The Dickinson press., 1898-02-26
VERY LITTLE DOUBT
MORE EVIDENCE AGAINST THE Accl.
DENT STORY ALLEGED.

Believed BY Many That the Youngsr
Spanish Omosrs Hatehsd the Plot-said
Only . sabmariDs Nine Could Produce
Such Trsnsendo1s Rasults.
HAVANA, via Key West, Feb. a.
The dtuation. which may be changed
1t any moment BY fresh discoveries,
may be summed mp substantially ~
follows:
The divers having discovered cases Of
brown hexasonal powder for tho 10
inch guns unexploded and believing,
also, that others unexploded will be
found in the 10-inch magazine on the
starboard side forward, the conviction
grows that this magazine did not blow
up. II this be 30. and many have in
sisted from the first that it IL, the
further conviction is forced that the
explosion which wrecked the Maine
came from the outside on the port bow.
( One thing seems certain, If the Maine
was blown up by an outside agency,
the agent was a mine and not o tor.
pedo, as no torpedo known could have
produced such tremendous results.
Believe Younger omosrs Guilty. 1vS
The highest American officials here
are confident that General Blanco and
the other high Spanish officials had no
knowledge, direct or indirect, Of the
conception or execution Of q plot to
blow up the Maine. if such plot e.
listed, but they believe the junior Span.
ish officers, who, from the nature Of
things, are more conversant with mod.
ern explosives than their elders and
superiors. were at the bottom of the
disaster, if there was any outside
agency. It is pointed out that it would
not be impossible to plant Q mine Of
wet and dry gun cotton near where q
foreign war vessel was directed to an.
chor, such a mine communicating with
an electric battery on shore.
First to Anchor There.
Il is regarded as an interesting point
that the Maine, for the first time dur.
ing her stay in the harbor, lay at the
particular spot where she was at the
time of the catastrophe, and. it 10 said,
though not officially verified, that the
Maine was the first foreign war vessel
moored to this particular buoy since
the troubles in Cuba grew acute.
All stories as to lax discipline on the
Maine are without shadow Of truth.
On the contrary, Captain Sigsbee was
complained Of by some for the rigidity
of his rules and the strictness with
which he enforced them. Moreover,
the Maine has been in commission for
years and never had serious accident
until anchored in this quiet harbor.
Submarine Mines said to Exist.
An American officer Of rank sufficient
to entitle him to take command Of .
ship is authority for the statement that
q Spanish naval officer some time ago
sold to the Washington state depart
ment map Of Havana harbor showing
submarine minea Tho Spanish resi-.
dents deny this statement and say that
the mines exist only in imagination.
The Cubans, on the other hand, claim
that there are mine galleries nnder the
harbor leading from subterranean pas.
sages known to have existed for years
between Fort Cabanas and Moro castle
and this port.
General Blanoo, on the night of the
disaster, was sitting with General
Marinas in the corridor Of the palace.
When he heard the explosion he
jumped from his chair, exclaiming:
cat last they have put shell into the
palace"
csnsership Very Strict.
The censorship il very strict. and,
according toa recent order all dis.
patches must be submitted in Spanish
a. we'll as English. This doubles the
trouble Of the correspondents and
quadruplss delay. The means of com.
munication In Havana, large city, are
rather primitive. and the work Of visit.
ing ships in the harbor II tedious. At
the palace during the honrs when
Lieutenant Colonel Mendez, the csnsor,
IL present, there can always be found q
long line d newspaper men anxiously
eawaitinS Mssspproval or disapproval Of
their matter and his afaxing Of the Of
acial stamp, as well a. all proofs Of
daily newspapers published here, and
matter for newspapers in Spain that
must be censored.