Barre evening telegram. (Barre, Vt.) 1898-19??, 1902-02-21
ROOSEVELT TO SCHLEY
The President Renders Decision or
the Admir.I's Appeal.
ACTION OF COURT UPHELD
President Declares Appeal II In III
feet From the Late Chief Exec"-
tive'H Recomme ndatiOns, ana
He Sustnins Mr.. Mckinley.

Washington, Feb. 20. - President
Roosevelts memora ndum on the appear
of Admiral Schley has just been made
public. President Roosevelt says:
have received the appeal of Admiral
Schley and the answer thereto from the
navy department ! have examined poth
with the utmost care. as we'll as the pre-
ceding appeal to the secretary OF the
navy. have read through all the testi-
mony taken before the court and the
statements of the counsel for Admirals
Sampson and Schley; have examined al
the official reports OF every kind IN REFER
ence to the Santiago naval campaign
copies OF the logbooks and signal books
and the testimony before the court OF
claims and have also personally had pc
fore me the four surviving captains OF the
five ships aside from those OF the Two
admirals which were actively engaged dt
Santiago
1t appears that the court of inquiry was
unanimous in its findings of fact ana
unanimous in it's expressions of opinion on
most of it's findings Of fact. No appeal Is
made to me from the verdict OF the court
on these points where it was unanimous
have, however gone carefully over the
evidence on these points also l am satls-
fed that on the whole the court dld SUD
stantial Justice. 1t should have Specltlcal-
ly condemned the failure to enforce an Ell
ficient night blockade at Santiago while
Admiral Schley was in command. On the
other hand, ! feel that there is reason
able doubt whether he did not move his
squadron with sufficient expedition from
port to port.
The court Is a unit In condemning Ad-
miral Schey's action on the point where
1t seems to me he most gravely erred-hls
| 40
| doned the blockade and his disobedience
of orders and msstatement Of facts In
| rela ton thereto. 1t should be remember
| ed. however, that the majority OF these
| actions which the court censures occurred
| five weeks or more before the tight Itself
| and 1t certainly seems that II Adnlfa
Schleys actions were censurable he should
not have been left as second in command
under Admiral Sampson. His offenses
| were In effect condoned when he was not
! called to account for them. Admiral
| Sampson. after the fight in an official let
ter to the department alluded for the first
time to Admiral Schleys "reprehensible
conduct" six weeks previously. If Adml-
raj Schley was guilty of reprehenslble
conduct of a kind which called for such
notice from Admiral Sampson. then Ad-
miral Sampson ought not to have left him
as senior officer of the blockading squad
ron on the Sd of July when he (Sampson)
steamed away on his proper errand OF
communication with General Smarter.
The Point of the Appeal.
We can therefore for our present pur-
poses dismiss consideration of so much OF
the appeal as relates to anything except
the battle. AS regards this the poin'
raised in the appeal is between Admira
Sampson and Admiral Schley as to which
was in command and as to which was en-
| titled to the credit, If either OF them was
really entitled to any unusual and pre-
eminent credit by any special exhibitor
of genius skill and courage. The cour
could have considered both of these Ques
lions. hut as a matter Of fact. it unani
mously excluded evidence offered upor
; them and through its president announce
! its refusal to hear Admiral Sampson
l side at all, and in view of such exclusion
| the majority of the court acted with en-
tire propriety in not expressing any opin
| ion on these points. The matter has, now
| ever been raised by the president or TN
court Moreover, it is the point upol
| which Admiral Schley in his appeal lay
J | most stress and which he especially ask
me to consider have therefore CAREFUL
!. investigated this matter also and nav
| informed myself upon 1t from the bes
sources Of information at my command.
The appeal of Admiral Schley to me
not. as to this the chief point he raises
really an appeal from the decision of tn
court of inquiry. Five-sixths of the ap
neal Ia devoted to this question of com
mand and credit-that Is, to matter Whlc
the court of inquiry did not consider
= is in effect an appeal from the action
3 President Mckinley three years ago VINE
Z he sent in the recommendations Tor pre-
n,otion for the various officers connecte
with the Santiago squadron, basing thes
recommendations upon his estimate OF tn
credit to which the officers were respet
lively entitled. What l have to decd
therefore is whether or not President M
Kinley did injustice in the matter IN
necessarily involves a comparison OF u
actions of the different commanders ell
- gagged The exhaustive official reports
v the action leave little to be brought OF
anew, but as the question of Admir-
Sampsons right to be considered in chi
command, which was determined IN II
- favor by President Mckinley and later !
the court of claims, has never miner
been officially raised deemed 1t pest
4 secure statements Of the commanders
u the five ships (other than the Brookl'
4 | and New York the f1agships of the tV
- admiralty which were actively engaged
h | the fight.
An Outline of the Battle.
- From the statements of the captain
= from the official reports and from the te
timony before the court of inquiry L
- fight can be plotted with absolute &c
tainty in its important outlines. thou!
- there is conflict as to minor points. VIII
= the four Spanish cruisers came out of t
!" harbor, the New York had left her po
ton in the blockading line forty or fort
Ave minutes before. She had hoisted t
- signal, Disregard the movements OF t
- commander in chief" but had not hoist
the signal to the second in command
take charge, which, as appears by t
o. signal book, was sometimes but not
o ways used when the command was trar
2 ferred As soon as the engagement beg
< the New York turned and steamed bat
& hosting a signal to close in, which, no
3 ever none of the squadron saw. She
o in plain sight and not very much fartf
9 from the easternmost blockading sh
2 than the latter were from the Brook,
x which was the westernmost Of the lii
& AS soon as the Spanish ships appear
B the FIVE big American blockaders star
o toward them in accordance with
2 standing orders of Admiral Sampson. A
z er this first move each acted purely