The age-herald., 1899-01-27
NOW WATSON IS
 BEING CENSURED SampSOn'S Friends Abuse the Kentucky
 Commodore. ADMINISTRATION FAVORlTE
Mill Be Shown Up in a Light That Will
 Be UnenViabl0.
SOME INSIDE HISTORY OF CASE
Sampson's Friends Claim that President Was Pandering to the Public When
  He Placed Schley on Porto Rican Commission.

Washington, January 26.--(Special.) 1.-The combination of the friends of Commodore Watson and Admiral Schley may not be able to defeat the promotion of Sampson, but they will succeed in showing him up in an unenviable light. The department is much troubled as to know how to pro- eeed to boost their favorlte without reflect ing on the administrators sincerity If Crowenshield, ct al, would follow their die tates and wishes in the matter they would charge openly that Scnley was guilty of ev- erything except cowaI ce and in their zeal to foster the reputation of Sampson they have almost hinted at this.
 But the trouble lies just here. They not only kept him in of one of the most import ant squadrons of the war, but recomnlend- ed him tor bravery and rear admiralty and acquiesced in the equal honor Demg pad to min as to Sampson, that of putting nim on the Porto Rico commss on.
 Sampsons fir ends vii tell you privately that they in the department dld not do this, that 1t represented simply the president panderng to the pubic Ill the matter of ochley. But this Is as lar as they go. They cannot state this publ ely and lne nonors bestowed on Sch-ey had ofnciany the en- dorsement of the department.
 Bureau or Naviga,ion
 The bureau of navisa sation will tell you that the president and the secretary of the navy stultifcd themselves when they gave him all the honors they did, but they will confess that they were particeps criminis after il not before the fact.
 The abuse which the friends of Sampson heap upon Admiral Schley is someth ng marvellous, and with so little to go on, most astonishing.
 But they don't stop here. They no sooner found that Senator Lindsay and other friends of Commodore Watson were making similar inquiries about him as to those made about Schley, than they began a wholesale abuse of the Kentuckian, in spite of the fact that his record n the past was faultless if not glorious, and that in this he was hidden under a bushel of minor officers. They don't pretend to make an- swer to the question as to why was Commo- dore Watson given command of the most important squadron of the whole fleet if he was incapable or to be technical, inferior 10 Captain Sampson, who had seen less sea service than any man of his rank in the entire navy.
 His squadron was not called into action, but the fact remains that the order was given for him to form a squadron and pro- ceed to the very coast of Spain itself There was no greater command given to anybody yet at the beginning of the war with Wat sons record at the top notch, a captain was placed over him. At the navy depart ment they will tell you that Watson asked for orders to serve under Sampson. This is one way to put it.
 The Other Story
 The other is tn s and the facts are cor rectly stated. When Sampson was given the command over Watson the latter came here to protest. The secretary of the navy coached by the bureau said that he, Wat son, would be kept shore if he did not apply for orders. The alternate positions were offered him either to refuse to apply for orders and thereby confess himself a skulker in time of war or to serve his country under the command of his inferior He wisely chose the latter and having done never made a complaint even to his most intimate friend.A When Senator Lindsay wrote to him asking for facts to go on the commodore requested him to make no fight for him, that he had accepted his post and that he would not raise an objection.
 Yet the friends of Sampson cannot say too much against Watson, merely because they see in him some strength to the Schley movement. A. w. B.