The enterprise. [volume] (Wellington, Ohio) 188?-1899, 1898-03-23
A LINE OF PROCEDURE.
President Mckinley Has One
Mapped Out.
On Receipt of the Court of InquIry's Re
port on the Maine Disaster He Will
Furnish Copy to Spain and then
Congress Will be Given the Doc
ument, Together with
Message.

Washington, March 22.-The pro-
cedure in connection with the submis-
sion of the report of the Maine court of
inquiry by the president to congress is
now clearly outlined, and cabinet
officer yesterday explained the line of
action intended to be pursued upon re-
ceipt of the report, which is expected
to reach Washington next Thursday.
A copy of it will be laid before the
Spanish government very early, and as
soon as can be consistently done, the
report will be sent to congress and
made public at the same time. The re-
port to congress will be accompanied
by message from the president, stat
ing that after receiving the report the
conclusions were laid before the Span
ish government and appropriate action
from that quarter asked. 1t is stated
positively that no part of the report
and no intimation of the findings has
reached the executive authorities in
Washington as yet. At the same time
it is noticeable that the current of Off
cial opinion is beginning to follow that
of the unofficial opinion expressed so
positively at Havana and Key West,
that the cause of the explosion was ex-
ternal.
Officials high in the administration
stated yesterday that while they were
wholly without exact information as
to the findings of the court of inquiry,
they found themselves sharing in the
conviction that the cause of the eXplo-
sion was not accidental, Opinion ex-
pressed by the Maine survivors who
reached here last Saturday doubtless
has contributed largely to this view in
official circles. One of the officers
stated as his personal observation on
the night of the disaster, that there
were two distinct explosions. The
tendency of this is to support the
theory of external cause, as this is
based on the idea that the first ex-
ternal explosion was followed by a
second internal explosion.
The president received a number Of
congressional leaders yesterday, among
them being Speaker Reed and Chair
man Hit, of the house committee on
foreign affairs. The visit of Mr.. Reed
attracted much attention, as he seldom
calls on the president, and it was in.
ferred that the purpose of his visit was
to confer upon the Cuban situation and
its future before congress, though
neither he nor Mr.. Hit were COM
municative. Secretary Long also had
conference with the president.
The army and navy preparations are
continuing without interruption, al
though they have now become so regu-
lar as to lapse into routine on gigantic
scale. No further purchases of war
ships were concluded Monday and the
negotiations are not assuming a prom
Using aspect, except in showing that
the United States can command the
market as against Spain.
The ordnance office of the war de-
partment presented very busy scene
when bids were opened for furnishing
the department about 1000 cast iron
projectiles for sea coast cannons with
which to man the Notifications. The
advertisement called for 1877 ten-inch
solid shots, 91O twelve-inch mortar
shells of 800 pounds each, and 500
twelve-inch mortar shells weighing
1000 pounds each. There were an un-
usually large number of firms which
bid for the contract and the prices at
which they proposed to furnish the
projectiles showed a wide range.
The battleship Texas started north
ward from Key West yesterday, thus
settling the question as to the forma-
tion of a second squadron near Hamp-
ton Roads. 1t is expected that the
Massachusetts will follow in few
lo,,e