Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1898-02-24
ISSUES STATEMENT
SECRETARY LONG CONTRADICTS
WARLIKE RUMORS.
CAUSE STILL UNKNOWN
Navy Department in Ignorance of
Exact Cause Of the Names Elk
plosion-Captain Sigsbee Tele-
graphs That so Far 125 Bodies
Have Been Buried.

Washington, Feb. 19-The feature of
the day at the navy department was
| the large number of rumors of warlike
tendency that came to the attention
Of officials as requiring attention ami
| in every case there was a contradic-
ton. So formidable had grown the
| list that at the close of office hours
Secretary Long was induced to make
the following statement to dispose of
these stories.
Really no information has been re-
celved since Captain Sigbee's first dis
patch adding anything to our knowI-
edge of the disaster. All that we know
is that the Maine blew up. There is
abundant room for speculation Of all
sorts, but no conclusion can be arrived
at until an examination is made by
divers and more facts obtained. It is
a simple fact to say that such a thing
might happen by design or it might
happen by accident. AS yet there is
! no indication of design. Therefore my
impression has been all along and
rather think The general opinion pre-
ponderateS in the same direction that
it must nave been accidental. At the
cabinet meeting Friday the matter was
not discussed, except as any body of
men might talk about an event of that
kind and most of that talk related to
| the terrible loss of life and expressions
of sympathy for the sufferers. 1t GER
tainly was very kind thought in the
president to send flowers to the fam
! lies Of SigSbee, the executive officers,
Wainwright and of the lost seamen
| whose residences are in Washington.
You may say absolutely that there has
been no secret cabinet meeting; that
nothing has taken place in the cabinet
| that the public is not informed about;
| that the whole policy of the depart
| ment has been to give the public all
dispatches; that the department has
no more knowledge on the subject of
| the cause of the disaster or even the
circumstances attending it than has
| the public, and the report to the effect
| that Sigsbee had warned the depart
ment that the Maine was in danger
from submarine mines or torpedoes is
without foundation, no such report
ever having been received from him or
anybody else
The secretary also denied briefly
and comprehensively the wild rumors
that he had requested the chief Of
police of New York to guard the
Vizcaya, and that he had selected
Constructor Boyles to go to Havana
and raise the Maine. The last work
Of the day for him was to consult
representatives of the wrecking COM
panies who probably will have charge
Of the raising of the Maine. The
secretary when asked what was the
departments estimate of the conduct
Of SigsDee in the terrible situation in
which he had been placed, replied: 81
think that / express the feelings of
the president, as well as my own,
when l say that Sigsbee conducted
himself as an officer Of our navy
should. He was the last to leave the
ship when she went down. His dis
patch to me the night of the explo-
sion was very complete and its tone
too was that Of discreet and level
headed man who realized the impress
sion that any word from him at that
time would have on the public mind"
During the day the department was
in receipt of a number of kilograms
from different parts of the country
asking in behalf of relatives of the
dead sailors that their remains be
brought back to the United States
for interment Among them were
queries from friends of the two Of
| ficers, Merritt and Jenkins. The de-
partment forwarded these to Sigsbee
whose reply was that the officers
bodies were not found, and throwing
great doubt upon the practicability
of taking any remains away from
Havana. While no decision has yet
been reached formally upon the ap-
plication of the Spanish government
for authorization to examine the
wreck of the Maine to ascertain the
cause of the explosion, the officials
seem inclined to regard her request
as one that could not properly be re-
! fused and it is likely that each gov
| eminent will make an investigation
of this character concurrently.
Late in the afternoon telegram was
received from Sigsbee saying that SO
far 125 bodies had been buried.
The navy department has COM
piled the following summary show
ing the total results Of the Maine
disaster from all available official in
formation up to the close of the de-
partment last night: Total officers
and men on board the Maine, 355;
total officers, 27; total men, 329;
! officers saved, %; men saved, rs; Of
ficers lost, 2; men lost, 246; officers
injured, none; men injured, 81;
doubtful (men) z. The seven men
appearing as doubtful probably rep
resent that number Or less whose
lives have been saved but who can
not be identified at present on ac-
count Of errors in transmission of
/ kilograms.
/ DE LONE INCIDENT ENDS.