The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1898-05-25
A SPY FOR SPAIN
On Board the Captured
VII Steamer Panama.
SYkJ gss1
he rs A CIVIL ENGINEER,
And Is Said to Have Charts Of New
'sss,,,sss,,, York Harbor' :
HIS EVIDENCE CONTRADICTORY;

The Waters South of Cuba Have Suddenly
Become the Scene of Great Naval Activ.
\ ity-The Fleets Of Sampson and Schley
Have Probably Got Circle Of Warships
I Around the Island of Cuba, While Ad.
miral Cervera's Squadron Is Hemmed In
at Santiago.
! Key West, May 25.-An important
arrest of supposed Spanish spy was
made last evening by United States
Marshal Hoar. The prisoner ia
Romigno Sapetero Jimenez, who was
among those captured on the steamer
Panama, and has since been held
aboard ship as prisoner of war. He
Is supposed to have obtained informa-
ton concerning New York harbor and
It's defenses, with charts of the harbor,
which he is attempting to get to Span
lsh authorities. He is about 40 years
of age, Spaniard and civil en-
,gineer.
Late yesterday afternoon Marshal
E1Udl, Will oCNCldl uCpullCo anu " IA
ted States Commissioner Otto, received
Information from the north, in conse-
qucnce of which they slipped quietly
out to the Panama arrested Jimine2
nnd brought him ashore. He was taken
to the Key West hotel and put through
vigorous examination in a private
room So quietly was the affair man
aged, however, that only one or two
persons knew of it.
Jimenez stoutly denies the accusa-
tion that he is a spy. but his story was
of such a contradictory nature that
1t confirmed the suspicious of the fed
eral authorities. He said he had left
Cuba In 1877 a date which he subse-
quently corrected to 1890, and later
set 1t back few years. He had lived,
he admitted, in New York since then,
but he decided to return to Cuba to
engage in mercantile business, and was
on his way there when the Panama
was captured. He asserted also that
he had spent considerable time in
Venezuela and other South American
countries. His story, though was so
conflicting on the whole as to be mean
ingless. A thorough search of the
Panama was made in the attempt to
locate the charts, but no trace Of them
could be found. The examination will
be resumed and Jimenez will be held
under arrest in the meanwhile.
The Panama case was before the
United States district court yesterday.
The argument on both sides was large
ly in the same lines as in the case Of
the other big prizes, and Judge Locke
reserved his decision. 1t has been de-
cided that such ships as are held to be
legitimate prizes Of war shall be sent
north for sale, so as to bring better
prices. This will probably not be done,
however, until all the cases have been
finally determined
A new aspect was given yesterday to
the engagement at Cardenas, where
Ensign Bagley and four men of the
United States torpedo boat Winslow
were killed, by statement of insur-
gent Colonel John J. Jova, who has
been serving under General Maxine
Gomez. Colonel Jova has been in
Cardenas since the engagement, and
he says the mortality on the Spanish
side was by no means so great as re-
ported at the time in the United States.
According to his information, which
seems to be corroborated by the tes-
timony of the other Cubans taken
aboard from Cardenas by the vessels
of the blockading fleet, only nine per-
sons were killed on the Spanish side,
including twoswomen and three chill
dren. Three sailors and one medical
officer on Spanish gunboat fell under
the fire Of the United States ships.
The firing from the shore was not
from masked battery but from the
three Spanish gunboats, to attack
which the Winslow was sent in Two
of them were disabled but not per-
manently damaged, and the third ran
away According to Jovas informa-
tion the shells from the gunboat Will
mington did little execution, because
she lay too far off shore. No fewer
than three Spanish flags were brought
down by stray shots from the Will
mington's guns.