New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1898-02-18
REvELL1NG IN RUMORs.
SENSATION. MoNGERs DECLARING WAR
ON SPAIN

ITS HEAD AND WAIT PATIENTLY FOR Az
rHENr1c REPORTS ABOUT THE DIS
AsrER 10 THE MArNE-wIIp
STORIES AND pENIALs
Tn. fr,rhtful disaster which resulted IN the
....~,o,,on -, the United States batte-ship
Maine and the death OF more than two hunoreo
80 c,,v ~ her crew and two OF her of11cers
russdav night in Havana Harbor was almost
,h cole tonic OF conversation throughout inc
CITY Yesterday Wherever two or three hei
mo. roth,ng else was discussed. Wherever pusI-
ness was done or conversation was hao 'he an
was full Of speculation as 70 the cause VI Wv
catastrophe and its possible consequences WIN
,erard TO the relations between TINS ooui'''
era Snain Everywhere the greatest sorio"
was expressed and the greatest anxiety u oo'"''
the very latest details Of the disaster -ie',
stood in groups upon the street corners anu
talked Of the affair. Not even the coio Hi A'
IN. charm wind could prevent them from stay
ting 70 INQUIRE for Information regarding 'he
latest developments. both from havana al"
,ror, Washington When the wind occasionally
.r.n+ . hat from Its owners head and carrleo
q, acroes the street the man would pursue the
fleeing tile and al once return 10 TAKE w '"0
conversation where 1t had been interrupted
T,e nap, on the City Hall and on the build
,nrs OF the Park and Fire Departments were d.
harmast all day out Of respect for the soHaiS
who lost their lives the Ill starred oa'ueship'
Desn,te the violent attempts OF some sensa-
t,onal newspapers TO induce the oeHel 'ha' inc
Administration had made up It's NINA 'ha' INC
destruction Of the Maine was caused oy opai'"
agencies and had determined 10 declare WAL
people continued TO discuss the disaster oainiy'
hut earnestly and with an open Hiho' Ia"
gravity Of the situation was recognized ae i"'i'
as the terrible nature of the calami'y' ou' ."
ras generally recognized that when so many
men qualified 10 know the possible cause Oh ''e
catastrophe disagreed. II was not 'hihS 'ha'
o,,a 10 ,rstantlv decided by the ayman.
Some delay in receiving expected oispa''he'
,-oro Havana caused the report that the capie
from, Havana had been cut. Thoughtful people
a, once recognized the fact that this was eX-
,rsn,elv improbable inasmuch as such step
could be devoid OF advantage to the only au-
thoritles that could have taken H. ana later ad
vices showed this report 10 be untrue VICE
President Clark Of the Western Union Ielegraph
Company when asked about the report SOU
that it was entirely false. He SAID tha' ne ""u
received dispatches that showed the capie lroin
Havana TO Key West TO be IN good working con-
d,,on and that the delay was caused by damage
dor. nv the high winds TO the land wires some
NJ which runs close TO the coast line.
Another sensational report that was hurried
into print and which at first created oeai vi
excitement throughout the city. was the' oiNels
had found hole in the hull or the Maiiie ina
could have been caused only by torpedo Ahls
renort was also knocked on the head soon ai'e'
n was printed by the receipt OF olspa'ch iioi'.
Kew West sent Just after the ARRIVAL theie Va
Tho surviving officers OF the Maine which said
that the officers could not verify the repor" HUI
could II be verified in any other way
II emit. ~ all these sensational but unproven
.rd unfourded r,imors the public refused 10 get
,rdu,v bloodthirsty 1t realized that time must
he given for the arrival Of certain and autheh'ic
news Of the cause Of the disaster. and that wheh
49,, ,sr,a,n and authenticated news arrived
,bon and then only would It be time TO give the
Judgment that must until then be SUSPENDED.
Tho good sense and restraint shown in the hrst
br,ef dispatch from Captain Sgsbee, In which
ha no,nted out the necessity Of suspending judg-
mont had much TO do with the temper In which
the public received news from Havana ana
waited for more. However, all these facts ola
not prevent leople from looking most eagerly
for the latest particulars OF the accident the
name. Of the killed. wounded and saved, ana
the descriptions Of how the work OF rescue was
carried on and how the officers and men OF the
Maine conducted themselves In the hour or d's-
aster The temper Of the business men or the
city was reflected to some extent IN the STOCK
market which. instead OF falling rapidly as
many had feared. showed, on the contrary a
tendency to rise above It's Wednesday status
and actually closed stronger than on "wednesday
afternoon
Much interest was felt In the expected arrival
1ybl oh ON
her way to visit the port of New-York at the
time the Maine destroyed. and which was
expected to arrive here yesterday. AS she had
not been sighted however. up to a late hour In
terest In her expected arrival died out as It was
apparent that she would not come up past quar-
antine last night even should she be sighted IN
,be evening Early In the evening one Of the
afternoon newspapers rushed into print with
statement that the Vizcaya had been sighted
off Atlantic City steaming toward New-iork.
hut this report was Ike the others, unfounded
Th. snanish Consul General at New-York,
Arturo Baldasano. said that there was no rea-
son whv the vizcaya should defer her visit TO
New-York and he proceeded 10 make arrange
nents 70 receive her. II was learned however
that one Of the tow companies OF this city had
heen engaged to keep tug In READINESS 10
steam out 10 the Vizcaya the moment she should
he sighted. presumably TO carry dispatches 10
her commander Many people expressed the be-
lief that the Spanish cruiser would not enter the
harbor at all On the other hand. dispatch
from Madrid said the Spanish Government had
cabled TO the commander Of the V!zcaya leaving
the details OF his visit TO his discretion
TIME TO KEEP COOL
GENERAL TRACY URGES THAT PUBLIC JUDO
MyNr BE SUSPENDED UNTIL AFTER
THE INVESTIGATION