Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1901-10-03
THE SPANISH NAVY MIGHT
HAVE MADE ITS ESCAPE
GOOD WEATHER PROMISED.

Washington, Oct. 2.-Weather s.
Forecaster Garriott in his official .
forecast of the weather which will -
prevail tomorrow for the yacht
(" races, says: 3
"The outlook is favorable for &
racing breeze from the northwest =
off Sandy Hook Thursday. The
t weather will be overcast followed =
by clearing" .
*%s#
he had been placed on picket duty at
the eastern end of the line on the
night Of May 90. He was about two
three miles from the mouth of the har-
Dor. He said the entire fleet could
not be discerned at night and the
shore could only be discerned as a
black mass in the distance.
Gould you have seen vessel un-
dertaking to pass out near the shad-
ows under those conditions?" he was
asked
IF she had shown no lights and
made no noise, do not believe we
could" he replied.
Schley's Orders to Sharp.
Sharp said the Vixen had carried
schley from the Brooklyn to the Mas
sachusetts May 81 before beginning
the bombardment of the Colon and
that when he had asked what course
he should pursue in the approaching
action, Lieutenant Sears had replied
for the Commodore that the latter had
directed Sharp to keep his craft clear
as she was vulnerable and not assume
any risks. He thought the Commodore
had afterwards spoken to him to the
same effect.
Notes of Battle in Question.
Parker questioned Sharp concern
ing notes made of the battle July 3,
by Lien. Harlow on board the Vixen.
This report has occasioned no little
controversy, it being claimed by some
of Schley's friends after a copy of the
notes was delivered to the Admiral by
Sharp they had been changed some
what. The witness said he had taken
carbon copy to the Commodore az
ter the battle.
do these notes state the truth TO
the battle as you saw it?" the witness
was asked.
"These are Harlow's notes, he. took
them; l am not prepared to. say yes
or no whether they are absolutely cor
rect in everp particular or not" Sharp
replied.
Now, are you not prepared to say
to the best of your knowledge and be
lief they contain true statement of
what Harlow saw"
"In the maxi essentials I should say
they are true, but there were probab-
ly mistakes in them"
On cross examination Sharp was
questioned in great detail by Captain
Parker in regard to the entries in the
log.
log of the Brooklyn for period gov
erning the Cuban campaign. He re.
ferred to entries concerning the ViX.
ems firing upon locomotive engine
on the shore near Santiago taking it
for gun boat. He elected from the
witness statement that at the time
the Vixen must have been very near
the shore. Sharp said one of the re.
suits of the bombardment of the Colon
had been to develop the Spanish shore
batteries and that the Vixen during
the blockade was not correctly given
by the official chart. He was nearer
the shore than the map shows.
Judge Advocate Lemly had the wit
ness compare the original copy of
Harlow's notes with the copy printed
on board the Brooklyn with the result
showing the notes had been changed
before being printed, so as to make
the account say at 1905 o'clock, the
two leading ships of the enemy Bore
well ON the ,Brooklyn's starboard
quarter" instead of on her "Starboard
bow" and that at AS o'clock the
Brooklyn was zone point on the port
bow" instead of ''one point on the star
board bow
Looked Like Mixup.
Lieut.. James J. Doyle, who was the
deck officer on the Brooklyn during
the Spanish war, read entries in the
Brooklyn's log concerning the battle
of Santiago. He said he had written
the log but the navigator had made an
addendum to it. He said it looked
very much to him, before the Brook
lyn's turn, as if they were about tc
have a general mixup with the Span
ish ships.