The times., 1898-01-05
TEST CASE TO BE MADE.
Attorney General VIII Investigate
Rights of American Vessels.

The government is making strong
effort to prosecute the tug Sommer5
n. Smith for the purpose of making a
test case before the United States Su-
preme Court This will be the first in
stance in which the government has
asked for an opinion on which to base
proceedings in such, cases. The ques-
ton raised asks whether two legiti-
mate expedition setting out from the
United States and being united into
single expedition with arms and men
outside the three mile limit is to ne
regarded rs q VOCATION OF the neutral
ity laws. The question has been raised
before but he has not been settled b.
an opinion from the highest court.
The first step toward this end was
taken yesterday bys Attorney General
McKenna, and he ordered that libel
be filed Immediately against the Som
nlers n. Smith, which Is now lying at
Mobile under ,he watch of Federal hf-
ficers.
the result of the examination OF wit
nesses at the Department Of Justice
Monday ana yesterday bY Assistant
Attorneys General B5yd and Hoyt.
Three Chilians claiNing to have been
connected with a Cuban expedition on
the tug Sommers M. Smith, last Aug
ust, were questioned for several hours.
through an interpreter. These wit
nesses We're brought to Washington
through the efforts OF Spanish
agents interested In prosecution of the
Smith. Their names and the details OF
their testimony We're withheld by the
Department.
The witnesses. who were formerly
Chilian army officers, said they came
to New York some time ago from chin
to enter the service of the Cuban IN
surgents. they having been employed
by Cuban representatives in South
America to instruct the men in mill
tary tactics and TO assist in conducting
them from the recruiting ground IN the
United States to Cuba, They claim
that the insurgent leaders tailed 10
keen certain promises made to them,
and they are willing to testify against
the promoters of the Smith expedition
The testimony covers all details OF
the August expedition of the vessel
The Smith is said to have left point
on the southeastern coast of Florida,
having on board a party of men bound
for Cuba. among whom were the emil
ians. and to have met another vessel a
few miles off the coast. This vessel,
the Chilians testified, was loaded with
arms and ammunition. which We're
transferred to the Smith and carried
with the other part of the military
outfit to Cuba. The auXlilafy Eessel
was a. schooner. the name OF which the
witnesses claimed not TO know, the let
ters of the name having been purpose
Iy concealed with piece of canvas at
the time the vessels met.
The Treasury and judiciary ofncefs
believe that the schooner was the
Donna p. Briggs, recently libeled az
Norfolk. The assistant attorney gem
eraI believes that the testimony OF the
Chilians is of sufficient value to bring
a successful prosecution after the iioei-
ing of the Smith. Complete formal tes-
timony before a United States court
will be taken, and an effort made To
prevent even the release of the vessel
on bonds. In case the Government
case is successful, the matter will pc
brought before the United States Su-
prerne Court, in order to obtain an
opinion.
The promoters of the Smith eXpedi-
tion are expected to claim that two eX-
peditions. each legal in themselves. the
one consisting of unarmed men and the
other of arms without men, may be
united on the high seas without vioiat-
ing the neutrality laws.
The Departments of Justice believes
that such an expedition is illegal