The evening times., 1898-05-16
MINE CUTTERS.
Three Men Arrested on Sundy Hook
ON SuspiciOn.

| New York. May 16.-Three men were ar
rested near the mine fields of Sandy Hook
| Saturday night and held as prisoners at
Fort Hancock on suspicion of trying to
destroy the mines.
The men were in a small catboat and
were caught in the main channel near
where the mines are laid. They were de-
tected by the big searchlight at Sandy
Hook. In addition to the single sail the
men were working at the oars and pulling
| in the direction of the mines
The tug A. B. Raymond, one of the pa
| troll fleet guarding the mine fields saw
| the small boat in the light and steamed
| alongside to demand the reason for its
presence there. Lieutenant Ford, of the
Naval Reserves, questioned the men.
Their answers were evasive. He ordered
the men TO come aboard the tug
They protested, but Lieut. Ford told
them that unless they obeyed orders he
would shoot. SO the men climbed aboard
| the tug. Lieut.. Ford examined them
otcse9y- The men told contradictory tales
and gave no plausible excuse for being
in the vicinity of the mines. 1t is said
tina. two of them claimed to be fishermen
but there was no fishing tackle in the
boat.
The lieutenant signalled to the III. B.
Moore. another of the patrol fleet lying
just inside the Hook. to come to his as
sis;ance. He also signalled to the fort
that three men mad been arrested for
proving about the mines, and that he
would send them ashore to be locked up
The Moore came alongside, and her
commander was instructed to take the
men to Fort Hancock. The three men
were placed aboard the Moore under the
guard of two reserves with loaded rifles.
They were taken TO the pier at Sandy
Hook. and marched to the fort
Lieut.. Robert McGregor, who has
charge of the mine fields. was summoned
by Col. McCrea. commandant of Fort
Hancock. and again the men were SUBJ
jected to rigid examination. Two of the
men refused to give their names. One of
the three said he was Dennis Taylor, a
brick mason. living in Brooklyn. He said
that he had gone in the boat with the
other men for sail.
Taylor said that he had been working
at Camp Low. at the Hook No one was
found there who knew him. or who could
identify him. The suspicious conduct of
the men in refusing to answer questions
convinced Lieut.. McGregor that they had
gone to the mine fields for no good pur-
pose. and he conferred with Col. McCrea
The conference resulted in the three men
being held for investigation.
The authorities are making every effort
to keep the affair secret. At the fort the
officers would neither affirm nor deny the
story. At Lieut.. McGregor's office it
was said that absolutely no Information
on the subject would be made public.
The naval militia decline to say anything.
Those IN charge deny that they know
anything about the arrest.
A report has 1t that a machine invent
ed by an Italian generally used for cut
ting small cables was found in the boat.
Another story is to the effect that when
the Raymond hailed them the men were
seen to throw something overheard.
Over twenty mines are known to have
been cut from their moorings and turned
adrift since the work of mining the har-
bor channels began. The fact that spy
of the former Spanish Minister Polo y
Bernabe has been caught In Washington
and that the Spanish government is
known to have other spies in this country
makes the continued depredations in the
mine fields suspicious.