The White Pine news. [volume] (Ely, Nev.) 1906-1910, 1907-07-15
FILES PROTEST
AGAINST SENSA.
TIONAL STORIES
Commander Wilson Disclaims Any
Intention Of Smuggling
Goods.
(By the Associated Press. y

| WASHlNGION, July 14.-AS
matter of justice to himself as well
as to other naval officers similarly
situated, Commander Cameron MGR
| Winslow has written to the secretary
of the navy letter protesting
against THE sensational and injuri-
GUS articles which have been pub
lished in some of the newspapers OF
the country concerning alleged Snug
Cling by myself at the time of my
detachment from the United States
cruiser Charleston at San Diego, Cal
ifornia, June 11th."
Captain Winslow's experience was
similar to that of many other naval
officers returning to their own coun-
try after long cruise in foreign wa
ters in that he was charged with hav-
ing sought to evade the payment of
duties on large quantities of expen-
sive wines and thousands of high
grade cigars and other table luxuries
as well as on curios of great value
secured abroad.
The facts are very different ac-
cOrding to the statement made by
Captain Winslow to the department
he says his personal property was
necessarily pacned in number of
small boxes to facilitate handling.
They contained his household effects,
such as blankets, bed and table lin
en-, towels, pictures, photographs,
books and rugs--in all consider
able quantity and purchased in the
United States. The officer says
Il possessed no rare wines and
no large quantity of cigars, nor did
| have a single curio. Such wines
and cigars as | had were bought in
New York and during the cruise the
greater part had been aboard the
ship approximately year and were
purchased at my expense for use on
board the ship as occasion required
for private and official entertaining,
principally official, and not for i'm
portation or even for my own use
on shore.
Commander Winslow shows that
so far from making any effort to con-
ceal the landing of these goods, they
were as a matter of fact, landed at
the custom house under the eye of
a customs representative and sent
directly to the railroad station with
out any thought that this remnant
of cabin supplies would be considered
dutiable. Commander Winslow in
formed the collector of the nature of
the contents of the boxes adding that
he did not think they were dutiable.
'but If there was the slightest ques-
tion he preferred to pay the duty in
full. He says he supplied a complete
list to the collector and paid duty
in any case where there was a doubt
in his own mind as to whether the
articles were purchased in New York
or in a foreign country, the total
amount paid being small.
Says Commander Winslow:
so far as | am aware my boxes
were not opened and furthermore,
there was no friction or misunder-
standing whatever between the GUS
tom house officials and myself nor
was there any effort to conceal or
avoid payment of duty. | was treat
ed with courtesy by the collector and
his subordinates. A commanding Of
sficer of a vessel of war must be pre-
pared to do whatever official enter
tanning may be required and unless
the extent of such entertaining can
he foretold, as well as the date of
it, the officers are liable to have
stores for which he may have no use
on shore left on his hands. If the
law exacts payment of duty on such
things, it would seem to entail an
unnecessary financial hardship on the
officer, particularly as our command
ing officers are not allowed table
money for official entertaining as in
the case of foreign navies.