinet room. The desk is of English oak and is embel- lished with carved flowers and figures. It is a plain, square-top desk not much larger than the average one used in a business office. Notwithstanding the friendly senti- ments which the desk conveys it_ was or this gift from the queen thet President Cleveland signed the message to Congress on Venezuela which caused so much talk ot war. —== Se ee GOLD ON STEWART RIVER. Report of J. W. Beall, a Mining Expert. VICTORIA B. C., February 22.-—J. W. Beall, a mining expert of New York, ar- mved today from Skaguay. He has been up the Stewart river, which, he says, is practically an unknown strecm. He and his companions reached McQuestin creek, 125 miles from the mouth of the river, but failed to make a paying strike. They started on the return trip on December 3, with eighteen inches of snow on the ground and the thermometer registering seventy-two degrees below zero. Continuous snow storms, intense cold and difficulty of making their way made the trip more then usually severe, even in those regions of hardehip. Once two of the men in the lead, breaking trail, fell through the ice and were rescued only with great Gifficulty. Nine days and a half were oc- cupied in making thirty-five miles. . Beall says they found bars on the Stew- jew York art very rch in flour gold, easily sqved, but in eros eulches: pod inchs they ae pected nothing was obtained except it flake gold, which it is almost impossible to gave except with quicksilver. ; ‘The Stewart river enters the Yukon about sixty-eight miles above Daweon City, ee - Old, but Had Few Birthdays. Bis life, all he -nine falling in the southern dis- | of yet he had only seen stateen birth tricts, Many roads and 3 Gays, having been born February 29, 1829. pistes lle Steamship Arrivals. and telegraphic ‘been | At New York—Furst Bismarck, from Na- interrupted. % ples; Furnessia, from Glasgow. TWO CENTS. —=a~, If you want to buy, sell or exchange anything, lease property or rent rooms, want a situation or want help, it will pay you to announce the fact in the advertising columns of The Star. They are closely studied by more than three times as many pcople as read any other paper. IN CASE OF WAR The Treasury Would Be Prepared for It. SECRETARY GAGE IS NOT WORRIED With the Rest of the Cabinet Looks for Continued Peace. CONDITION OF FINANCES qa A The condition of the treasury, should war with Spain come, is discussed today by public men and treasury officials. Not- withstanding the currency problem, no alarm is felt by the majority of those who give the question consideration. Secretary Gage himself feeis no alarm or worry when the question comes to his mind. It would do so, however, if the pos- sible war were with any other country than Spain, or with a number of the rich countries of Europe. In fact, his speech last week in Chicago the Secreta ‘y, in re- counting the deeds of Abraham Lincoin, hinted at the seriousness of the money sit- uation in case of a protracted and stub- born war with some great country in Eu- rope. He discussed this point as the Secre- tary of the Treasury, looking at it from a financial view—what might result to this country as a result of existing currency laws. Secretary Gage is one of the eight cool and cautious men in the cabinet, who sees no probability of war with Spain. But he has not failed to look carefully to the con- dition of the treasury in case wz and is not in the least worried. President, who keeps well pos jor is t* don the condition of the big bank of the United States. Money in the Treasury. The available cash balance in the treas- ury today is $225,148,969. of which $it 041,425 is gold, $10,000,000 being the tradi- tional gold reserve. In case of war with Spain the gold reserve would have to be maintained. Taking this much from the evailable cash balance leav 070,000, in round numbers. A certain amount of this, Secretary Gage estim: would have to be kept for the regular business of the country—for use in the subtreasuries to meet the demands of trade and commerce. It is estimated that $50,000,000 would’ be suflicient to keep ir the treasury, in addi- Uon to the stipulated gold re: . There {s now in the treasury, therefore, $75.00 000, which could be immediately used in case of a declaration of war. Of course, the ordinary policy of the Secretary and the administration would not be. to decrease the available cash balance to $5 000,000, but it is thought that business could be safely conducted on that basis pending legislation or action to restore the normal condition of affairs. In addition to the snug little sum named, the-administration now has before it the Prospect of no longer running behind in expenditures. Increasing customs receipts and the revenues from other sources have reached a healthy state. The phantom of a continual monthly and yearly deficit no longer stares the treasury officials in the face. The large deficit which will show at the end of this fiscal year was made in the first months of the year, before the Ding- ley bill got fairly started, and it is now doubtful if there will be another month to record a deficit, unless it is April, when heavy quarterly payments on interest have to be made. Last month, it is pr rrany officials. was the last one which w ever show a deficit under th> Dingley bill, unless, ef course, war should arise, the ex. penses of which could not be considered as belonging to the regular expenses of the government. So, in talking aboui what the government would have to pay ovt to whip Spain, there is not the great fear that the receipts would be continually running be- hind the expenses, nece: tating inroads on the available cash balance, as hereto- fore. The regular expenses would be pald out of the regular receipts, and the cost of whipping Spain would be a senarate ac- count, to be cared for later. It is even confidently predicted in many auarters that by the time Spain had been thrashed the receipts would be so far above expenses as to allow a svm to -be set aside every morth to wipe out the debt incurred in fighting. A Source of Congratulation. The large amount of gold in the treasury 4s particularly a source of congratulation among those who look for a brush with Spain in the near future. In this respect the treasury {= stronger than in eight years. The amount of gold given is free from incumbrances. There is really $203,- 7, In the vaults of the treasury, is deducted from this for outstanding gold certificates, redeemable on demand, leaving $167,041,425. How much @ war scare would attack this amount of gold has been talked over, but it is not theught that it would be depleted largely by reason of a war with Spain. The con- fidence of a short war, it is estimated by Secretary Gage, would have more effect in this direction than patriotism or anything else. A run of any kind on the treasury would probably not last long, if begun. Ccngress could stop it in any event by put- ting into the hands of the President and Secretary of the Treasury power to guard the treasury. This power would probably be such as to cut short the designs of the unpatriotic. In his Chicago speech Secretary Gage pointed out that at the beginning of the civil war this country was not carrying much debt. As a result of that war the gcevernment is carrying an additional debt of $346,000,000. In case of a protracted war with Spain or with any other country, it is thought that a good deal of gold could be obtained in this country. A war or war scare, it is said by treasury officials, drives gold fur- ther into hiding, but this government is so big and substantial that a sale of bonds will always draw from money holders their yellow metal. After the battle of 3ull Run, when the country was despondent at the outlook, $150,000,000 in bonds were sold to bankers and others for gold. The bonds brought par. o- A GREAT PARK PROPOSED, Union of the Battlefields N. ericksburg. Col. Cecil Clay of the Department of Jus- tice left today for Fredericksburg to attend @ meeting of the incorporators of the Fredericksburg and Adjacent National Bat- tleficld Memorial Park Association. This is the association recently chartered by the Virginia legislature for the purpose of try- ing to have the battlefields of Fredericks- burg, Chancellorsville, the Wilderness and Spottsylvania turned into a public park, like that of Gettysburg and Chickamauga. Col, Clay was appointed as one of the incorpo- rators to represent West Virginia, the other incorporators from that state being Sena- Fred. PAYA FORMAL CALL ° — Members of Court of Inquiry Visit Blanco and Manterola. HEARING AFTERWARD RESUMED: | ne Work of Recovering Bodies of the Crew Goes On, Wrecking Company Engaged ta Raise Hulk of the Maine. —_+—_-—_ BUNCE VISITS VIZCAYA — HAVANA, February 22.—Cons! Genera? Lee and the members of the United States! ccurt of inqairy into the loss of the battle ship Maine cailed this morning upon Cap- ain General Blanco and Admiral Manter- ola. When these c>remonies were ended the court returned to the United Sta light jouse teuder Mangrove and resumed ite ses- sions. It is believed tha: a number of bodies will be recovered from the forward hatch of thei Maine today. A majority of the remains are understood to be those of firemen, andi many of them are said to have been mutil-' ated in the strugzle for Ife, which, the divers say, must have been frightful. It is announced that 1,600 Spanish regular troeps arrived at Santiago de Cuba on Sat- urday. Festivities Suspended. The military commander of Guanabacom has ordered the suspension of pubiic festiv- ities as a mark of respect to the memory of the Maine's dead. The prohibition will ecntinue for three days. Judge Peral of the Spanish admiralty court today has been taking the depositions. of the officers of the Spanish vessels an@ tke harbor officials on the subject of the disaster to the Maine. Capt. Sigsbee has been suffering from the great strain to which he was subjected, but is row much better, having been relieved of some of the responsibility by the presence here of the court of inquiry. . Raise Wreck. Contract NEW YORK, February 22.—The aries, & Chapman Derrick and Wrecking C1 pany today signed contracts with the gove ernment to raise the battle ship Maine, Their most powerful tug, the Monarch, now at New York, will proceed at once to Havara. The Monarch will be followed by other tugs and the work will be begun as soon as possible. ‘Two expert divers will accompany the Mona:ch with ail the necessary apparatus,’ Bunce Visits Eulate. NEW YORK, February 22.—Admiralj Bence, commandant of the navy yard, req turned the official visit of Capt. Eulate of! the Spanish cruiser Vizcaya today. Ad. miral Bunce was accompanied by his two atds, Capt. Gilmore and Lieut. Ward. left the navy yard on board the comman-j dant’s barge Undine and steamed down the They i bay. The three officers wore their full! dress uniforms with cocked hais and‘ swords. The visit v.as altogether formal. HIGH MASS FOR MAINE’S DEAD. ive Ceremonies at New Yorke Catholic Churches, sW YORK, February 22.—Solemn high mass for the repese of the souls of the sailors who perished on the Mame was celebrated by Rev. Father James J. Durick, at St. Anne's Catholic Church, near the’ navy yard, Brooklyn. The church was filled, many relatives and friends of the dead sailors being among the number. In the main aisle and directly in front of the altar was a huge catafulque draped with Impre N American flags and surrounded by rows of burning candles. Services similar to those at St. Anne's were held in the Church of the Sacred Heart, Brooklyn, which, like St. Anne's, has many officers and sailors from the navy, yard among its communicants. Two com- panies of marines from the naval barracks attended this iater service and presented arms as the host was elevated. Order for Rapid-Fire G NEW HAVEN, Conn., February 22.—The American Ordnance Company of Bridge port, Conn., has received by telegraph from its vice president at Washington an order for forty rapid-firing, six-pounder Hotchkiss guns. The order is for quick de- livery, and the forgings for them have al- ready been called for. The guns will all be delivered in about three months, —_—— WORSE THAN IN WEYLER'’S TIME, tion of Affairs in Cuba Describs ed he Senate. A large part of the time of the executive session of the Senate was devoted to read- irg @ long communication cn the condition of affairs in Cuba. The paper was presented by Senator Morgan, who requested that the name of the writer be not given to the press on the ground that to give it out would endanger the Me of the author. The writer said he had practically trav- eled all over the island, and that the condi- tion of affairs was even worse than during Weyler's time. He estimated that fully 00,000 people had perished since the war began. Con 2 ———_—_— ATTACK ON ANNEXATION, Representative Johnson Makes a