The record-union., 1897-06-10
Beyond What Has Heretofore Been
Made Public.
The Publication of the Lee Report i'm
Advance of Its Reception at the
State Department Giving Much
Annoyance to the Officials, and
May be Made the Subject of an
Inquiry.
Inquiry.

WASHINGTON, June 9-Mr Call
noun, the Presidents special Commits
sloner to Cuba, had another conference
with President Mckinley to-day last
ing about three-quarters of an hour.
Neither Secretary Sherman nor Assist
ant secretary Day were present. After
Mr.. Calhoun left he said he should re-
turn to his home at Danville, Ill, this
evening. He had nothing to add TO
what he already had given to the news
papers beyond the fact that he would
probably visit Washington again after
the President returned from the South
for further consultation
Mr. Calhoun paid a visit to the State
Department with his Secretary, Mr..
Fishback, and was in consultation with
Assistant Secretary Day for about an
hour and a half. The Lee report upon
the Ruiz case was brought to the de-
partment by Mr.. Fishback and deliver
ed to Judge Day, who saw the original
tWenty-four hours after it had been
brought to his attention in the press.
The Assistant Secretary said that he
was not prepared to say that the print
ed publication was accurate which in
diplomatic parlance is about as near
as State Department official can go
toward confirming a statement
me report itself was thoroughly dis
cussed by the three officials All that
could be gathered from them as to the
future action of the department was
that the matter would be held in abey-
ance until the return of President Nc
Kinley from his Nashville trip.
1t is recalled that the State Depart
ment has had to seek a reparation in
other cases involving the confinement
OF American citizens in violation Of
treaty rights In the cases of Scott
and of Tolon, although claims for lille
gal imprisonment were preferred they
were pigeonholed and never heard of
again. The Spanish Government set
tied the case of DelgaraS by the pay
ment of 100000, which satisfied the
individual claim for the assault upon
his person, but there was no record of
any arr gy for the incident 1t is evil
IDENTIFY the opinion of the department,
however, not to allow the last case to
so in the way of it's predecessors, but
to press it to a conclusion.
1t was learned that the Department
OF State is in possession of two distinct
reports bordering upon the Ruiz case.
They were brought to Washington by
Mr.. F1shback, the Secretary to Mr. Cal
noun, and handed to Assistant Secre-
tary Day. One of these reports was
made by Consul General Lee and has
been fully set out in the newspapers.
The other report, really the original,
was joint production signed by Con-
sul-General Lee and by DR.. Congosta,
the Spanish Consul at Philadelphia,
who. with General Lee, constituted a
special commission to investigate the
conditions surrounding the death of Dr.
Ruiz. In this report the two Commits
sloners went as far as they could to-
gether, which necessarily confined them
to mere statement of the facts made
subject to the controversy. Failing to
agree upon a statement of the causes
which led to Ruiz's death, the commits
sion signed the document at this point
and then by mutual agreement made
what may be a supplemental report to
their own Government, in which they
set out the statements which they could
not agree to include in the original re-
port. The published report of General
Lee was one of these supplemental re-
ports, and it is probable that the Span
ish Government has one intended to
controvert it made by Dr. Congosta.
With all of this literature on the sub
ject in possession of the two Govern
ments, the possibilities of prolonged me-
gotiations are promising.
After his conference with Assistant
Secretary Day Mr.. Calhoun decided to
delay his departure from Washington
and instead of starting for his home in
Danville this afternoon he will not go
until tomorrow.
The publication of the Lee report in
advance Of it's reception at the State
Department has given much annoyance
to the officials, and probably will be
made the subject of an inquiry, mas
much as it is believed that the position
of our Government in the negotiations
which are sure to follow with Spain is
weakened by thus putting it's case in
possession of the other side.