Omaha daily bee., 1899-01-12
ECHOES or THE WAR.

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One OF the thrilling stories OF individual
bravery during the Santiago blockade was
that detailing how Ensign ellis jumped into
the sea and headed off a torpedo that was
driven perilously close to the torpedo boat
Porter. The ensign unscrewed the var nose
OF the torpedo and had the missile hauled
aboard. That torpedo contained another
story, which has just leaked out from the
ordnance department at Washington. When
the torpedo vas opened on the deck Of the
Porter a card was found in IL on which was
written the name OF the German makers
Schwartzkopf-and the names OF the men
who filled 1t, together with a request that
IL the torpedo failed to work such informa.
tion be sent to the firm. The ordnance Off
GERS at Washington could not resist the
temptation to have a little fun at the ex-
pense OF the German firm and so forwarded
the card to Its address with the request that
the makers be more careful in preparing
their missiles in the future. The Schwartz
kopfs were not to be beaten by the Ameri-
cans, however, and in a letter to the secre-
tary OF the navy they insinuated that even a
torpedo couldn't be expected to explode
when 1t did not hit anything. They also
intimated that they did not calculate to
furnish marksmen with their implements Of
destruction.
In his war camp stories in Leslie's
Weekly Cleveland Moffett tells OF the ex-
perience Of Walter s. Beebe, OF the Rough
Riders, at Santiago. cts only a couple Of
weeks" said Beebe. "since they got that
bullet out Of me. They located 1t at last
with the X-rays. Here 1t is. See! It's
my opinion that bullet came from one OF our
W six-shooters 1t was all foolishness, the
reckless way the boys shot Off their re-
volvers in the charge.
ITO show you the queer things some Of
those bullets did I'll tell you a thing l saw
in the Las Guasimas fight. There was a
man near me as We went along who stopped
to break off a stick in the shrub. l guess
he wanted to make a ramrod Of It. II he
hadn't stopped he might never have been
killed. but Just as he had broken the stick
and was twisting the last fbers apart a
Mauser bullet went straight through his
head, and he dropped to his knees. His
hands still clutched the branch he was
breaking, and, as he knelt there, another
bullet came and cut through the broken
wood, so that he held his ramrod free. He
had got what he stopped for"
Rudyard Kipling sent Captain Robley D.
Evans Of the Iowa a set of his works and
with them these lines:
Zogbaum draws with a pencil,
And l do things with a pen,
'n Ros you sit n,o up In a coming tower,
Zogbaum takes care of his business,
And / take care of mine,
But you take care of ten thousand tons,
Sky-hooting through the brine.
Zogbaum can handle his shadows,
And / can handle, my style,
But you can handle a ten-inch gun
To carry seven mile.
To him that hath shall be given,
And that's why these books are sent
the man who has lived more stories
Than Zogbaum or / could invent.
tion Of his battleship in the January Gen.
fury, denies that Remember The Maine!'
was used as a motto by the navy In the late
war with Spain. He also indicates a per-
fectly proper use of the phrase by patriotic
He says:
1--WE have heard much Of the motto, Re
the Maine II we are satisfied that
the Maine was blown up from the outside
have a right to remember her with in
but without more conclusive evil
dence than we now have, we are not right
IL We charge crimlnallty to persons. There
fore, 1 conceive that the motto, Remember
the Name used as a war cry would, not
have been justiiable. l should like to make
the point here, as / have made 1t elsewhere,
this great and free country, with its
good intention and universal
influence, may 60 to war to punish,
but not to revenge. Improperly applied. the
Remember the Maine savors too
much Of revenge, too much Of evil for evil;
but it may be used in an entirely worthy
sense.
During the recent war with Spain about
men were killed and wounded in
the United States navy. Only fifteen were
killed. On board the Maine 254 men were
outright and others died later-more
than seventeen times as many as were killed
in the United States navy by the Spanish
land and naval forces during the entire war.
In the way that the men Of the Maine died
and suffered there was enough Of the heroic
to provide a sound foundation for the
motto, Remember the Maine" Let me dis
miss the prevailing impression that this
was used in the United States navy, |
in the recent war, as a bettle-signal. No
States naval vessel has entered into
action flying the signal, Remember the
Maine" l am glad that 1t can be so stated;
yet one may excuse many mistaken expires.
of the heat of action.
To this the editor OF the Century adds:
1t may be said on the authority of Cap.
tain John r. Bartlett, during the war chief
Intelligence officer Of the navy: 1.-THE signal
the Maine has never been dis
on a United States man-of-w war or by
he army or navy, with one exception. A
signal quartermaster ian enlisted mani OF
the Coast Signal service hoisted the signal
rom the station at Port Eads, at the mouth
If the Mississippi, when a transport loaded
with troops was passing out to sea. In
the passing out Of the transport, as
vas his duty. the quartermaster added to his
message to headquarters the fact Of display
If signal. which was received with great
enthusiasm by the troops. He was severely
by return message over the
Personal AND OTHERWISE.