The times., 1898-11-25

Y
the park 1t Is recommended that Con-
gress be asked to appropriate $4,000 to
meet all the expenses incident to the de-
sign and erection of such statue.
ION June 8. 1898, Congress passed res
olution appropriating $4,000 for sword
OF honor to Admiral Dewey and for med
ais of honor to all the officers and men
OF his fleet engaged In the battle OF Ma
Mia Bay. Immediately upon the passage
of this resolution you appointed board
to consider the same. This board was
made UP of the Assistant Secretary, Sen
ator Henry Cabot Lodge and Prof. Mar
shall Oliver, of Annapolis. This board
was convened at once. and considered the
subject of the resolution. Many designs
were submitted for both the sword ana
the medals. After careful consideration
the board selected the design for the
sword of honor submitted by Tinany x
Co, of New York, and the sword Is now
being made in accordance with that de-
sign The commission for the medals of
honor was given to Daniel Chester
French, whose very artistic and attractive
design commended itself especially 10 the
board"
The Assistant Secretary calls attention
to his visit of inspection to all the navy
yards on the Eastern Coast from Norfolk,
Va. to Portsmouth. N. H.. between Octo-
ber and October 10. AS result OF these
yisitations. he makes a number OF impor-
tant recommendations concerning the
navy yards inspected. Among these is
system for the audit of accounts.
"All the accounts of the different de-
partments." he says, should be kept on
a uniform system, and there should be an
arrangement dor having them audited at
the yards themselves at irregular inter-
walls by competent accountant Facts
have developed in connection with the
navy yards to show that If such a system
were in vogue the interests of both the
department and of the officers and en-
ployes would be much better guarded.
at has also occurred to me that the
question might be considered whether ia
certain cases economy and efficiency
would not be increased by the CON
solidation of certain shops doing very
similar work, but under different depart
ments. There may be good reasons why
each of the several departments, for ex-
ample, should have a blacksmith shop,
but they are not apparent TO a layman
and as the expense of superintendent
and similar items would certainly be re-
! duced the matter is at least worthy of in
vestigation and consideration.
Il think it was the day following the
battle of July 3. when the reports had
come to the department of the condition
OF the wrecks of the ships Of Cervera $
! fleet. that 'you suggested the prudence of
attempting to save such OF them as
seemed worth the effort.
Negotiations were at once opened by
telegraph with the Merritt & Chapman
! Wreekihs Company. Representatives OF
( that .concerns game to Washington and
( were met at this office where the sub
( ject Of the inquiry was fully talked over.
B int, baa.rt a...,
| the department and the company. by
which the latter was to proceed at once
! to the scene of operations with full and
! suitable outfit, to commence operations al
! once, and to continue them diligently un-
( Ill q successful result was reached. OF
until the contracts We're terminated by
( the order of the department
The company was to receive per diem
/ compensation, based upon an agreed price
/ per man and apparatus employed. In the
event OF successfully raising any of the
! ships. an additional sum was to be paid
I the company when they had delivered
I such ship either at the Norfolk navy yard
or such other northern port the de-
I partment should designate. this additional
sum 10 be agreed upon by arbitration. The
possible services of the L. 5. 5. Vulcan
as a repair ship were recognized. and pro-
& vision was made for her use in that ca
! pacity. In the event of successfully bring
ing the CristObal Colon into port-as this
J was properly regarded as the best of the
sunken Spanish vessels-thc limit To be
paid under the terms of arbitration was
not To exceed s5O0.GJo. which sum was
to include all the per diem charges i'll
Cured.
the wreckins outfit started from Nor
folk where it mad been gathered, and
! without particular incident reached the
scene of the wrecks. Tne Colon was first
visited. but when the wreckers had care.
I fully investigated the conditions sur
rounding this vessel they were convinced
/ that with the apparatus they had oI
4 could possibly obtain, raising her was
/ utterly out of the question. Admira
| Sampson appointed a board to report
upon the general condition of the wrecks
and that board, after full and careful
examination. concluded that the Oquend,
was u hopeless wreck, so destroyed BY
fire as to be completely worthless. Th'
| Vizcaya they discovered broken in TWO
so as to be structually worthless. will
the forward compartments blown outward
from the explosion of her own magazines
The Maria Teresa was burned to the pro
| tective deck and the superstructur,
ruined. but her machinery and boilers auC
all under the protective deck were in com
paratively good condition. The Mercedes
sunk in still water uniniured by fire, pre-
sented simple wrecking problem.
The Colon, the finest ship of all. wa
on the shore and apparently uninjured b,
shot or fire. She was on her beam ends
stern to the shore submerged for abou
two-thirds her length; resting on cora
sand for about oue-third of her length
the remainder overhanging in sixty Il
foot of Rainp uDau he
beam ends the beams of her protective
deck acted as stanchious and prevente'
her from straining, and she seemed 4
be structually sound. Owing to her eN
posed position. however, and 10 the fac
that the neayy sea rushing through he
hatchways came surging out of her port
and openings with such volume and force
it was absolutely impossible for divers /
get into the vessel. and dangerous 70
them to attempt to approach wlthi
twelve or fifteen feet of her sides. so tina
a careful examination could not be made
1t was thought. however. inasmuch n
the ship was put into a sinking conditio
by her crew after she had surrendered
that her engineer force had probabl
smashed the sea valves with sledges, 5
they could not be easily repaired, an
| had shut up the water-tight bulkhead
| upon one side only in the hope that sh
! would capsize in sinking, and that thi
accounted for her being on her beam end:
When the wrecking company appeare
upon the spot they at once according I
their orders, proceeded to the eNamina
ton of the Colon. From the nature Q
: their contract, which provided for a l:,rg
sum of money in case they were success
; full in raising the vessel, 1t would seer
that every interest would urge the nos
diigent effort on their part 10 save tha
f vessel As a result of their cXarIir;, tioI