The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1898-03-15

4 L
pers re-echo the profound sensation
and displeasure caused by the United
! States sending the Montgomery to
| Havana and by the appropriation OF
| $50, ,0o6. 600 for the national defense
United States Minister woodford.
| while returning from his drive today,
| alighted at the cemetery at the moment
| OF the interment of the remains OF the
| celebrated toreador, Frascuelo who
| died last Tuesday General woodfoy>d
| distributed numerous aims among the
| poor Who surrounded his carriage
There was & great crowd, but no dem
| onstration of hostility toward the
American minister and the incident is
much commented upon.
London, March IA special dis
| patch from Madrid says this afternoon
for Cuba today.
THE FERN SAILS.
Key West. Fla, March 1.-THE
Fern sailed for Matanzas tonight with
a cargo Of provisions for the starving
Cubans; from Matanzas she will go 10
Sagua La Grande. Her departure was
without Incident
The torpedo boat Dupont has arrived
from Mobile. There is no unusual arc
tfvity among naval officers here.
Norfolk, Va. March 1.-THE torpedo
boat Foote left Old Point at 1880
o'clock for Key West. She passed out
| the capes at 1890.
Newport, r. l., March 111-The tor
pedo boats Stalbot and Gwin arrived
here this afternoon and Were at once
turned over TO Lieutenant Comman-
der Mclean, cCmmdndant of the sta
tlon, the boats having been accepted
| by the government. They will receive
their equipments and supplies at the
station and are to go into commission
| in a few days.
baltimore March 1.-Work is being
vigorously pushed on the two new tor
| pedo boats and the sub marine Hol-
land boat "Plunger" at the Columbian
iron works. All are likely to be in
readiness within thirty days.
Washington, March 12.-While today
vas not marked by particularly i'm
portant events the history of the week
| just closed will form splendid record
Of what can be accomplished by the
nation in a. short space of time under
| the spur OF necessity TO provide for the
national defense. Beginning with the
appropriation of $50, 900, 0OO to be ex-
| pended by the president without limi-
tation, there followed rapidly the plac-
ing of orders for enormous quantities
OF war supplies, the institution of ne
gotiations for the purchase of ships
abroad, the enlistment of men for the
navy, the creation of two additional
regiments of artillery, the commission
| ing OF monitors, cruisers and rams,
| the manning of new posts along the
| seacoaSts and finally the arrange ement
Of the great military departments to
| meet modern conditions in military
practice.
The sending of the Oregon, now at
Mare island, away from San Francisco
| is an exhibition of the far-sigh tedness
| with which the secretary of the navy
| Is observing the situation OF today. The
| vessels orders are to cruise down the
| Pacific coast, touching in from time
| to time at various ports where cable
| connections exist, to receive any orders
| that the department may have to give
| In this way it is expected that She
| will work as far south as Valparaiso,
| Chile, where she Will await orders.
| Valpa raiSO is very much nearer to
Cuba and to Admiral Sicard'S fleet than
| Mare island, while, if it should be de-
! sired to send this ship to the Asiatic
! station, this can be done almost as con-
veniently from Valparaiso as from San
| Francisco. AT ValpaiSO, therefore, the
Oregon Will be where she can be most
usefully manipulated in case of an
| emergency.
1
| SECRETARIES.
| The president held a long conference
| at the White house about noon today
| with Secretaries Alger, Long and
Gage, 1t is presumed that their sub
| ject of discussion was the finances Of
the situation, a subject which could
| not be fully treated at the cabinet
| meeting yesterday, owing to the short
| session. After the conference the state
| ment was again made, with the en-
phasLs that has characterized every
! utterance on the subject by the preSi-
! dents constitutional advisors that up
I to date the administrat ton has abso-
lutely no knowledge of the cause of the
| disaster to the Maine and that it has
| no report of any kind from the court
| of inquiry or any one connected Wi tn
| it.
The board of naval bureau chiefs
| find it impossible to pass judgement in
| Washington upon the fitness for naval
service of vessels that may be offered
for the auxiliary branch of the nagD at
the various seaports. SO they have
been aided in their work by the crea-
ton of a special board which will un-
dertake to visit each Of the ports where
ships may be offered and make a care
full personal inspection Of the various
craft. The board will consist Of Cap
! tain Rodgers, Lieutenant Commander
Kelly, Past Assistant Engineer Dixon
Assistant Naval Constructor Tawresy
| and Lieutenant Sergeant.
| The Nashville arrived at Key Wes:
today while the Marblehead arrived al
Tampa The naval officials will not
state the purpose of the Marblehead's
visit to Tampa.
BIG ORDER FOR PROJECT1LES.
The war department ON Monday VIII
open bids for one of the largest orders
for shot and shell for heavy calfbrt
guns ever given including armor- -pierc-
ing projectiles. deck piercing and tor
| pedo shells. The number and charac-
| ter Of these are as follows: Nine
| hundred and thirty five II inch deck
| piercing shells. weighing 1000 pounds
| each; I241 IL inch deck piercing
shells, weighing 500 pounds each; 4Sl
10 inch arTnor piercing shells; 4s2 il
| inch arTnor piercing shot, capped: 14s
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