Evening star., 1901-10-02
WHAT SIGSBEE TOLDSCHLEY
DEVELOPMENTS OF YESTERDAYS
CRoss-EXAMINATIO
Events on Santiago After the St. Paul
Met the Flying Squadron
May &c, 1898.

In the examination OF Captain SfgSbee
before the Schley court of inquiry yester-
day afternoon Mr.. Rayner questioned the
witness. bringing out the statement that
the purpose of his ship being sent to the
vicinity of Santiago was to, If possible,
locate the Spanish fleet. He said that he
had first seen the Spanish vessels in the
harbor at Santiago, but that when he re-
ported the fact he found the squadron had
already made the discovery.
Mr. Rayner read an extract from a report
made by Captain Sigsbee saying: "In this
report OF Santiago de Cuba, made at 10
am May %, you say: We were then steam
ing at fun speed from Mole st. Nicholas.
Hayti,' and Well in toward the coast,
after chasing some vessels / saw the
smoke of number of vessels to the west
ward and at once made for the Santiago
entrance, believing 1t possible that the
strangers were the Spanish squadron ap-
preaching that port All / want to ask Is
this: When you saw that smoke after
chasing a number of vessels to the west
ward, and when you made for the Sontiago
entrance on the morning of the 18th. you
thought that this was Spanish squad
ron approaching the port?"
mo, l thought it might be the Spanish
squadron. 1 did not say they were ap-
preaching the port
Yes. you say approaching that port"
you must remember had no definite in
formation whatever.
did you ever megaphone the press boat
Summers ". Smith that the Spanish fleet
was not in the harbor at Santiago?"
Never. One of the press boats hailed
me, saying that Schley had the Span,ards
bottled up at Cienfuegos. l replied mat
we had had them bottled up at Santiago
for a week.
In reply to a question as to the condition
of the weather at the time he was at San
tiago Captain Sigsbee said: During the
"a Afoxy $1, tIa.a
was unsettled; trade conditions had been
hindered. There was more or less rain anu
moderately heavy sea on those three days.
The court asked a number Of questions
of Captain SgSbee. These with the replies
were as follows: What was the state of the
on the afternoon and evening of May
%, when you communicated with the fly
ing squadron to the southwark of the port
of Santiago?"
''The sea was heavy for boats. but it
was moderating-that Is to say, more mod
crate than 1t had been on two days before.
1 should say, however, 1t would have oee,i
a very difficult job to have coaled from
ships alongside that night"
sissbee's Only Information.
did Captain Wise communicate to you
a dispatch from the Navy Department
stating that the Spanish squadron was at
Santiago?"
'I remember no dispatch or comlnunica-
cepting that which I received from the
Navy Department through him as senior
officer at Port Haitian on May 20. the dis
patch on which proceeded ultimately to
Santiago"
Mr. Hanna: Captain, the dispatch re-
ferred to In the last question reads:
WASHINGTON, May 20, 1898.
Yale, care American Consul, Cape Haitian. Haiti.
May 10, and as far as your coal permits. proceed
at once OF Santiago de Cuba; watch carefully and
porting information. Minneapolis. st. Paul and St.
Il cannot remember that he did,.
By the court: did you make any effort
to ascertain If the Spanish squadron was
at Santiago prior to May 2S?''
''Only by extreme watchfulness, that Is
ALL"
By the court: 'What information had
you communicated to Commodore Schley
on May 26 regarding the whereabouts CT
the Spanish SQuadron?
THE departments order to ne directed
me to state that the Spanish squadron was
there. or had been reported there, and again
the circumstantial evidence afforded by the
capture of the Restormel after her very
peculiar cruise.
By the court: "Did you receive dispat ch
from Secretary Long, dated May %, stat
ing: The Spanish fleet arrived at Santiago
on May 1872"
II am not certain. but my recollection Is
that it stated 1t arrived ON the 10th or
21st. received the communication Just as
I have stated. It came from the Secretary
of the Navy. 1t was signed Long, but
whether I got a copy of it from Captain
Wise or got the original cannot now re-
call. 1 think l got the original"
By the court: Ibid you show this dis
patch to Commodore Schley on May 25?"
81 already said I cannot recoliect the act
of showing it to him. l presume did; but
that 1 informed him, 1 remember"
BY the court: Did you see the dispatch
signed Long May 20. addressed to the St.
Louis. care American consul. Mole ST.
Nicholas, prior to meeting with Commodore
Schley on May 26?'
II have no recollection of anything to
the St. Louis, no.
By the court: Did you see the dispatch
referred to addressed to either the Min
neapolis. ST. Paul or Harvard?''
mo, not to my recollection. There were
two meetings of commanding officers off
Santiago while 1 was blockading there. At
one time the commanding officers of the
Harvard, st. Paul and Minneapolis met ]
think the next time the commanding Off
GERS of the Yale. Minneapolis and ST. Paul.
The only occasion. therefore, on which !
might have seen these orders was on one
of those two visits. and have no recol-
lection of having been shown any teIe-
gram or Dispatch
YeOman Becker Testifes.
Captain Sigsbee- was then excused and
Chief Yeoman Gustaye E. Becker, who
served as a clerk to Admiral Sampson on
board the flagship New York during the
Spanish war, was called. He identified the
memorandum from Captain McCa1la, say
ing there was a good landing place near
Cienfuegos, which Admiral Sampson sent
to Commodore Schley under date of May
10, and said that this memorandum had
been carried in duplicate by the Iowa and
the Dupont
Mr.. Rayner questioned the witness very
closely, bringing out the fact that Becker
had no records to show that either of these
vessels had carried the memorandum, and
that he was dependent upon his meory In
making the statement,
Mr.. Hanna said in this connection that
the department expected to De able to
show that four copies of this memorandum
had been forwarded to Commodore Schiey
Mr.. Rayner responded that he would sd-
nit only one copy, and that was the copy
delivered by the Hawk on May %, 1898
The court adjourned for the day at 4
pm, with Mr.. Becker still ON the stand
Admiral Dewey FOrecIOses n Mort
gage.
dispatch from Des Moines, Iowa, says:
Admiral George Dewey has increased his
Iowa real estate holdings, through a decree
signed there by Judge Holmes by which
the admiral acquires house and lot in