Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1898-03-02

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clined the offer, and the understand
ing, on Friday, was that an effort
would be made to recover all movable
property of value on board, after
which the Spanish government would
be informed that if it wanted the
wreck out of the way, it would have
to move it.
- William J. Bryan was interviewed
at Topeka, Kansas, last Friday, con-
cerning the Maine. "In my opinion
we should be slow to act in the Maine
affair, especially under the trying cir
cumstances which confront. u.s." he
said. "Another fact, which in my
mind impels US to exercise discretion,
is that Of the official investigation OF
the explosion which is now being mace.
The United States cannot afford TO be
too hasty in this matter. Information,
al questions are involved and it would
be a sad compliment to our govern
ment were we to openly and malicious
ly bring about strained relations oy
our anxiety to locate the responsibility
for the Maine disaster. Nothing should
be done until the investigation is COM
pleted."
= The following is from the Brook
lyn Eagle of last Saturday: CAT Will
lett's Point, precaution is being taken
to make the East river entrance to
New York invulnerable. A so-called
skirmish line of torpedoes is projected
from the Willitt's Point shore across
the channel to Fort Schuyler. The
torpedoes will be anchored so close to-
gether that it will be made impossible
for hostile vessel to cross the line
without being blown up. The torpe-
does will be connected with electric
wires, and to make deubly sure tha,
their plans cannot be frustrated, the
engineers have arranged to have bat
teries located at each end of the line,
so that, in case an apparatus was used
by the enemy to sever the connecting
wires and break the circuit, the torpe-
does could be exploded from either
end of the line. The channel is al
ready protected from Willett's Poin,
shore to the centre of the channel BY
two groups of submarine mines. Each
group of the mines consists of % tor
pedoes containing 120 pounds of giant
powder each. At Fort Schuyler, d.
rectly opposite Willett's Point, consid'
erable work has been done. A torpe-
do magazine and experimenting gal
lery was recently completed. 1t is
considered the strongest magazine Cd
any United States forti6cation."
- The Phtsburg, Pa, Post, of last
Saturday, has the following: 1t was
learned yesterday in Pittsburg,
through an officer of one of the largest
coal corporations doing business in this
district, that the. navy department
had closed contracts with the incor-
porated firm of Gastner, Curran &
Bulitt, of Philadelphia, for the deliv-
cry at Key West, Sand Keys, Dry Tor
tugas, Savannah, Charleston and For
tress Monroe, of 25O,0O0 tons of Po-
cahontas coal, and the Rhodes & Beid-
ler Coal company, of Cleveland, for
the delivery of $4,000 tons of the
Goshen coal of that company. The
stipulations of the contracts just placed
is that the coal so ordered shall be
delivered at the designated coaling
stations as soon as it is possible to do
so, and the utmost secrecy be observed
about the matter. In carrying out
these contracts the railroads play q
most prominent part, and for the pur-
pose of moving everything as expe-
ditiously as possible, President NJ. +.
Ingalls,, of the Chesapeake and Ohio ;
Receiver Murray, ofthe Baltimore and
Ohio, and General Manager Loiree, of
the Pennsylvania railroad, went to
Washington last week and consulted
with Secretary Long, of the navy, and
Assistant Secretary Geo. D. Meikle-
John, of the war department. Con.
tracts and all arrangements for the
rapid handling and shipping of the
coal were made, and the government,
it is understood, is to pay bonus to
both the coal miners and the railroads
if the 100000 tons were delivered
within specified time.
- Mr.. Hannis Taylor, of Mobile,
Alabama, ex-minister to Spain, when
asked last Saturday as to the prob
able effect of the Maine disaster, said /:
"It is a critical moment and am full
of anxiety lest we should be drawn
into war in way that will put us at a
great disadvantage. Even if the court
of inquiry reports that the catastrophe
was the result of an explosion from
without and the deliberate act of some
body, it will never be possible to prove
that the Spanish government is either
directly or indirectly responsible for it.
If reclamation is made it will be re-
fused upon that ground, and we will
be driven to declare war and to begin
the fighting. The first shot fired un-
der such circumstances will not only
put us on the defensive before the
world; but will arouse prejudice
against us in Cuba itself. The end to
be attained is the establishment of
peace in the island without acts upon
our part that will force us to declare
war upon Spain upon untenable
grounds. That has been the idea from
the beginning to the end. There can
he no peace until the Spaniards are
driven out and that must be done by
the insurgents themselves. We must
help them to do so by moral aid given
in q lawful way. The obvious thing
to do is to pass the belligerency reso-
luton before the Maine incident can
. ;,,o IN intorno tional issup If