The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1901-10-09
Those Cuban Signals.

Admiral Schley is blamed sbo ut
equally for the things he did and the
things he didn't in the West Indian
campaign. Among other things he is
blamed for not knowing that the lights
on shore, burning nightly after the ar
rival off Cienfuegos, signified that the
Cubans wanted to communicate with
him. All the testimony of the depart
ment shows that, having arranged with
the Cubans code of signals--lights by
night and three horses in row on the
coast by day-to indicate that the Gu
bans had information to give, no intel
ligence OF this arrangement was COM
municated to Commodore Schley, com.
mander of the flying squadron which
had been despatched from Key West
May 10, to discover the whereabouts IF
the Spanish division.
The Iowa, Captain Evans, left Key
Yves. one day later to join the flying
squadron, and arrived off Cienfuegos
May %. Evans testimony respecting
the signals, brought out under cross ex-
animation, was as follows:
Admiral Evans said that Capt. Chad
wick, chief of staff to Admiral Samp-
son, had given him at Key West the
signal code arranged by Capt. McCalla
with the Cuban insurgents. He had
not informed Commodore Schley of the
signals because, he said, at never en-
tered my mind that he did not know
it,"
Mr.. Rayner-On what ground did
you suppose that he must have known
it? A. He was the commanding off
Ger of the squadron.
To further questions he said that he
had not informed Commodore Schley
not because be thought Commodore
Schley knew it, but because he hadn't
thought of it.
Mr.. Rayner introduced "The Sailors
Log" book written by Admiral Ev.
ans, by putting extracts in the from OF
questions.
"Have you ever said," he asked, read.
ing from the book, 81, of course took il
for granted that the commodore under
stood these signals as we'll as / did
otherwise should have Informed him
as to their signi6cance?"
Admiral Evans-That is an absolute
fact. l took it for granted that he un-
derstood about the signals.
@. Did you communicate with hin
about these signal lights at ALP A. No
the slightest.
n And Won nauar or apu tip,a
planned to him what the signal lights
meant2 A. Never.
Q Did you ever see these sigma
lights? A. did not. They were re
ported to me by the officer of the deck
@. And you knew that they were
important? A. Yes, did not repor
any other signals to the commodore.
Q. On the night of the 22nd you
knew from report made to you that Ger
tain lights had gone up which mean
that the insurgents wanted to commu
nicate with the American squadron
A. Yes.
@. And knowing this fact and know
ing that Commodore Schley was givinI
no heed to these signals
Admiral Evans - There you ar
wrong again. How could know that
He might have sent boats ashore fror
The Brooklyn. How was to know?
Captain Evans might have bee
technically correct in assuming tina
Admiral Sampson, the commandment
chief, had informed the commodore G
the flying squadron in matter of sue
vital Importance TO the success of hi
course, but his apparent indifference
and neglect to suggest to Schley, as
common matter of precaution or OF
binary vigilance, that the mysteriou
lights were signals behind whic
} might be information of vast impo
lance in his quest for the Spanis
squadron, does not give one an ca