The River Falls times. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1894-1933, 1898-03-15

Washington, March Is. = Yesterday,
unlike last Sunday when the published
statements of the desire for the recall
of Gen. Lee and the protest of the
Spanish government against sending
war vessels with relief supplies to
Cuba caused such excitement among
official circles, was comparatively
quiet There had been no information
bearing on the doings of the court OF
inquiry on the Maine explosion re-
ceived during the day or any other dis
patches calculated to cause conferences
between the heads Of the various de
partments. There were a number OF
the experts of the war department
ordnance office at their desks Tor
short time during the morning to at
tend to some pressing matters, While
at the navy department the board on
auxiliary cruisers held d final meeting
preparatory to the departure of the
special board to New York. Secretary
Long was at the navy department for
a short while He stated late in the
afternoon that there was no news Of
any nature for the press, and, ad len in
response to a specific inquiry, that
nothing had been received from the
court of inquiry.
The board on auxiliary cruisers met
in Assistant Secretary Roosevelt's
room during the morning. Each Of the
bureaus chiefs present was a0le to
give the board some information in
cident to the work that may be re-
quired to fit out any ships that might
be obtained. Several Of the members
of the board, as originally appointed
to
Look Into the Matter,
are unable to leave the city at the
present time. so it was determined that
a special board, of which Capt Rodg
ers will be president, should be desig-
mated to proceed to New York to un
dertake the work in hand. An office
will be opened, at which owners and
agents of ships will be invited to make
their proposals for turning over to the
navy such vessels as are of value for
conversion into war purposes. The
naval officials say there will be no diff
ticulty experienced in obtaining all
vessels that are desired as there are
hundreds available Thanks to the
careful work of the naval intelligence
oce, the department keeps in close
touch with the construction of all craft
that could be utilizeftid in the event of
hOstilities, and just now it has a record
of forty such ships of all sizes and
classes which will be inspected and eX
amned if their owners desire to part
with them.
At the Washington gun factory there
are now in various stages of cOnstruc-
ton no less than $50 guns Of formida-
BILE character on which work is being
done night and day with a view to
their early completion. A naval officer
said their would be enough of them
when completed to constitute a fair
armament for probably thirty or more
auxiliary cruisers should such a large
fleet be found necessary to supplement
the regular WarshipS
The ordering of the Helena and
Bancroft, now on the European sta
ton. to the United States, will leave
Admiral Howell commanding the sta
ton with one vessel, the San Fran
cisco. No explanation for the action is
vouchsafed by the officials of the navy
department, and Secretary Long, when
asked, declined to say anything about
the step further than that the two
ships had been ordered home.