The Hawaiian gazette., 1905-09-26

throughout the engineer department
are TO be moved at lenst once week.
The second says that he failed to en-
force paragraph 10 of article 1909.
which provides that the safety valves
shall be lifted by the hand at least
once each week, when not under steam.
to insure their good working order.
The third says that he failed to en-
force article 652, which defines the re-
sponsibility for the preservation. and
efficient working of all the machinery
aboard war vessels, and for the clean
liness and good condition Of all bulk
heads, doors, valves, pipes and machin-
cry in the engine-room. The four other
specifications are similar in character
to these.
The court-martial adjourned today
until tomorrow almost as soon as Il
convened to allow more time for prep.
aration Of the defense. The line Of de-
fense which will be offered by Judge
George d. Gear, counsel for Commander
Young. is, however, easily prophesied.
1t will be pointed out that not one of
the articles which the officer on trial
is accused Of having failed to enforce
was framed for the guidance of any
one but the engineer officers Of the SER
vice. 1t will be shown that Comman-
der Young did not have the power to
appoint his engineer, nor the power to
dismiss him. 1t will be shown that
Commander Young had repeatedly re-
ported to the Navy Department that
the boilers. of the Bennington were
dilapidated and unsafe. It will be
shown that the Navy Department al
ways disregarded these reports or else
had treated them as unimportant.
FRIENDS ASK QUESTIONS.
The friends Of Commander Young,
and his friends are legion, want to
know why the Secretary Of the Navy
took 1t upon himself to formulate these
charges against this gallant officer
when the board Of inquiry convened in
this case under Admiral McCalla placed
all possible responsibility for the Ben
nington disaster elsewhere. They want
to know how it happened that the
Navy Department placed in charge of
the Bennington's engine-room young
officer who had never been in charge
of an engineEoom before. They want
to know if the Secretary of the Navy
would court-martial Commander Young
if the doctor on his staff should give a
man in the sick-bay cyanide of potas-
stun instead of quinine. They want to
know if Commander Young would oe
held culpable IL stdker mixed a bomb
with the coal in his ships bunkers.
They want to know why vessel of
the Bennington rating was supplied
with neither an assistant engineer nor
even a warrant machinist. They want
to know why the Bennington's boilers,
placed in her in 1899, were never re-
newed, though they had been pro-
nounced dangerous again and again,
and though the average life of such
boilers is but ten years. They want to
know why no attention was paid to
Commander Young's letter to the Com
manderin-C Chief of the Pacific squad.
ron, Admiral Goodrich, dated only two
days before the explosion at San Diego,
and plainly stating that the Benning-
ton 8 boilers were unsafe. They want
to know if some one, hiding behind a
desk in the Navy Department, is try
ing to shield himself by making Of
Commander Young scapegoat.
RT-MARTIAL UNPOPULAR.
Probably an answer to all these ques-
tions will be forthcoming during the
progress of Commander Young's trial.
Meanwhile it must be admitted that
in naval circles the most unpopular
thing Charles j. Bonaparte has done
since he became Secretary of the Navy
was the ordering of this court martial
1t is asserted that even in the Navy
Department disapproval of this order
is freely, though circumspectly, ex-
pressed. Commander Young is great
favorite with almost every man in that
department, and Yet the criticism of
Secretary Bonaparte is based on some
thing more important than anybody 8
popularity. Every naval officer wants
to see the right man punished for the
terrible catastrophe aboard the Ben
nington, but they do not believe Com
mander Young is the right man. They
t say this publicly, but they can
say it privately 7and they do.
The members of the court-martial
convened to try Commander Young
are: Rear-Admiral Henry Glass, Cap
tain Charles i. Perkins, Captain Will
liam p. Day, Captain John E. Roller,
Captain Frank II. Holmes, Commander
Lewis @. Hailner, Commander James B.
Bull, Commander Edmund b. Under
wood, Commander William Winder,
Commander Stacy Potts, Commander
Robert M. Doyle, Commander Henry c..
Gearing, Commander Arthur w. Dodd
and Judge-Advocate Captain Ernest T..
West, U. s. M. C.