The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1898-02-17

Key West, Fla, Feb. 1.-THE cor
respondent of the Associated Press has
been assured in a reliable quarter that
Captain Sigsbee is under the impress
sion that the warship Maine was blown
up by a floating torpedo. and that he
has communicated his impressions to
Washington, asking at the same time
that the navy department should send
naval engineers and mechanics TO in
vestigate the explosion.
The Plant line steamer OHvette did
not leave Havana until o'clock this
afternoon and did not reach here until
shortly after 10.
Washington, Feb. 16.-The above dis
patch was shown to Lieutenant Whit
tlesey Of the navy department, who had
been deputed by Secretary Long to re-
celve al dispatches on the subject Of
TIE disaster He said: we have had
absolutely nothing from Havana or
Key West since the last dispatch of
Sigsbee announcing the departure of
the Olivette- ! do not think The tor
pedo theory tenable, and ! do not be-
lieve Captain Sigsbee expressed such
an opinion"
Washington, Feb. 16.-After a day Of
intense excitement at the navy de-
partment and elsewhere growing out
of the destruction of the battleship
Maine in Havana harbor last night, the
situation tonight, after the exchange of
number of cablegrams between
Washington and Havana, can be
summed up in the words of Secretary
Long. When asked, as he was about
to depart for the day. would he have
reason to suspect that the disaster was
the work of an enemy, he replied:
i do not In that 1 am influenced
by the fact that Captain Sigsbee has
not reported to the navy department on
the cause He is evidently waiting to
write full report. So long as he does
not express himself, certainly cannot
1 should think from the indications,
however, that there was an accident
that the magazine exploded. How that
came about l do not know. For the
present at least no other warship Will
be sent to Havana"
SUSPICION OF TREACHERY.
The appalling nature of the disaster
and the gravity of the situation that
would arise should investigation give a
basis for the undercurrent of suspicion
of treachery and foul play that ran
through all minds, had SOLDERING effect
upon public men of all shades of polit-
ical opinion. The fact stands forth,
and is little less than remarkable. in
that not a single resolution was intro
duced or a single speech made in either
house of congress, save one of condo
lence with the families of the killed Of
fered by Mr.. BOutele. and adopted by
the house of representatives. Public
men expressed their opinions with re-
serve when approached, but everywhere
there was a demand for an investiga-
ton and full details, in the light OF
which the horror may be justly viewed.
Secretary Long undoubtedly summar-
lied the general opinion of the major
ity of the naval experts in finding it
impossible just now to state the cause
of the destruction of the Maine. There
are a great number of theories, but
most of them are of a character that
makes it easy to prove or upset them
by single investigation by a diver.
INVESTIGATION.
Secretary Long has taken immediate
steps to make this investigation. Late
this afternoon he telegraphed to Ad-
miral Sicard at Key West to appoint a
board of naval officers to proceed at
once to Havana, employ divers and
generally to make such induiriiS as tha