Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1899-11-24
DEWEY AND HIS CRlrICs.

Now that Dewey has become a target
for the shafts Of peace there is left no fig
ure of our Spanish war free from such
treatment. All have shared such q fate
Sampson, Schley, Hobson, Wheeler. and
now Dewey. Their services are already
forgotten and their shortcomings incessant-
ly magnifed until it seems that the one
objectionable crime is for man to have
attained eminence fighting for his country.
Louisville Courier-Journal
Unfortunately so far as it concerns
Admiral Dewey there is too much truth
in this-truth that is discreditable to
the intelligence and good taste of a
large portion of the people. The Reg
lister has refrained from comment on
the disgraceful hullabaloo raised about
the ears of Admiral Dewey on account
of the disposition he has seen fit to
make of the house given him by
grateful and admiring people as a
tribute to his heroism. 1t has been
confidently expected that this tempest
senseless fury. Instead, however, it
seems rather to have grown in its petty
and malicious violence-too evidently
secretly assisted from a quarter where
the Admirals great popularity had ere
ated alarm.
Admiral Dewey has done absolutely
nothing to warrant criticism, especially
so violent and malignant as that now
being heaped upon him so unmerci-
fully where few days ago he was
lauded as being little short of god
like. Even were. the Admiral open to
the charge of lack of appreciation of
the peoples gift, which he is not, it
would be in exceedingly bad taste for
the givers to question his disposition
of it. In how much worse taste is it,
therefore, for those who had no part
in this gift to lead this unjust criti-
cism. 1t is subject in which there is
no opportunity for scandal at the ex-
pense of Admiral Dewey. 1t is mat
ter that concerns himself and his fam
lily solely and not the public. More
over, the attack upon him, which, by
the way, seems to meet approval in the
navy department, is entirely without
foundation. Not only has Dewey shown
no ingratitude to the people in his dis
position of their gift, but on the con-
trary has taken the best means to most
thoroughly testify his keen appreciation
of the gift and its deep significance.
1t is one of the best known facts in law
that married man cannot dispose of
such property without the consent of
his wife, who retains her legal interest
in his possessions. Hence, in order to
keep this house, the gift of the people,
IN his own family without danger of
complication and at the same time de-
string to pay delicate compliment to
his wife, the Admiral took the safest
means of insuring the proper success
sion of the property by first giving it
to his wife, she, thereupon, transfer
ring 1t to his son, thus effectually re-
leasing any claim she might have to
the property through her marriage to
the Admiral. And this, it may be said.
was from the outset the desire of both
the Admiral and Mrs. Dewey. BY this
means no dispute can ever arise over
the disposition of the property. The
house, meanwhile, will continue to be
as long as he may live.
In the light shed upon the matter by
this simple explanation of the trans
fers of this property-an explanation
authorized by the parties concerned
1t will be seen what miserable mess
the Admiral's hasty, or designing, crit
ice have got themselves into. The least