The age-herald., 1898-07-29

other day that the president believed that the greatest danger that could ever come to the American republic would be a di- vorcement of the people from an active par
 ticipation in our foreign policy. According to the rules of diplomacy this policy may often make this government ridiculous in the eyes of European countries, but it will
 keep the mass of the people in thinking
 trim and broaden their scope of thought.
 Interest Among Medium Class
 MT. Porter, the presidents secretary, told
 me the other day that it was wonderful
 what interest was shown by the medium
 class of citizens regarding the war and
 it's settlement. He said that there poured into the white house every day hundreds of letters from the merchant. clerical and ar
 tisan classes which showed to him the power of reasoning that existed among the people of this country. The president had no time as rule to read these letters, but that clerks went through them all and noted down the best suggestions The pres
 ident would often review them at his leis-
 ure moments. There is no doubt but that the president does try to keep in touch with
 the sentiment of the people. He is dili-
 gent reader of newspapers. Not of the
 great metropolitan press but of the papers
 in smaller towns throughout the south and
 west and in the east This conception of
 statesmanship may have it's drawbacks.
 but it is productive of great good as well. I ican thought he can't go far wrong
 Sampson schley Controversy
 Acting Rear Admiral Sampsons report has revived all the bitterness of the Samp- son-Schley controversy. Even the friends
 of the former have little to say in his de- fense. They predicted confidently that when the official report of the battle of July was made that 1t would be seen that the commanding admiral would give to Com modore Sehley full credit For fear that they might be doing Admiral Sampson an injustice the public largely withheld final judgment Instead of giving him any credit he refrained from mentioning Scheys name until he was compelled to do in mentioning the name of the Brook lyn. He made reference to the fact
 that the Brooklyn was the first ship to get under steam and that at one time was fighting four of the enemies ships at once. He goes out of his way to mention the
 work of the Glouchester and the Oregon and in every way possible to belittle the
 part which Schley played in the famous fight. A
 In antithesis to this report stands the
 written gallantary of modesty of Schley,
 who takes opportunity to congratulate Ad-
 miral Sampson and pay him the deference
 due him as commanding officer. Samp- sons friends pretend to find yelled iron if not an open rebuke to Sampson in Schley's sentence: "'I congratulate you most sin cerely upon this great victory to the squadron under your command and I am glad that I had the opportunity to con- tribute in the least to a victory that seems big enough for all' Again they take exception at the irony they find in this paragraph:
 "A little later after your arrival the Christobal Colon which had struck to the Brooklyn and the Oregon, was turned over to you as one of the trophies of this great victory of the squadron under your com
 mand.'
 Those who know Schley say he is n-
 capable of sarcasm and would deem irony the weapon of a woman. have recently
 talked with the officers who have only just
 come from the fleet. They say that Schley
 does not countenance any discussion of the
 subject of his treatment and that in writing
 his report it was his evident intention to
 alay the friction which has sprung up
 in the navy over the pussilanimity of Sampson All that was needed to con demn Admiral Sampson was his report. From end of it to the other there is but one idea dominant; namely, to min imize the action and magnify the orders. No one every heard of Sampson's signals until he detailes them himself. No one could have seen them seven miles off
 trough the smoke of battle. The report is replete with a spirit of envy and jealousy and puts him where the public had already classified him, as man of ordinary talent for routine, but narrow, vain, if indeed not contemptible. The feeling of resent ment here is intense and the bureau of navigation, which matched Sampson, hasn't a feathers weight in influence to check the flood of criticism and contempt arising against its protege.