The Middleburgh post. [volume] (Middleburgh, Snyder Co., Pa.) 1883-1916, 1898-02-24
assbec and le,rn his needs a. FIRST

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'lgsbec and learn his needs at first
land.
Yesterday Secretary Long sent a tele-
gram as follows to Captain Eulate,
commanding officer OF the Spanish
cruiser Vizcaya: IT have the honor to
I acknowledge the receipt Of your teie-
gram OF coincidence for the loss of the
Dlaine. and thank you for the express
sion Of sympathy" A similar response
was also made to a cablegram from
Vice Admiral Spann. at Vienna.
The social courtesies which the gov
srnment intended to extend to the Of
ilcers Of the ViZcaya nave been aban-
doned on account of the Maine catas-
trophe. AS a result the stay of the
Vizcaya at New York will be materially
shortened. She is likely to sail either
today or tomorrow. The ship will pro-
reed direct to Havana, not stopping at
Charleston or other ports. as has been
suggested during the earlier prepara-
tions. The Vizcaya will not coal at
New York. according to the under
standing, nor will II be necessary
for her to take coal before reaching
Havana. This determination gives re-
lief to the authorities here, as the TAX
Ing on Of coal might afford an oppor-
tunity to extremists for the secretion
If explosives, despite the utmost pre-.
caution that might be taken.
Captain Sigsbee was heard from late
Saturday night. but the telegram was
not delivered at the navy department
until Sunday morning. His message
reads as follows:
only most experienced vrecking
divers can do effective work on the
Maine. In the upper works / can use
service divers. Did some work today,
but with little success. Will do better
tomorrow. Parts of the Maine es-
pecially the superstructure and connec-
tions, are one confused mass Of metal"
The statement relative to experienced
divers IL explained at the navy depart
ment as no reflection upon the men
now engaged at work, they being en-
listed men belonging to the navy. 1t
Is the practice on board of men-of-wa
to assign a few men, always volunteers,
on account of the hazardous nature of
the work, to duty as divers, in connec-
tion with their regular work. The
scope of their work rarely carries them
deeper than 20 feet into the water and
1t is said that for operations in deeper
water such as would be involved in
the examination of the Names bottom,
their training has not fitted them. They
are also lacking in that kind of skill
necessary TO enable a diver to groue
his way safely through the internal
parts of mighty ship like the Maine
torn and dismembered as she is, and
this work is highly dangerous.
1t Is to meet just this emergency that
the navy department Is making every
effort to hasten the beginning of the
work of recovery of goods and perhaps
the raising of the hull by professionals.
To that end Captain Lemly the Judge
advocate general of the department,
was at work yesterday in his office with
representatives Of wrecking companies
trying to draw up contracts for the i'm
mediate prosecution of the work.
The companies will he paid on the
scale of days work. with a provision
for a bonus II they succeed in raising
the vessel, thus ensurng the recovery
of as much of the valuable equipment
as is possible, should 1t not be practi-
cable to float the Maine again. Great
difficulty Is expected in recovering the
big ten-inch turret guns, each worth
40OO0, owing not only to their weight,
80 tons apiece. without carriages, but to
the enormous turrets enclosing them
with 100 tons of steel.
The photographs taken OF the wreck
were studied with much interest by the
naval officers here. Great surprise was
expressed at the extent Of the wreck,
and the vast mass of steel and iron
heaped In the forward part OF the shin
was u particular object of attention
The experts who had first ventured the
theory of bursting boiler as the cause
OF the destruction claim to find strong
reinforcement In the pictures for that
belief As to what caused a boiler to
explode, whether a disguised bomb In
the coaA. low water or faulty construc-
ton. they do not now undertake to say.
The navy department has compiled
the following summary showing the to-
tai results of the Maine disaster:
Total officers and men on board Maine,
355; total officers, rs; total men. 329; to-
tai officers saved. "a; total men saved,
rs; total officers lost, 2; total men lost,
246; total men injured, 81: doubtful. Z.
The seven men appearing as doubtful
probably represent that number. or less,
whose lives have been saved, but who
cannot be identified at present on ar-
count Of errors in the transmission of
kilograms. The 81 appearing as injured
are included in the rs appearing as
saved. Two men reported as having
died In the hospital are included In the
total OF 24s appearing above as having
been lost