The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1898-03-04
NOTHING YET ASCERTAINED.

LSobA oAS ~ ~ AAL@L HLEC Sc1AA-
m~unications between the naval man
who have been before the court have
been most guarded. Naval officers at
the station who are connected with the
court express the guarded view tina
very little testimony has yet been
heard tending to show that the xplO-
son was the result of a conspiracy Or
as to the exact cause of the disaster.
Ten enlisted men were examined by
the board his forenoon as was also
Commander FOrsythe. 1t is understood
he CAV testimony regarding the coal
Jig of the ~battleship at the navy yar1
here.
Captain HalOn, OF the steamer Mas
cote, which arrived from Havana 90
night, says that when the vessel left
Havana there was no sign of 1mpend-
ing rio or Of an anti-American lemon
stratior. On the contrary 2very-.i1g
was normally quiet.
WORK OF THE COURT AT KEY
\ WEST ENDED.
TIL court of inquiry convened short
Iy after 9 o'clock and went out TO the
barracks where all the survivors If the
Maine were mustered. The men were
asked if they had any charges or
further statements to make. Not a
word came from the ranks, AID after
a whispered consultation, thu work of
the court of inquiry at Key Wes-, ca4nr
t. an end. Judge Advocate Mark, in
reply to an inquiry, said that so far as
he knew, the court has no more work
to do at Key West.
When the dispatch is sent, early this
evening, the Mangrove is lying at her
dock with steam UP, but it is said on
good authority that the of
the court Will not cave until tomorrow.
They are waiting Instructions through
Rear Admiral Sicard from Washing
ton as to whether they shall return at
n to Havana. Apparently the court
has gained little information during
THE Key West sessions which could
help explain the explosion.
Mayor Maloney has issue a prOcla-
NATION to the citizens of Key West to-
day asking them to respect Admiral
Sicard's wishes to have the funeral OF
khe Names victims a private function.
lie said, however, that when all the
heroes had finally been inferred some
public demonstration might be in
Keeping. Commander McCabla has de
cided to reduce the funeral detail to the
smallest possible number, and it is
probably that only about twenty men
will tomorrow pay the las honOrs to
an unidentified body expected early
tomorrow morning on the Bache.
A MINE EXPLODED BY ELEC-
TRICITY.
Havana, via Key West, Fla, March
2.-Without adding unnecessarily ito
the flood of surmiSeS, conjecture and
prophecy concerning the findings of the
court of inquiry, it is fair to say that,
as a matter of fact, most of the ava
officers here and at Key West incline
ITO the opinion that the court will find
THAT the disaster to the Maine was
L1o ,IraI nv iha nvn1n-inr - a fnot ~ pn
submarine mine under the forward
pOrtside of the ship. Opinions differ as
to whether this mime was made Of
high explosives, such as wet and dry
gun cotton or ordinary gun powder.
Opinions agree, not only as to the ex-
istence of mines in the harbor, but
Aalso hat this one was laid p~urposely
near the buoy where foreign war YES
sells were directed to moor and was
fired by a lash from an electric bat
terry on shore. 1t is believed barely
possible that the explosion of the mine
was the result of the careleSSnesS or
Ignorance of Spanish officers in charge
of the mime station keys when testing
THE circuit, but the latter SuppOsitiOn
is not thought to he probable. 1t is
further regarded as settled by the evil
dence before the court that the port side
of the hull onward was completely
blown to pieces, and that the only ex-
plosion on the Maine, except of isolat-
ed cases of fixed ammunition was that
of 1000 pounds of saluting powder
stored forward and of which no trace
can be found.
These facts are gathered from Off
GERS who talk with great reserve n
only upon the assurance that there
identity will never be revealed. The
fact remains that only the of
the court of inquiry know all the testi-
mony ELECTED and 10 one is authorized
TO make public matter i'm advan OF
the final judgment.
a good deal of surprise wa expressed
by Americans here at learning that
Spanish divers were to be permitted
to make AN examination Of the wreck
the Maine, especially as it was also
SAID that American naval officers here
would give such divers all consistent
Facilities and would throw no obstacles
in the way of thorough submarine in
pectiOn. 1t was not at first understood,
as it came to be later, that Spanish
search was to be entirely independent
and that while it was being made the
American investigation would proceed
under CAPTAIN ~Sigsbee's supervision.
AS understood here the Spanish request
made Immediately after the disaster
for a joint investigation was promptly
refused at Washington, but after a cab
met consultation, it was agreed that
Spaniards had a moral and inter
national right to iscove the cause OF
the wreck for themselves if possible.
Therefore. permission for an ~independ-
ent examination was granted on the
ground, as understood here, that 1T
could not be refused to a friendly pow
er in her own harbOr. That the per
mission was not accorded until after
the court of inquiry had finished its
work here and gone to Key West Is
regarded as significant. Tt opens a
wide field for speculation. Some as
Sert that the court now has no Objec-
ton to a Spanish inquiry for one OF
two reasons: Either the court has suf-
ficient evidence already of accident or
maiice-evidence that cannot be con-
troyerted by the Spaniards-or after a
diligent search, the mystery remains
as deep as ever and the court does not
think the Spanish will reach a conclu-
Aston where the Americans V 1an-
Oe .on,r-a all This refers DprSOnal-