Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1899-11-23
TRADuCING A HERO.

In the course or an ATTACK on ADJ
miral Schley in accordance with the
policy OF the administration clique at
Washington, the Fourteenth street or
gan reinforces it's contention that
6chley, who won the victory at Santi-
ago, is no hero at all, and that Samp-
son, who was not there, is the only hero
of that great fight by quoting a letter
from Captain Mahan, member of the
aforesaid administration clique and of
that notorious body which covered itself
with ridicule during the Spanish war
the Strategy Board" or as Mr.. Dooley
called it, "the Sthrateegins. Our
neighbor says:
In that letter, which was written without
solicitation he says that Admiral Samp-
perfected the plan for the attack on Ger.
vera'S fleet, was entitled to the credit of
the battle that. resulted in the, destruction
of that fleet. Admiral Sehley had nothing
more to do with the battle than did any
one of the captains of the different YES
sells which took part on the American side.
Now, if Captain Mahan's diagnosis of
the case is correct, then Dewey is not
the hero of Manila bay and that famous
victory must be credited to Secretary
Long, or the ''Sthrateegins, whose Or
ders and plans Dewey was merely
carrying out. The difference between
the cases of Dewey and Sampson, how
ever, is that while Dewey carried out
his orders, which were "You will find
the Spanish feet and destroy it,"
Sampson did NOT carry out his orders
at Santiago, which were you will close
in on the entrance and sink them"
Schley did that. Sampson took no more
part in it than Secretary Long or Cap
tain Mahan or any of the administration
clique at Washington, who were chiefly
concerned in making capital for them
selves and their favoriteS out of the
war at the expense of the real heroes
In fact, if SIMPSONS scheme of bottling
up Ceryera in Santiago harbor by sink
ing the Merrimac in the channel at the
entrance had been successful, the naval
battle of Santiago would never. have
been fought and our army on the land
side would have suffered untold losses
from the guns OF Cerveras ships in the
harbor when our troops closed in on
the city.
If, as Mahan says Schley deserves no
more credit than any of the captains OF
his squadron, then neither does Dewey
deserve more credit than any of the
captains who fought their ships side by
side with the Olympia, and the real
hero of Manila, as we have said, is
not Dewey, but Mr.. Long and his
strategy board, under whose orders
Dewey merely acted.
Yet we don't believe the American
people are prepared to accept this YER
zion of that famous victory, or to de-
prive Schley of the laurels he won on
the Brooklyn amid a hell of shot and
shell and give them to Sampson. who
was miles out of range of the biggest
gun in Cervera's feet.
Again, it comes with peculiarly poor
grace for our neighbor to refer to
badly informed newspaper writer's who
care nothing for the facts, but seek to
discredit the administration by trying
to make a hero out of Schley. 1t is a
very discreditable business on their
mart saws o1lr q Ela CONF ar1ros-airxr 90 un
ly. How infinitely more discredit-
able IL It then, tor the Fourteenth