The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1898-03-05
NO WORD FROM HAVANA
Long Wants to Know When the
Court Will Report.
OLYMPIA is COMING HOME
The Peerless Queen of Cruisers Will Re-
turn to San Francisco-The NAVY
Department Interested in Span
ish Purchases of Ships.

! washington, March AT last there
is a prospect of learning when the re-
/ port of the court of inquiry in the case
| OF the Maine disaster is to be made.
| tnat is, If the court itself is competent
| TO pass an opinion on that point A
| telegram has been sent to Captain
Sampson asking when it is expected
that the report can be made. So far
there has been no response, and it may
be that the president of the court wish
es to counsel first with his colleagues
before delivering a response. The fact
tnat this inquiry has been addressed to
the court by Secretary Long at the
instance of the cabinet is regarded as
proving the correctness of the state
ment that had been made almost daily
for several days past by members OF
the administration. that it had no con-
troll over the court and did not know
when the report would come
1t is said at the navy department at
the close of office hours to-day that no
word had come from Key West or
Havana save the brief dispatches of
the past two days relative to the dis
position of the wounded men and dead
bodies.
1t is probable that the Olympia, flag
ship of the Asiatic squadron and the
peerless queen of cruisers, will come
nome to San Francisco. The nayiea-
tion bureau has this movement under
consideration. and in view of the fact
that the ship has been three years
away from navy yard engaged in
hard cruising service, even IL there
were no other reason, it is likely that
the order will be given. The Olympia
is protected cruiser of extraordinary
speed and endurance, with a battery
strong enough to oyerpower almost
anything short of battleship and
or anything else that she does not care
to fight
The torpedo boat Winslow, at Nor
folk. has completed her repairs and will
JON the Hotilla at Key West as soon as
the gale on the coast blows itself out
and makes the run down safe
Naval officials are deeply Interested
IN the reports of the purchase of war
SHIPS by Spain and make the reports
or these transactions the text for com
plants of the inactivity of our navy
department TO do likewise. However.
as TO the report from London to-day of
the purchase of the Amazonius by
SPAIN, II IS SAID at the department that
this vessel sailed for Brazil months |
ago and has been delivered to the Bra |
zlllan government. Her sister shin is |
stlil al the Armstrong yards, in Eng /
land. They are useful cruisers. comics
OF the Barossa. Their great usefulness
Is their great cruising capacity-S, 900
miles 0V
The other two ships building for
Brazil in France which are also re-
ported 10 be about to pass into Span
sh possession are presumed to be the
Deodoro and the Floriona. which are
building at La Sienne Toulon These
IRE small but powerful little battle
SHIPS. Their tonnage is molly 3.l62 hut
ney carry four 10-inch rifles in tur-
i'm n fa q
.lo-ineh guns and good secondary
'attery Their coal endurance, how
Ver, is small and their forte would
eem TO be coast defense operations or
rulslng near the base of supplies.
Ihe London reports also caused com
1ent at the state department In some |
uarters the feeling was expressed
hat pending the finding of a court of
nquiry on a case having the interna-
lonal phases of the Maine explosion,
he obligations of neutrality were as
trongly imposed on Great Britain and
'razil as in time of war The prece-
enlS apply only to a condition of war
nd not to conditions which may event.
ally lead to war. In the Geneva
ward, however unfriendly acts by
reat Britain prior to the breaking out
the rebellion, constituted part of the
ase on which heavy damages were {
ii
ral rule, foreign governments are free I
, sell warships. either directly or
trough their citizens, up to the actual !
ate of hostilities. /
Matters were very quiet at least ex- !
,rnally in the war department to-day.
here is a strong disposition to discuss !
le proposition to resume possession of
ry Tortugas, but the officials did not !. /.
estate to declare that only normal
ovements We're going on. So it was :.
nknown officially that the troops at !.
alt Lake are being reviewed and it
as said that If this We're so, it could 7
nothing more than the usual period r
al inspections required by the regu- /
tions. /,
As for the reported orders to inspec- 9
on officers at Bethlehem to be ready d
r quick start, ii was said that | a
aptain McNutt and Lieutenant Ben p
tt, who have been on inspection duty a
r several years past. are not to be
fV1y had n H.. -