Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1898-05-14

the spanish cape feTue ilee0 10 INV "'
Cadiz. He says the fleet is now
where it ought to be under orders"
- During the past month the bureau
of construction aud repair of the navy
department spent S1,25O,00O in the
repair and outtitting Of ships, and
none of this money went to new con-
struction. This is said 70 be the larg-
est expenditure in this particular line
made by the equipment bureau even
during the days of the Civil war.
- The president on Wednesday NOM
mated Commodore Dewey to be rear
admiral in the navy. The appoint
ment was made under the provisions OF
section 1905 of the revised statutes, he
having upon the recommendation OF
the president, received the thanks OF
congress by name, by joint resolution
approved May 10, 1898. The senate
confirmed the nomination.
- The San Francisco Bulletin, of
Wednesday says: 1.-THE president has
appointed General Wesley Merritt, OF
the regular army, to the command Of
the volunteers from the Pacific coast.
General Merritt will rank as brigadier
general and will lead the invasion OF
the infantry upon the Philippines. He
has been proclaimed governor general
of the Philippines and as soon as pos
sible will establish his position as
such at the capital at Manila.
Postmaster General Smith, on last
Tuesday, issued the following order:
All officers and employees of the post
office department are hereby forbidden
to furnish Information pertaining to or
in any way bearing upon the conduct
of the war to any person or persons
not connected with the department, or
to any newspaper or other publication,
unless authorized to do so by the head
of the department. This order was
made for the purpose of preventing
postmasters from giving information in
regard to suspicious letters passing
through the Office. Such information,
it is thought, may in some instances be
incorrect and others prejudicial to the
interest of the government.
- The navy department felt obliged
to decline the offer made by some
wealthy New York gentlemen headed
by o. H. P. Belmont, to build and
equip torpedo boat for the use of the
government during the war. Possibly
the declination was brought about
through the condition attached to the
offer that the boat should be COM
manded by Mr.. Belmont, for, without
the least reflection upon that gentle
man, the naval officials have been
obliged to decline to establish the pre-
cedent Of appointing civilians to COM
mand in this way. The practice in
some respects would approach priva-
teering, which is distinctly prohibited
by the agreement we have voluntarily.
entered into and proclaimed to the
world.
- News and Courier: A correspon-
dent writing from Chester, suggests
that probably the cannonading which
was heard in Charleston last week
was the sound of the big guns in Cuba.
He says that during the late war in
this country the sound of the firing al
Charleston was distinctly heard in
Chester, 100 miles from the place OF
the contest. The distance from Char
lesion to Cuba is greater than the dis
tance from Charleston to Chester, but
the guns are far larger now than were
the guns employed in the attack and
defence Of Charleston 81 years ago.
The largest guns in those far-away
days used a charge of 35 pounds of
powder, now they employ charge Of
500 pounds. 1t stands to reason that
the new guns can be heard at far
greater distance than the old.
- The cotton report for the month
of May, issued by the agricultural
department last Tuesday, has refer
ence to the proposed acreage, as com
pared with the acreage planted in
1897. A reduced acreage is reported
from every cotton growing stale, the
general result indicating Il breadth Of
93.4 as compared with the acreage of
last year, or reduction OF 6.6 per cent.
The percentages in the principal cotton
growing states are as follows: Ala
bama, 97 South Carolina and Missis-
sippi, So; Louisiana, 81 North Caro-
lima and Georgia, 90 Florida, Texas
and Arkansas, 90; Tennessee, S5. In
Oklahoma there is reduction of per
cent. and in Indian Territory reduc-
tion of - per cent. from the acreage
of last year, the figures for these terri
tories being 81 and SIS, respectively.
A Chicago dispatch Of Wednesday
tells about the upward march of the
price of wheat. The advance during
the day was SO cents barrel, making
the whole price on the Pillsbury grade
IS barrel, as against $40 when the
advance began early in April, or an
advance of $3 a barrel within 80 days.
All prospects are said to favor still
higher prices for flour. This commod-
ity is now % cents under a parity with
wheat. At IS barrel, flour is on a
basis of Sl.4O wheat, while the closing
price of cash wheat on Wednesday
was $l.S5. TO make barrel of flour
it requires 1-13 bushels of wheat.
Wheat however suitable for grinding