Freeland tribune. (Freeland, Pa.) 1888-1921, 1899-05-11
|SMUGGLED FOR DEWEY.
UNWRlTTEN HISTORY ABOUT OUR
SQUADRON At MANILA.

The Smuggling Steamer Zatiro-she Car
ried Green Groceries as Well as Dis
patches-How Captain Mclean Cared
For Dewey's Men-Falsified Manifests.
Professor s. A Knapp, the conf
dential agent of the Department of
Agriculture, who has just returned to
tie United States after tour of JAP
an, China and the Philippine Islands,
was accompanied on the homeward
trip by Captain Walter Mclean, chief
OF Admiral Dewey's war staff at Ma
nila. In the San Francisco Chron-
icle Professor Knapp has given some
unwritten history of the doings Of the
historic Asiatio squadron, learned by
personal observation while in the Or
lent and by association with Captain
Mclean on the way over. Its hero
is Captain Mclean, whom the pro-
fessor styles the hero of post-battle
days, and it weaves itself largely
about the goings and comings of the
little merchant vessel zatiro, which
succeeded the cutter McCulloch as the
carrier of dispatches from Manila to
Hong Kong. Dispatches are not the
only things the Zairo carried, and
that is the reason Professor Knapp
finds hero in Captain Mclean. She
carried green 81 oceries and coal.
''The fact of the matter is" said
the professor, "McLean turned snug
gler when he got hold of the Zafiro,
and went cruising in Chinese waters.
He smuggled more tons of fresh things
to eat into Manila Bay than you have
hairs on your head. He became the
most proficient falsifier of manifests
the East ever saw. Ask him, and
he'll tell you the same thing. Did
Dewey know about it? Didn't he
know about everything that was going
on?
"McLean's chance came when he
was made commander of the Zafiro.
The day this happened Admiral
Dewey called Mclean up on the quar-
ter-deck of the flagship, where there
was lot of dyspeptic looking officers
and men standing around, and said:
Mclean, you will take these dis
patches down to Hong Kong on tho Ia
fro and cable them to Washington
Yes, sir, answered Mclean.
And remember continued the
admiral, in a solemn voice, that this
is a time of strife; that Great Britain
has issued neutrality proclamation;
and that there is such thing as con-
traband of war. Do not allow any
contraband article aboard your ves-
sell
Mclean looked around on the
hungry men of the fleet, and then he
looked into the eye of Admiral Dewey.
He thinks he saw sort of faint quiv-
er of the eve, for he touched his cap
smartly, winked at the other officers,
and retired. When the Zafro got to
Hong Kong, Mclean called Captain
Whitten up to the deck and said:
Captain Whitten, [ am going
ashore with Colonel Smith. won't
be back until the last minute before
sailing. Remember that this is
time of strife; that Great Britain has
issued neutrality proclamation; and
that there is such thing as contra
band of war;
eyes, sir, answered Captain Whit
ten, saluting.
"'And 1 say. Whitten, continued
Mclean, lowering his voice if we get
caught at it there'll be the devil to
pay
"'Yes, SIR
$50 that if any little packages
come aboard, be quick about it,
"Well, Mclean and Colonel Smith
hadn't any more than got out of sight
than Captain Whitten weighed anchor
and sailed around the corner. He
hadn't been there very long before
the little packages began to arrive. 1t
didn't take very long to stow them
away, and pretty soon the Zafiro
dropped anchor in the harbor again.
Mclean and Colonel Smith came
aboard.
"'Sir,' said Captain Whitten to Nc
Lean, those little packages--'
"'Don't bother me, sir, thundered
Mclean, in rage, Il an in great
hurry to get back to Admiral Dewey
with important cablegrams.
$50 they sailed away. When they
reached Manila Mclean called Cap
tain Whitten up and said:
"'Sir, L must hasten to the flag
ship and report to the admiral. When
I return I shall inspect your cargo.
If find anything contraband in it, I
shall order you into irons.
"Well, Mclean didn't get back un-
til the next morning, and when he
went over the cargo he found nothing
contraband. In the meantime, every
officer and man in the squadron had
had square meal. That was the
first of many trips.
"McLean's greatest feat was in re-
storing peace between the American
and German Governments as repre-
sented by their Admirals at Manila.
On one of his trips to Hong koug he
told Rounsevelle Wildman, the
American Consul, to notify the other
Cousuls that il they had any little
presents or tokens OF friendship they
wanted to send to their folks in
NT,o,Io he MOULD fake them fbara on