The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1898-07-19

Washington, July 15.-The war de-
partment has posted a dispatch from
Assistant Adjutant General Greenleaf,
of General Miles staff which is as
follows:
"Only twenty-three cases of yellow
fever and three deaths reported with
in the past twenty-four hours. type
of disease mild. Camp site moved when
ever practicable. Have taken vigorous
precautions to prevent the spread of
the disease"
The war department also posted the
following cablegrams:
playa, Baiquiri, July Is.
Secretary Of War, Washington:
"A commission on behalf of the
United States was appointed, consist
ing of Generals. Wheeler and Lawton
and Lieutenant MiIey, with a Spanish
commission to arrange the details fo1
carrying into effect the capitulation
l will reach Siboney tomorrow.
MILES,"
The second dispatch is signed Jones
a signal officer in charge of the ter
minus of the military line at Playa
and is as follows:
Playa, July Is.
THE commissioners appointed tc
arrange the details of the surrender
held a meeting yesterday lasting until
a late hour. They met again this
morning at $3.50 o'clock and it is sup
posed the terms will be settled to-
day"
ENCOURAGED BY YELLOW FE-
YER REPORTS.
The war department officials are
greatly encouraged by the reports or
the yellow fever situation from the
ARMY at the front. They were fearful
lest the statistics from there might
show increasing cases, but were graf
it'd today when a dispatch came from
Surgeon Greenleaf, a member of Gen
eral Miles staff, saying that during the
past tWenty-fOur hours there ha(
been only twenty-five new cases. Thi:
was in marked contrast with the re
pcrtS for the previous tWenty-fOul
hours, which showed a much greater
spread, and. with Surgeon Greenleaf'!
statement that the general character
of the disease is mild, leads the Off
Gals to hope that its ravages will b'
limited and that the disease will bt
kept well within bounds.
There was a long and anxious wal
today to hear further news from the
commissioners who had been charged
to make arrangements for the sur
render of the Spanish army at Santi
ago. For eighteen hours no wOr(
came from either General Shafter o.
General Miles, although there was tn,
keeneSt desire on the part of the preS
dent and his cabinet advisers to lear1
what had been done, and particularly
f0 know whether the apt11al q
of Santiago and the Spanish troop:
had been carried out When the cab
met met at II o'clock there was posi-
tivefy nothing from the front which
would serve as a guide for the delib
eratlOns. It was thought the cable
had been Interrupted, but on inquiry
of General Greeley, chief signal officer
he gave assurance that the cable was
intact. ThereupOn, Secretary A1gel
sent a. dispatch asking for the situation
up to the latest moment and particu
1arly gnquiring as to how far the sur
render had proceeded. No answer
came while the cabinet was in session
In the meantime, General Greeley
had caDled and he was the first off
cial to hear from the front. A dispatch
from Lieutenant Jones, military cen
sor at Playa del Este, reported tina
the message from the secretary o
war to General Shafter was only 81,
minutes in passing from Washingtor
to Playa. The message received by
General Greeley came at 2:23 o'clock 70
m, and indicated that negotiation.
were yet in progress, but as the dis,
patch was submitted to the presidens
-slo details were given out.
SPANISH soUIBBLES.
Coward the middle of the Afternoon
dispatches from General Miles ant
General Shafte,r began to arrive in re
spouse to Secretary Algers rather i'm
peraIive request. They were rot giver
out i'll full, but IN SUCH portion as were
made public showed that the negotia.
tiOns we're still ir progress ard that
the Spaniards had raised rather unex-
rpected questions. The most important
of these was an insistance that the
Spanish troops should retain their
arms whel they return to Spain. There
was entire Willingness on the part of
General Toral to- turn over the arms
to General Shafter at the time OF the
surrender, bat with this was 20 be the
understanding that the arms were TO
be returned to che Spanish troops when
Spanish coil was reached. This was a
condition which had not been antici-
pated. The authorities here did not
regard it seriously, or as likely to over
come a final sett cement, as 1t was at
tributed to the Spanish sensitiveness
against the humiliation involved in the
laying down Of their arms. AT the
same time it was a pt1nt- on Whlch
neither side appeared to be ready to
yield One Of the dispatches from the
front after specifying that TINS dlf-
ference had arisen, added thai IL was
believed a settlement would be reach
ed before the day closed.
Cy1-- Ii 0If