The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1901-10-11
TESTIFY BEFORE THE SGHLEY COURT
OF INQUIRY.
HODGSON CORRECTs TESTIMONY
the Day Before as to His News
paper Observation-Disclosures Vain.
wright Testifies as to Manner of
Making the Charts of the Battle.
Lieutenant Bristol Declare the Of
ncfal Charts Incorrect-More Con.
fictfng Evidence on Manner of Com
Quoting the Blockade,

washington, October S.-There were
two new witnesses before the Schley
court of inquiry today. They were
Commander Richard wainwright. who
commanded the Gloucester during the
war with Spain, and Lieutenant l.. ".
Bristol, who as ensign was a watch
and division officer on the battleship
Texas during that period.
Lieutenant Bristol a not conclud-
ed his testimony when the court ad-
journed for the day. He did not see
the loop made by the BROOKLYN. the
greater part of his testimony turning
upon a chart he had made showing,
largely according to his memory. he
positions of the various ships of the
American fleet at different times during
the engagement of July 3rd. There
were several spirited controversies he
TWEEN counsel over questions asked the
witness by Mr.. Rayner concerning his
charts.
Commander Wainwright's testimony
dealt largely with chart making. He
was for a time senior member of the
board of navigators which prepared the
Official shart showing the position of
the American ships during the battle
Off Santiago and he gave details of the
method of preparation. He said that
he did not consider the positions as
signed in the drawing accurate, but
that they were given as the result of
a compromise of the views of the mem
bers of the board.
CAPTAIN FOLGER CONCLUDES.
The proceedings of the day began
with the recall of Captain w. NJ. Fol-
ger. He was asked by Captain Lemly
II he had any conversation with Com
modore Schley during the blockade.
He replied: Toward the evening Of
n of the days, the 30th, there was an
extended, very severe rain storm, so
severe that / feared Cervera had got
ten out, as it was sufficiently long to
have permitted him to do so. l went
on board the flagship the next day,
thinking it my duty to tell the COM
dore What I had seen as to the block
ade as kept by the Japanese off the
port of Wei Wei, where similarly al
enemy'S fleet was within a fortified
harbor. / said to the commodore that
the adoption of the tactics of the Japa-
nese, forming a circle directly in front
of the harbor would, in my opinion, be
preferable, as then it would be difficult
for anything to get out"
Judge Advocate: "Was there any re-
| ply by the COMMODORE"
He did not agree with me as to the
necessity for that"
Captain Folger also said that he had
no recollection Of a picket line on the
inside of the American fleet.
LIEUTENANT DYSON QUESTIONED
Lieutenant Dyson was questioned by
Captain Lemly concerning the steam
ing condition of the Brooklyn on July
Bird.
The judge advocate asked: What
does the Brooklyn's steam log chow as
to the number of engines coupled up and
the boilers in use July 8, 1898, as COM
pared with the total engine and boil
er pow of the vessel?"
The reply was: 1.-The Brooklyn has
four main engines, two to each shaft,
connected together by coupling. She
has seven boilers, five main and two
auxiliaries. On the morning of July
3rd both forward engines were un-
coupled: there were banked fires under
three of the main boilers. The other
boilers are what we call dead no
steam in them. Judging from the time
it took to start fires in these boilers
after the Spanish fleet came out of the
harbor 1 shoul say the were
not even primed, and two of the boilers
had to be run up to the sea steaming
level. 1t took from 9:35 to 10 o'clock to
start fires"
Mr.. Rayner asked if it was not neces-
sary to stop the ship to couple the un-
coupled engines, and the witness re-
piled that the ship could have been
kept going with one engine while the
| other was coupled. The engines were
designed, he said, to be kept coupled
during war.
Discussing the speed of the various
vessels of the fleet on July 3rd, the wit
ness said that the oregon got up a
speed about equal to the Brooklyn on
that day, Notwithstanding that on her
trial trip the Brooklyn made over
twenty-one knots to the Oregon's sew
enten knots. He called attention to the
fact that the New York had made six
teen or seventeen knots speed on the
day of the battle.
In response to questions from Captain
Parker. he said that the New York had
net had her engines coupled on the day
of the battle and that the Brooklyn had
made all the speed necessary
HODGSON CORRECTED A STATE
MENT.
After Lieutenant Dyson was excused
Lieutenant Commander Hodgson took
occasion to change some of the Ian
i SoooS VI AAo O"N
of these changes was made in response
to the question asked yesterday as &c
why he had designated as "a liar and q
blackguard" the editor of a newspaper
which had originally printed the alleged
colloquy between himself and Commo-
dore Scbley. He said he desired to al.
ter the reply that he had yesterday
given to this ~interrogatory. He ther
said: I'm that letter l did not accuse
this newspaper of lying for printing
that statement. In fact it vas to All
solve it from lying that I gave the pa
per the authority TO use my name for
the correctness of the gist OF that
statement. The lying was in the mat
ter of the fact hat the Commodore
displayed such cowardice on the Brook
Ign the day of that battle that he ran
from the S~paniards and took h Brook
Ign to the outward and w from
the fight in order to detract from the
credit OF the fame Of the commodore
IN that battle. 1t was the words to that
extent that I characterized as lying"
COMMANDER WAINWRIGHT.