Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1898-02-23

palace officials show every official
courtesy. Their sincerity is undoubt.
ell so is their anxiety. A special
effort is being made to discourage talk
of the explosion being otherwise than
accidental.
The newspapers give prominence to
dispatches saying that it is recognized
in the United States that the casualty
was purely an accident. Prominence
is also given to Madrid dispatches
quoting Sagasta and other Spanish
statesmen to the effect that the sym
pathy in sorrow has caused friendly
feeling between Spain and the United
States.
Notwithstanding these assurances
from abroad, d painful impression is
caused in Cuba by the knowledge that
considerable element among the
Spanish classes rejoice with little Sc.
crecy over the disaster. If instances
were isolated it would not be impor.
tant. Unfortunately the verified cases
are too many to support this charitable
view. In several places Spanish army
officers have drunk toasts that other
vessels of the American navy may
follow the Maine. In Matanzas, where
murmurings were heard at the time of
The Montgomery's visit, the Intransi-
gente newspaper La Region publishes
IN article saying in substance that the
calamity to the Maine was a judgment
on the United States for sending a ship
to Havana as an "affectionate sign OF
sympathy toward the suffering and
heroic Spanish nation"
The tone is one of mingled sarcasm
and mock coincidence. In frequen-
ted restaurant in Havana last night,
on the bill of fare was "chicken la
Maine" This indicates the feeling of
u part of the populace, especially Of
the volunteers. While aware of these
manifestations Captain Sigsbee and
Consul General Lee concur in the ad-
vice against sending further war ves-
sells TO Havana at present.
1t is learned from what may be con-
sidered a reliable source that divers
sent down on behalf of the United
States to examine the wreck OF the
battleship Maine have made prelim.
iuary report of the result of their
work.
Incredible as il may seem, it is said
that after a partial examination of the
magazines of the Maine, the divers re-
port that the one in which the explo-
sion is supposed to have occurred is
intact.
According TO the informant, the
contents of this magazine are unharm-
ed. Therefore, if this report he true,
an entirely different aspect is given to
the terrific explosion which brought
death and destruction to the Maine.
This report reached Key West, it is
said, and caused the members of the
court of inquiry to decide to proceed
to Havana and begin their investiga-
tion at once, instead of organizing the
court at that place.
The court will make personal ex-
animation of the wreck and will then
take testimony regarding the loss of
the vessel.
The morning papers of yesterday
Tuesday, have interviews with Amer
lean tourists who were in Havana ut
the time of the Maine explosion, and
who have just arrived in New York.
Some of these tourists state as an un-
disputed fact that the Spanish war
ship Alphonso XII, which had been an
chored near the Maine, changed her
moorings only a few hours before the
explosion to another place some dis
tance away. All the Americans inter-
viewed are unanimous in the opinion
that the explosion was the result of
treachery.