Reporter and farmer. [volume] (Webster, Day County, Dakota [S.D.]) 188?-1946, 1898-02-24
INV EsTIGATION OF TIE MAINE
DISASTER WILL BE PUSHED.
Lopg CT the Departure of the Ma
photographs of the Wreck
With Much Interest by
Naval OfBcers-BoiItr Explosion
TheOry Is Again Advanced-Fn-
HnttcaI Wcyleriie Thought to he
Responsible for tho Disaster.

stOu, FtD. 49,. Ht uuNat
court of inquiry appointed to investi-
gate the Maine disaster will begin its
work at Havana to-day. This news
came TO the navy department. yester-
day from Admiral Sicard at Key
West. He simply tefegraphed as fol-
lows: 'The court Of inquiry sail for
Havana 10th by lighthouse steamer
Mangrove. Mark arrived to-day"
This prompt action is undoubtedly
due to the express direction from Sec
rotary Long TO have the investigation
begun at the earliest possible mo-
ment.
Capt. Sigsbee was heard from late
Saturday night but the telegram was
not delivered at the navy department
until yesterday morning. His message
read as follows: ''Only most expert
enced wrecking divers can do effective
work IN the Maine. In the upper
works | can use service divers. Did
some work to-day but with little uc.
cess. VIII do better tomorrow. Parts
OF the Maine, especially the super
structure and connections, are one
confused mass of metal"
Another brief telegram from Capt.
| Sigsbee states that the coast survey
steamer has arrived at Havana, bring
ing all the diving apparatus sen from
the squadron. The statement refer
ring to experienced divers Is explained
at the navy department as no refiec-
ton upon the men now engaged in the
work, they being enlisted men belong
ing to the navy, and not trained for
the work which will be required in
this case.
1t is to meet just this emergency that
1 tho navy damn yt ntnnf 10 making nVarV
effort to hasten the beginning Of
The Work of Recovery
Of the goods, and perhaps the raising
of the hull by professionals. To that
end Capt. Lemly, the judge advocate
general of the department, was at
work yesterday In his office with rep
resentatiyes Of wrecking companies
trying to draw up contracts for the
immediate prosecution of the work.
The newspaper productions of pho
tographs taken of the wreck were
studied with much interest by the
naval officers here. Great surprise
was expressed at the extent of the
wreck and the vast mass of steel and
iron heaped in the forward part of the
ship was a particular object of atten-
ton. The experts who had first ven
tured the theory Of a bursting boiler as
the cause of the obstruction claim to
find strong reinforcement in the pic
lures for that belief. The great mass
of metal appears to be thrown up V
the boiler space and not over the for
ward magazine, while the forcing
apart of the forward body of the, they
say, might have been accomplished by
the enormous expansive power Of the
high pressure steam carried In these
/ hnfInr, with thaiv ohallS n,nya than m
inch thick. AS to what caused n
boiler to explode, whether a disguised
bomb in the coal, low water or faulty
construction, they do not undertake to
say.
Secretary Long said, after looking
over his telegraphic and mail CORES
! pondence, that it contained nothing Of
importance beyond the dispatches
above given. The secretary referred
with satisfaction to the dispatch stat
ing that the court of inquiry would
assemble at Havana to-day.
When Mr.. Longs attention was
called to reports that he had taken
Official COGbixnnce
Of Capt. SObrars criticisms of the
American navy. the secretary said that
he had called the subject to the atten-
tion of the state department with a
view of having an inquiry made by
that branch. The particular express
sion to which the secretary had direct
ed the attention Of the state depart
ment was the following attributed to
Capt. Sobral: at was the result of an
explosion inside of the ship, which
took place III n of the forward maya
zines. The fact of the matter is that
the discipline and the watch observed
~, Tho chic - warn, Inv This MS
one English newspaper the other day
declared, is the case on American war
ships generally. This sort of thing
has occurred on previous occasions on
American war vessels" The secre.
tary said he had not called attention
to those other features Of Capt. So
brars alleged interview In which he
refers to the possibilities Of war and
to the infor nation he had gained while
naval attache Of the Spanish legation.
AS a whole Mr.. Long did not treat the
Sobral matter as profoundly serious.
Assistant Secretary Day received no
dispatches from Havana during the
early part of the day. He would not
discuss the ,Sobral matter. 1t Is under
stood, however, that the state depart
ment does hot
Attach Deep Significance
to the reported remarks or SoDral 0w-
ing to his MINOR position. At the same
time 1t Is felt that he should not be
making such remarks as are attributed
to him. Secretary Long has called Of
fetal attention to them and the de-
partment will doubtless take steps to
learn whether the interview was ac-
curate by making a request on the
Spanish legation. 1t can be stated pos
itively, however, that reports that the
state department made such a request
OF the Spanish legation Saturday are
Incorrect. Nothing has been done thus
far and an unexpected development OF
yesterday SO changes the aspect of the
Sobral case that the state department
may not feel that 1t Is necessary to
proceed further. This development
was hat Capt. Sobrais services as
naval attache at Washington were Of
ticially terminated by Spain about
four weeks ago. Consequently he
now occupies the position merely Of
a private citizen.
Senior du Bose received no adylces cf
Importance from Havana. He ex-
pressed satisfaction with the plans by