Evening capital and Maryland gazette. (Annapolis, Md.) 1910-1922, 1910-09-23
FINDS It A BIG TASK
Raising OF The Maine Likely To
Cost A Considerable Sum
KEEL s TO 10 FEET IN MUD
President Gomez And Cuban Govern.
meut Offer To Aid Americans In
The Undertaking

The raising of the Maine will cost
large sum of money. The task
will test the abilities of the best
engineers in our army.
This is indicated by the preimi
nary report just made by Col. Will
lam H. Back, of the Engineer Corps,
stationed at New York, but detail
ed to take general charge of the
raising of the Maine. The keel of
the vessel, he reports, is embedded
in the mud of the barber to the
depth of eight to ten feet.
The Government of Cuba, he re-
ports, will render the United States
engineers every possible aid in the
attempt to raise and remove the
wreck of the old battleship from Ha-
vana harbor. Colonel Black arrived
at Havana September z.
With American Minister Jackson
he called on the Cuban Secretary of
State, Senor Sanguily, who ceived
them cordi lily and offered his aid in
removing the wreck from the hsrbor
He arranged for an intervie with
the President of Cuba on the follow
ing Friday. On September s Colonel
Black met the Secretary OF Pubic
Works, Senior Joaquin Chalous, who
put the floating plant and personnel
of his department at the service of
the United States to assist in the
work.
On September 9 Captain Fergus n
arrived at Havana, and the two off
GERS, Secretary Sanguilly and the
American Minister called on Presi-
dent Gomez.
President Gomez stated that Cuba
had but little opportunity of doing
anything for so powerful and rich a
nation as the United States in return
for all that that nation had done for
the republic" reports Colonel Black.
''and that he was only too delighted
to assist with all the resources of
Cuba. He confirmed the offer of the
Secretary of Public Works to loan to
the Unied States, without charge,
the floating plant necessary and also
the services of the engineer in charge
of harbor works of the Island, Senior
Manul Lombilo-Clark. Mr. Clark
is a capable engineer we'll known to
me, who possesses a most insatiate
knowledge of the condition in Ha-
vana harbor.
The President also directed that the
Cuban reservation in Casa Blanca,
formerly known as "El Destino, !"
should be turned over for the use of
the American for storage of mater
ials. The Secretary of the Treasury
gave assurance of the free entry of
materials and plant required for
the work. On September 10, Col
onel Black, Captain Ferguson, AS
sitant Engineers Harper and Lom-
billo-Clark visited the wreck of the
Maine.
"a few hasty soundings were
made which confirmed the latest
charts as to the depth of water
surrounding the Ship" reports Col
onel Black, "and which showed, as
nearly as could be discovered, that
the keel lay at depth of from eight
to ten feet below the bottom of the
harbor. -
Colonel Black has returned to his
Office in New York. He left at Ha-
vana Captain Ferguson. who COM
menced active operations by studying
the conditions of the Maine and
the surrounding bottom of the har-
Dor. In addition to the soundings
and borings the American engineers
intend to sink two cylinders of
spiral rivited pipe. one "a inches
in diameter and the other sc, to
pump them out and observe the in
flow of mud. If practicable an ir-
regular cylinder about or 5 feet in
diameter of sheet steel piling will
alo be placed for further study of