The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1898-03-20
ExPECTED THIs WEEK.

| mas DelleVerS only among those VINO 90 not
understand actual conditions on the island.
-
EXPECTED THIS WEEK.
Report of the Naval Court May BE Re-
ceived Monday or Tuesday.
| Associated Press Report
WASHINGTON, March 19-The arrival of
several survivors of the Maine and their
extended conferences with President Nc
| Kinley and Secretary Long furnished one of
| the interesting features of to-days develop
ments in the Spanish situation. Three off,
| GERS of the Maine came Unexpectedly
| from Key West. 1t was said their visit
was purely voluntary on their part, as they
| are now on waiting orders and are free to
| go where they please. Their long confer
ences at the Navy Department and later
| at the White House led to much conjecture
| it being asserted that Lieutenant Blow
| brought with him the report of the court of
| inquiry or at least the general conclusions
| reached by that court. 1t can be stated
| positively, however, from an authoritative
| source that the officer did not bring with
| him the report, either as a whole or its
| general conclusions. 1t is stated with equal
| positiveness and authoritatively that they
| do not know what the action of the court
| of inquiry is, and stherefore are not in
| position to convey any information to the
| President or secretary of the navy that
| point. Their talks were confined entirely to
| graphic narratives of their experiences on
| the night of the explosion. In the course of
| this narrative however, individual opinion
| as to the cause of the explosion found ex-
| preston. These opinions were purely per-
| sonal and not founded on the proceedings
| of the court of inquiry. These personal
/ IL.
were strongly favorable to the theory of
| an external cause leading to the destruction
of the Maine The officers themselves main
i tain the strictest reserve, not only to in
tefviews for publication but also in talk
/ ing with their associates in the naval serv-
T Ice. This led naval softicers to refrain from
referring to the Maine disaster while talk
ing with them. One of the officers volun-
| teered the suggestion that he would be glad
| to talk If his lips were not sealed by the
| strictest order. After the conference with
| the President and the secretary of the navy
| the Maine officers did not return to the
Navy Department, and considerable care
| was exercised in having their whereabouts
| kept from public attention.
| The keenest expectancy was apparent
| to-day in anticipation of the early
receipt of the report from the court of in
| quiry into the Maine disaster Warlike
preparations continued with unabated vigor
| at the War and Navy Departments, but
| the main interest of the officials centered
in the forthcoming report. The interest was
so intense that many reports gained cir
| culation to the effect that the official docu-
| ment would be in the hands of the President
| within the next few hours but these con-
lectures on inquiry in authoritative sources
| 10 Ia fnoa Dorcn ir,
position to know had little to add to the
fact already made public that the report
is expected within the next few days. A
Cabinet officer stated that it would be here
early next week Beyond this he could not
go. 1t was stated definitely that no ad-
| vance intimation to the character of the
| report had been made. One rumor had it
| that Lieutenant Blow had brought to WASH
| ngton an abstract of the conclusions, but
| this was dismissed after Lieutenant Blow
| had been in conference with Secretary Long
| and other naval officials.
| The chief development of the morning was
| the arrival of four of the survivors of the
Maine, who held a long conference with
| Secretary Long and later were taken by the
secretary to the White House for talk
with the President. These survivors are
Lieutenant G. F. W. Holman, navigator of
| the Maine; Lieutenant George P. Blow,
Lieutenant A. B. Cattlin. in command of
the marines the Maine, and Boatswain
Larkin, one of the noncommissioned Off
| GERS of the wrecked battle ship. These
men had passed through the fearful ordeal
of the explosion and had been at Havana
since it occurred. There had been no an
nouncement of their being detached from
| Captain Sigsbees command at Havana, and
| their coming was complete surprise, ex
| cept to a few officials. With them came
| Naval Constructor Hoover, who was sent
! by Secretary Long from Washington few
weeks ago to make technical inspection
| of the wreck of the Maine He was the
naval constructor who for months was en-
| gagged in actual work on the Maine while
| she was on the stocks, SO that he is in a
| position to know every plate and piece of
CONSTITUTIONAL steel remaining of the ILL
| fated ship. The divers had found great
difficulty in identifying some of the twisted
and battered plates from the bottom of the
Maine, and it was believed that Construc-
tor Hoovers technical knowledge would be
able to make this Identification complete.
| The conference between Lieutenants Blow
and Cattlin and Secretary Long lasted for
some time, Captain crowninshield of the
Bureau of Navigation, and other officials
being called in
1t was stated authoritatively after the
conference that the main subject of conver-
| sation was the explosion itself comprising
a detailed narrative of the officers and
| narrowing description of the calamity.
| Whether the cause of the explosion was
| under discussion could not be learned. 1t
was naturally inferred that these officers,
with their complete personal information of
the explosion and their subsequent visits
to the wreck, would give Secretary Long
the benefit of their personal views on the
cause of the disaster. At the same time,
with the court of inquiry having complete
Jurisdiction cf this subject 1t was felt that
the question of cause might be open to
| much reserve even as between these naval
officers and the secretary of the navy. So
| far as official warrant was given to the
purpose of the conference it was said to be
confined strictly to narratives of the story
(continued ON Seventh Page9