The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1901-09-26
Cotton Bore Dispatches. One of Which
Said Cervera Was in Santiago
Harbor.
NO EFFORT BY SCaLEY TO VERIFY THIS
So the Witness Asserts. Wise Testfies That
He Signaled the Texas Captain the
9th That Cerv ra Mas Doubtless
in Santiago Harto..
in Saniiag1 Harto..
(By the Associated Press.)

10y the ASSOcldJeu 1reSS.)
Washington Sept. 25.-Two new wit
ncsses were introduced in the Schley
court today. They were Admiral Cot
ton, who as Captain commanded the
auxiliary cruiser Harvard and Captain
Wise, who commanded the auxiliary
cruiser Yale during the Spanish War.
and both came up with the flying squad
ron off Santiago on the 9th of May,
before the retrograde movement to Key
West was begun.
Admiral Cotton testified that he had
gone aboard Admiral Schleys flagship,
the Brooklyn, on that date to take dis
patches to him and he said at first that
he gave him four or five dispatches adj
dressed to the commander of the squad
rc1. Hc afterwards modified this state
r,cnt, saying that probably all but two
of these dispatches were addressed to
himself (Admiral Cotton), but that they
contained information which he thought
should be in Admiral Schley's posses
sion One of these was a copy of dis
patch from Admiral Sampson, which
had not been printed in the official
records, stating that the Spanish fleet
was at Santiago. He also said that coal
could have been taken from the Merri-
mac on the 9th of May, the day on
which the retrograde movement to Key
West was begun for the purpose of coal
ing.
Captain Wise testified that on the 9th
OF May he had signaled Captain Philip
of the Texas, of his opinion that Cevera
was inside the harbor at Santiago, but
the testimony was ruled out.
THE TESTIMONY OF CLAYTON.
The first witness Ncalled today was A.
II. Claxton the machinist ca board the
Texas, who had begun his testimony
when the sittings of the court were so
abruptly terminated yesterday morning
by the death of Judge Wilson.
Mr.. Claxton said on July 3rd, he had
been on duty in the engine room of the
Texas. The engine indicator had called
for full speed ahead early in the morn
ing which had within an hour after the
beginning Of the action been changed
to full speed astcrn.'' To his knowl-
edge there had been no signal for the
reversal of the engines. He said that
he had been excused from service in the
engines were reversed for about two
minutes.
ADMIRAL COTTON TESTIFIES.
Rear Admiral Cotton, now command
ant of the Norfolk Navy Yard, who
commanded the auxiliary cruiser Har-
ward during the Spanish War, was the
next witness He said that on May 9th,
1898, he had delivered dispatches to
Commodore Schley from Admiral Samp-
son and the Navy Department. He had,
he said, boarded the Brooklyn about
1880 o'clock. The weather was then
moderate and he had no difficulty in go
ing aboard the Brooklyn.
What was said about the dispatch?"
Il delivered to Commodore Schley
the original cipher in which the dis
patches had been received by me at st.
Nicholas Mole, together with translation
of those dispatches made by Lieutenant
Beall. of the Harvard. I handed them
personally to him in his cabin in the or
der of their dates. He received them.
read them and commented in a general
way upon their purport; spoke of the
difficulty he had had in getting coal on
board his ships while at Cienfuegos and
subsequently to the date of which / am
speaking. May 9th. and said it had been
almost an impossibility to get coal on
board on account of the weather He
questioned me relative to the practical
bility of coaling ships at st. Nicholas
Mole and Conaives Channel AS to ST.
Nicholas Mole, / said:
There is no question the small ships
can coal there. As to Gonaives Chan.
mel, i know of no reason why you should
not be able to coal there.
'The commodore made sore remarks
upon my statements. tle Language Of
which | do not recall but he ASKED me:
How about the large ships at ST.
Nicholas Mole? | said: You can't
coal your big ships there | had special
reference in my reply to the battleships
and protected cruisers of the Brooklyn
and New York class. l said thinking of
the fact that my own ship had been
there and was of some $4,000 tons dis
placement, and nearly 500 feet in length