The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1892-06-28
THE CAPTAINS CASE.
True Cause of Removal of the
Ba!timOre's Commander.
Captain Whitehead Answers in Detail
tho Charges Against Him-An Ola
Enmity the Reason.

The action of the navy department in re-
moving Captain William Whitehead from
the command of the cruiser Baltimore and
sending o younger officer to relieve him
is attributed by the New York Times to the
influence of Rear-Admiral Walker In a
long article the Times answers the charges
against Captain Whitehead in detail,
chiefly by means of extracts from letter
from the Captain. 1t shows that the fail
urc to go into San Diego har5or was due
TO the danger of crossing the bar during
period of neap tides. when the depth of
water Is too small. In regard to the Port
land trip the captain wrote to a friend in
the East:
The channel is narrow and crooked, and so
little water III it over whit the ship needs to
float her that don't know what I can do with
IT, sent the navigating officer there to find
Out IN MS passages up the river the routes
taken by the largest steamers. bat the Baltimore
is larger tnan any OF them. Ill 90 if think it
safe 10 try.
Two weeks later from Portland he writes:
was authorized to go to Portland If deemed
II prudent. That put upon me father more re-
sronsibility than seemed just. For example:
"fou will proceed to Portland If the water per-
nit and you deem it prudent is better than
''you are authorized" The river 10 bugbear
and the Baltimore u whooping big ship
After consulting local authorities on
navigation, he made the trip, despite the
opinion of brother officer that it was
lmprudent. He wrote that people swarmed
on board every day at Portland from as
far as Idaho and Montana, and added:
II he navy is booming III the Northwest
In reply to the charge that the people
were not given an opportunity to see the
ship, the Times quotes the denials of
Mayor Mason. of Portland, and of the
president of the Chamber of Commerce
and the letter of thanks from DR.. c. c.
Strong, president Columbia River Centen-
NAL Celebration Society
Another charge is that by carelessness
in handling the ship, faulty navigation
and poor lookout, the ship overran her
reckoning and went among the Oxford
rocks off the Oregon coast. On this point
Captain Whitehead wrote:
The Baltimore underran her rcckoning-a not
unusual thing when the wind kicks up a cur
rent against us-and instead of making the
light. as we expected, we didn't get up to it
until after II was put out and made the rocks
instead. The ship never was il peril at all
Had the night been longer the extra half hour
of darkness, as suggested by the report. we
would have made the light, Tor it is only put
out a. sunrise. I'm cautious, and l don't take
chances.
The Times article closes with this stinger
for Admiral Walker:
In THIS vicinity it is the prevailing opinion
that the TACT OF Rear Admiral Walker being IN
Washington accounts only too we'll for the
orders issued to Captain Whitehead. 1t is
thought that the blow was sttu k to show the
service at large that Admiral Walker was again
on deck. Bsfore he returned 10 the navy de-
par:In INT everything went smoothly. but now
troubles are again breaking FORTH