The news & observer., 1901-11-01

Lieutenant Sears is alleged to have made
as follows:
For Gods sake don't discourage him
(meaning Commodore Schley); it is all
that we have been able to do to work him
up to this.
The court sustained Mr.. Rayner's OBJ
lection.
Captain Sigsbee was then recalled. Mr..
Hanna stated that the witness had been
called for the purpose of securing such
facts as he might be possessed of that the
court or counsel might want to elicit from
him.
A CLASH BETWEEN COUNSEL.
This statement brought Mr.. Rayner
to his feet with the question You're
calling Captain Sigsbee in rebuttal of
course?''
Captain Lemly II don't call it rebut
tai; we called Captain Sigsbee because
he is wanted to testify
Apparently Mr.. Rayner was surprised.
He said: Have we the right after we.
have closed the case to recall witnesses
except iii rebuttal? That would lead to an
interminable case
Captain Lemly Counsel is wrong when
he says closed the case. l did not close
I propose to cali further witnesses here
after. l am only going to call such wit
nesses as the court thinks necessary in
order to have the facts before it..
MIR. Hanna took especial exception to
the Characterization Of his and Captain
Lemly's conduct of the case as prose
cution.' On this point he said: "As to
the use of the language which has been
| hot ic 10 a
prosecution, l cannot allow the record
to stand in that shape without saying
word or two upon that point. If this case
has in any manner approached that of
prosecution it has been due to the action
of the applicant and his counsel. Out Of
generous consideration to the applicant
we have allowed every technical rule OF
the law to be invoked in his interest.
That is generosity. That is not prosecu
ton Everything that the law has devised
to screen and protect and defend man
who is under any sort of a charge, has
been allowed to come in before this Court
of Inquiry That was in favor of the ap-
plicant, not against him"
Replying Mr.. Payner said that he had
never spoken of the inquiry as prosecu-
ton, but said that he had referred to 1t
as d. "trial' and had so considered it.
He also refused to concede that any spe-
cial generosity had been displayed in the
case.
COURT SUSTAINS LEMLY.
When the court reconvened after recess
Admiral Dewey announced the decision OF
the court holding that "the court is re-
quired to examine all witnesses who may
have any knowledge of the matters
brought to it's attention, and is not bound
by any technical laws regarding evidence
or procedure. and to this end witnesses
may be called at any time or they may
be recalled to make corrections or addi-
tions in the nature of corrections to their
testimony, that the facts of the case may,
if possible be placed clearly before the
court, but no witness shall reiterate
former statements"
Captain Sigsbee then said: 81 have
carefully, since my last testimony, gbone
over all of my official documents, all of
my private letters and the records of the
St. Paul. ! have no correction to make
in the testimony then gave so far as it
was given excepting that l said l could
not recollect whether there were one or
two assemblages of commanding officers
aboard ship off Santiago before the ar
rival of the Flying Squadron there on the
26th, and that If there were two visits
one must have been on board the Yale.
My log shows there were two assem-
blages, both on board the Harvard and
that / went on the second visit with the
captain of the Yale and from that | had
come TO the conclusion that the second
visit was on board the Yale.
81 desire to state that informed Com
modore Schley on the occasion of my visit
to him on the Goth. first, that thought
that the st. Paul had been chased by a
torpedo boat the night of her arrival
or the subsequent night; second, that /
detailed to him the communication be-
tween Captain Goodrich of the St. Louis
and myself on board the st. Paul as we
passed each other, when was bound from
Cape Haitian to Santiago and the ST.
Louis was bound from Santiago to Cape
Hai.ien."
The witness said that since he was
formerly on the stand he had recalled
that he did see the press boat Somers N.
Smith on Nav 2S. and he also recalled,
he said, that on that evening he had seen
the press boat Premier, and had warned
those aboard against remaining where
|
being attacked by torpedo boat destroy
ers.
CONCERNED ABOUT COAL.
Continuing, he said that in his inter-
view with Commodore Schley on board
the BROOKLYN he was told by the Com
modore that the st. Paul (Sigsbee's boat)
was to go with the Flying Squadron to
Key West. and on the following day was
TO take the Texas in tow. The witness
remarked There was almost no
catechism at that time on the part of
Commodore Schley. l volunteered almost
everything that | said about Santiago and
the Spanish tieet,'' said the witness
His whole conversation was on the sub
ject of coal and nothing but coal and SO
far as could judge he already had made
up his mind to return to Key West. He
told me that he was going to Key West"
On cross-examination Mr.. Rayner
asked about the statement that the
Premier had been warned against tor
Continued ON Sc md Page)
Government to Buy Bonds.