Evening capital and Maryland gazette., 1915-08-30
FORMER NAVY SECRETARY
JOHN D. LONG DEAD
Passes Away at bingham Massa.
chusetts.
SENT FAMOUS CABLE TO DEWEY.
Took Part Of Maryland in Schley-
Sampson Controversy---Gov. Of
Massachusetts, Three Times.

John ID. Long, former Secretary of
the Navy.and former Governor of Mas
sachUsetts, died ar his home at Hing
ham, Mass, Saturday night.
Mr.. Long was Secretary of the Navy
during the Spanish-Amberacin war. 1t
was he who is on record as having dis
patched the famous message of April
25, 1898, to Commodore George Dewey
commanding the Asiatic squadron, then
waiting orders at Hongkong. Theme
sage read:
"War has commenced between
Spain and the United States. Pro-
ceed at once to the Philippine ISL
ands. Capture or destroy Spanish
ships. Use the utmost endeayOr.-
1t was on the sixth day after the re-
ceipt of these orders that Dewey re-
ported his great victory in the battle
of Manila Bay. AS to the message
which had thus sent the fleet into ac-
ton, Secretary Long once said:
My name was at the bottom Clio
rious Dispatch / should rather like
to have the credit of it. But it was not
mine. | directed Chief Crowinshield
of the Bureau of Navigation, to have
such dispatch made ready. But
Crowninshield did not write it. Who
prepared it? Some subordinate clerk
in his bureau. Who, God only knows.
AS for the words, l should have used
the word commence l should have
said: The war has begun Aside
from that, il is am ighty good mes
sage. ! think We can pardon that
word. The dispatch came into me.
took it to the President, saying to him:
Mr.. President, think this ought to
go. He said: All right. Sign it,"
Mr.. Long was called to head the
Navy Department when President Nc
Kinley took office in March, 1897, and
also served a year in the Cabinet of
President Roosevelt. Rumors of his
resignation We're frequent during the
Sampson -Schley controversy, when Mr.
Long was accused of unduly favoring
Schley, but he declared that he would
not resign under fire" and retained
his position until 1902, when he was
much affected by the death of his
daughter and his own ill health. In
accepting his resignation President
Roosevelt said:
at has never been my good for
tune to be associated with any pub
lie man more single minded In his
devotion to the public interest,"
In addition to directing the navy dur
ing the war with Spain,th official acts
of Secretary Long included the plac-
ing of thousands of navy employees un-
der the Civil Service rules and the
prohibition OF the sale of beer on naval
vessels.
John Davis Long was born in Buck
field, Me-. in 1898, the son of a pros
porous business man, but his own pre-
dilection was for law and politics. Set
tied in Boston after his graduation
from Harvard, he served four terms in
the State Legislature: was three times
Speaker of the House was Lieutenant
Governor, and in 1879 defeated Gen.
Benjamin f. Butler, the Democratic
candidate for Governor, by a plurality
of $4,000. He was twice reelected
with large pluralities and sent to Con
gres for three terms. There he form
ed warm personal regard for Will
liam Mckinley.
In 1884 he made a strong speech
nominating Senator George +. Ed
munds, of Vermont, for President in
| the Republican National Convention.
He was one of the most polished de
baters in Congress, his speeches being
noted for their literary excellence and
dry humor which made him popular
| as an after-dinner speaker.
AT leisure at his home in the quaint
old town of bingham, near Boston, he
wrote volume of poems and trans
lated Virgil's "Aenid." He was a mem
| Der of the American Academy of Arts
and Sciences. A total abstainer from
early life he was also for many years
| president of the Massachusetts, Total
Abstinence Society Notwithstanding
his national prominence as former
Secretary of the Navy, among his New
England friends he was affectionately
known as Governor Long tc the emo
Of his life