Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1898-04-15

every Red Cro~s."
Senator Frye asked: What, in your
Judgment, is the liability CT Spain con-
querlng the insurgents and restoring
peace to the island?"
Consul General Lee: Il do not think
there is
Of their doing it at all in any way
The same condition Of things existed
when Mr. Cleveland asked me to go
down there last June a year ago. |
gave a report three weeks after | got
there in which I told him there was
no chance. in my opinion. of the Span
iaTds ever suppressing that insurrec-
tion, nor was there any chance of the
insurrecdonists expelling the Spanish
soldiers from the island
In response to an inquiry from SEN
aTor Lodge for his opinion of the in
surgent government, General Lee said
Il have never thought that the in
stUgents had anything except the skeI-
etcn form of a government movable
capital. | asked them one day why
they did not have some permanent
capital, and l think they gave very
quire a large force to protect it and
defend it and they could not afford to
mass their men there; that the capital
and the government officers had to
move where they could be safest"
General Lee said he did not know
any Of the officers CONNECTED with
their civil government. Their armed
force would number probably 81 $50 or
80. 000. The number has been up prob
ably as high as $4,000 or 37,GC0 men.
we'll armed. The ammunition varies.
The Spanish force was possibly $1,000
or 5000 men.
General Lee said that an American
ARMY OF OCCUPATION
could go into the island with safety
now The climate nor anything else
need prevent them entering Cuba
General Lee said that when he left
Havana the Spanish troops had not
been paid for about nine months, nor
the Spanish officers for about four
months.
Senator Daniel asked DO you
think General Blanco was lacking in
courtesy to you on leaving the island?"
General Lee-'I went with the Brit
ish consul general | saw DR.. Con-
gosto. l told DR.. Congosto that 1 had
T-csived instructions to leave the
island and go to the United States
and I called to pay my respects and
would like to see General Blanco. He
asked me to sit down and said he
would go and let him know. He went
off and stayed about fifteen minutes
and said the general said TO please
excuse him; he was not we'll. and was
lying down. l told Dr. Congosto then
to say goodbye to him and turned
around and left"
Senaer Daniel-"Were there any
demonstrations Of i'll will toward you
when you left?'
Consul General Lee-"When we were
coming out on the steamer Saturday
evening there was some halloaing, cat
calling and whistling and some Spanish
expressions. mean edwards. running
away. and so on. | think that was
confined to the lower order Of men,
! however"
CAPTAIN SIGSBEE,
who was in command Of the Maine
at the time of the disaster, was
examined en- the 31st OF March 80
repeated his opinion that the Mae
was destroyed by a mine either tenn
porary or permanent. He thought it
had been a very large mine, but in his
opinion. no larger than could be
planted near the vessel at any time in
broad daylight and underdirect vision,
with the means available in Havana
for that purpose He thought twelve
men. having mutual confidence and
preserving secrecy. could have planted
it and that it could have been done
while the ordinary discipline and
watchfulness was observed en- the snip.
A ship moCred at d harbor would swing
around to a given point where a mine
might be located, and when it should
reach that point the mine would be eX
ploded. He thought it could have been
planted from a scow between decks.
There were, he said, lot Oh IDLE army
officers in Havana, and while he would
not charge them with anything, he
thought it net out of place to speak Of
the possibilities Of the case. CAPTAIN
Sigsbee said he had shown sketch in
vClving these theories to Captain
Sampson, who had also commanded
torpedo station, and had asked Of
! him if a vessel could drop a mine like
the enc he had described instantly and
that Captain Sampson aad other Off
GERS had replied that il could and that
( twelve men could do it. THAT" said
Captain Sigsbee, is the real reason
asked to have the Montgomery taken
away. If they were going to do any
/ thing TO blow us up, | wanted to have
it done with a smaller vessel.
In reply TO a question. Captain Sigs-
bee said he thought it possible that the
explosion could have occurred
WITHOUT THE KNOWLEDGE
Of the higher officials
Continuing he said that it was a
! curious fact to the officers of the deck
and the vessel had never swung before
in the particular direction in which it
/ swung on the night of the explosion,
and continuing he said The Maine is
/ living now in about the position she
would have taken to play on the Span
! ish batteries. Now. if a mine had been
planted there. | assume it would have
been planted in just that place. If only
! one had been planted, it would have
| been just there"
! Asked why he had advised that no
war vessels be sent 70 Havana after
the explosion, Captain Sigsbee re-
piled:
'Tn the first place there was a great