The daily morning journal and courier., 1901-11-07
SCHLEY MOVED TO TEARS
AN EMOTIONAL SCENE AT COURT
 OF INOUiRF.

Loud Burst of Applause at the Con-
 clusion of His Argu mcnt-N embers oi
 the Court and tho Audience Crowd to
 Congratulate Him nnd schley.
 Washington, Nov. 6.--The climax of
 the Schley court of inquiry came this
 afternoon, when MT. Rayner, the chief
 counsel for Admiral Schley, concluded
 a brilliant argument of over three hours
 with peroration so eloquent and i'm passioned that all within the sound of his voice were profoundly touched.
 This remarkable trial, he said, sought
 to condemn the man who had brought
 to a successful termination as great a
 naval triumph as was ever won. In
 vivid colors he painted the picture of
 the Brooklyn, with Commodore Schley
 on the bridge fighting the entire span
 ish fleet until the Oregon appeared out
 of the smoke. The thunders of the Brooklyn, music for the ears of his countrymen, he said, aroused Admiral
 Schley's envious foes. He pictured the victorious sailor suffering as few have
 suffered for three long years while the l fires of persecution leaped around him
 and now awaiting the hour of his vim dication in the verdict of the court.
 And when it comes" he concluded, The can, from the high and exalted po- sition that he occupies, look down upon his traducers and maligners and with excellent pride excaim: I care not for the venomous gossip of clubs, drawing rooms and cliques, and the poisoned shafts of envy and of malice. I await,
 under the guidance of divine Provi- dence, the verdict of posterity.'" The scene in the court room as he
 finished with these words was thrilling.
 The attendance had been large all day and at the morning session a woman
 had fainted from excitement. As MT
 Rayner began his eulogy of Admiral
 Schley those in the audience, many of
 whom were women, leaned forward in their seats The spell of his oratory was over them, and when he described the admiral's gallant deeds and the long persecution to which he had been subjected many of them broke down and wept. The members of the court displayed evidences of emotion and Ad- miral Schley himself was plainly moved. He sat leaning back with his hands be- hind his head. His chin twitched, and as his counsel said he could afford to await the verdict of posterity two big tears rolled down bis cheeks. He nov ed uneasily to conceal his emotion, and under the pretense of adjusting his glasses brushed the tears aside. For fully thirty seconds after MT. Rayner closed there was not sound. Then the tension broke in loud burst of ap- plause.
 Admiral Dewey after about half a minute, arose to remind the spectators that such a demonstration was out of place. A moment afterward the court adjourned, the judge advocate pleading that he could not well go on to-day.
 Then another remarkable thing hap pened As soon as the gavel fell the entire audience surged forward to shake the hands of Admiral Schley and MT Rayner But the oncomipg specta- tors fell back a moment as they saw Admiral Dewey and his two associates move around the table, as if by a com mon impulse, and congratulate Admiral Schley and his counsel Captain Lem ly, the judge advocate, also came for ward to join in the congratulations. Then the public had its inning, and for fifteen minutes after the court adjourn ed Admiral Schley and MT. Rayner were kept busy shaking hands.
 MT Rayner's argument to-day con- sumed the whole day of the court, ex- cept for half an hour at the opening, which Captain Parker, his associate occupied in concluding his ar 
 MT. Rayner took up the specifications 1ne by one, reserving those relating to he retrograde movement until the last So far as he was able to do so he used he testimony of the departments wit 1esses to prove his contentious. With 'egard to the retrograde movement, which he discussed with greater seri- ,usness than he did the other specified ions, he adduced in justification not ,nly all of Admiral Schley's reasons for the Spanish fleet was not in but he argued that every off, er charged with the responsibility of command necessarily must be clothed with discretion in carrying out instruc- ions. He displayed good temper in dverting to the testimony of most of he officers especially the ranking off CTS who seemed to contradict his cli- mt, giving them in each case credit for I of purpose. But with a few he , ealt unsparlngly. Wood Potts and z Bristol he held up to ridicule. i Captain Lemly will begin his closing ', rgument tomorrow afternoon, as the ourt will not hold session tomorrow lorning. ,
 Rayncr's Concluding Words.
 MT. Rayner's concluding words were z S follows: T have now briefly pre- Y ented this case as it appears to me In g $ general outline. Such trial as this c as never to my knowledge taken place a l the history of the world. It seemed c } my mind that this case had hardly l. pened with the testimony of Captain " Iigginson before it commenced to tot il er, and from day to day it's visionary e abric dissolved from view. When aptain Cook, their last witness, was n ut upon the stand the entire structure " 1llapsed and now, when the witnesses -om our own ships and the gallant sptain and crew of the Oregon and dmiral Schley have narrated their un- t arnished tale, the whole tenement with il | of it's compartments, from it's foun- O ation to it's turret, has disintegrated C