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Mt3a6zacibuaetttS  Yittorical 6ocietp
FOUNDED I79I
COLLECTIONS
VOLUME 78




Committee of Publication
l   *
ARTHUR MEIER SCHLESINGER, Chairman
LAWRENCE SHAW MAYO
CLARENCE SAUNDERS BRIGHAM
GEORGE GREGERSON WOLKINS
STEWART MITCHELL, Editor








JOHN DAVIS LONGJ
1906




PAPERS
OF
JOHN DAVIS LONG
I897-1904
SELECTED AND EDITED
BY
GARDNER WELD ALLEN


PUBLISHED AT THE CHARGE
OF THE
PEABODY FUND
THE MASSACHUSETTS HISTORICAL SOCIETY


1939




FIVE HUNDRED COPIES OF THIS VOLUME
HAVE BEEN PRINTED, AND THE
TYPE DISTRIBUTED


PRINTED AT THE PLIMPTON PRESS
NORWOOD, MASSACHUSETTS






INTRODUCTION




GOVERNOR LONG, as he was nearly always called, was
born at Buckfield, Maine, October 27, 1838; graduated from
Harvard College in 1857; studied law and practised in Boston to
the end of his life, though interrupted while holding political offices.
He served in the Massachusetts legislature and was governor of
the state in i880, 188I, and 1882; a member of the national House
of Representatives from i883 to I889; and finally secretary of the
navy from March 4, 1897, to May i, 1902. He became a member
of the Massachusetts Historical Society in i905. He died on August
28, 1915.
In 1929 the late Mrs. Long gave her husband's papers to the
Society-a very large collection. For the period of his service
in President McKinley's Cabinet the number of papers may be
roughly estimated at more than fifteen thousand. While the greater
part of the correspondence is of an ordinary sort, there are several
hundred letters of decided interest and some of historical importance. Of three hundred and seventy-seven papers selected for publication, twenty-four are letters written by Secretary Long, comprising practically all of his authorship, during this period, in the
collection. Nearly all the remainder are letters written to him.
Only a few of the large number of writers will be mentioned
here. As might be supposed the letters of naval officers and others
concerning naval affairs are numerous and most of them are personal - some of them confidential. Presumably few if any of these
have before been published. Captain Mahan wrote to the secretary
often and Admiral Sampson was also a constant correspondent.
There are a few letters from Admiral Dewey. Captain Chadwick,
in later years a member of the Massachusetts Historical Society, Captain Goodrich, and many other officers had much to say to their
chief about ships, cruises, and operations in the Spanish War; about
the Naval Academy, and the Naval War College. Senator Chandler,
a former secretary of the navy, and Senators Hoar and Lodge
wrote frequently. Theodore Roosevelt, as assistant secretary of the
navy, governor of New York, Vice-President, and President, con



vi


INTRODUCTION


tributed many characteristic letters to the collection. For permission to include these, thanks are due to the executors of his estate.
Massachusetts affairs and also matters of national and general interest are discussed by Governor Wolcott, Major Higginson, and
others. Secretary Long's classmate, Horace N. Fisher, was an authority on Latin America and had a wide knowledge of a variety
of subjects which gives his letters a peculiar interest. Of the topics
discussed, Cuba and the Philippines had a timely importance.
Among the anti-imperialists and pacifists, whose opinions were
usually expressed with vehemence, may be noted Governor Boutwell, Gamaliel Bradford, Sr., Moorfield Storey, and the Reverend
Charles F. Dole. Supporters of the administration were less emotional, but their arguments may perhaps be generally regarded as the
more reasonable.
The secretary himself, while a sincere lover of peace striving to
avert war, accepted the situation as it developed and administered
his department with energy and sound judgment. His good nature,
sense of humor, and tact smoothed the rough places. The vexed
question of the policy to be observed towards publicity and newspaper correspondents gave him concern and sometimes called for
firmness, of which he was fully capable upon occasion. Governor
Long, as every one knew, was a kind-hearted man.' Many are the
letters in this collection from parents, wives, and others inquiring
as to the whereabouts and welfare of various officers and men in the
service and acknowledging acts of kindness to husbands, sons, and
friends. The governor was president of the Massachusetts Total
Abstinence Society, but was not one of the fanatical "drys " we
once had with us. He was deluged with letters begging him to abolish the canteen in the Boston Navy Yard, a beneficent institution
in those days, keeping the men out of the saloons which infested
the neighborhood. After the Spanish War, however, drinking by
enlisted men in the navy was prohibited.2
The Sampson-Schley controversy was one of the most painful
and disagreeable episodes in our history, in which, however, the
officers concerned did not themselves take part. After the Battle of
Santiago, Admiral Sampson was violently attacked in many newspapers. In reply to these critics Secretary Long sent to the press a
1 For a very harsh opinion of Secretary Long, see Letters of Henry Adams, ii
(Boston, 1938), 224 and 368. [S.M.]
2 General Order 508, February 3, I899.




I~NTRODUCTIONN


vii
vn


letter published August 9, 1898, defending the admiral and explaining the situation. This brought to the secretary much commendation but at the same time a torrent of abuse was poured upon him.
For the next three years the discussion went on intermittently until
the Schley Court of Inquiry in the fall of 90o, when the secretary
was subjected to another ordeal of vituperation, mitigated fortunately by many expressions of approval and sympathy.
It was well understood that the governor would have liked to be
a United States senator. Probably for many years after his term
in the House of Representatives this was his ambition. All hope was
finally dashed by a letter from Senator Hoar (January 2I, I90I),
which may now be seen in the collection, torn in pieces and stuck
together again.3 In 1900 it seems to have been assumed by many
politicians that he would be nominated for Vice-President, but the
prize, considered of doubtful value at the time, was carried off by
his former assistant secretary.4
Inasmuch as Governor Long was a New Englander it is only
natural that a majority of the writers of these letters, if we except
naval officers, should have been men of this community. Many were
Harvard men and a considerable number were then, or afterwards
became, members of the Massachusetts Historical Society. This
gives the correspondence a somewhat local character. It has seemed
pertinent to indicate college affiliations in footnotes relating to the
writers and persons mentioned. Nearly all naval officers were graduates of Annapolis.
This work was undertaken in 1929 at the suggestion of Mr.
Worthington C. Ford, Editor Emeritus of the Society, and within
the next two years the letters to be printed were carefully selected
and copied. During this period the help and advice given by the
Librarian Emeritus, Mr. Julius S. Tuttle, in the search for explanatory material for notes, were of great value. Conditions being then
unfavorable, publication was deferred. Within recent months the
8 Governor Long had, in point of fact, another chance to enter the Senate.
When Senator Hoar died suddenly on September 30, 1904, Governor John L. Bates
had good reason to see fit to appoint his own predecessor, former Governor Winthrop Murray Crane, to the vacant seat. Senator Crane served out the remainder
of Hoar's term, and was reelected to the Senate in I907. [S.M.]
4 Governor Long is said to have doubted the sincerity of Senator Lodge's
promise to support his candidacy for the second place on the ticket at the Republican convention in Philadelphia, even though this nomination would have removed
Long as a possible competitor for Lodge's seat in the Senate in I904-1905. See the
last letter in this volume. [S.M.]




viii               INTRODUCTION
copied letters have been carefully prepared for the press by Mr.
Mitchell.
Secretary Long's book, The New American Navy, and Mr.
Lawrence S. Mayo's America of Yesterday, as Reflected in the
Journal of John Davis Long, have been of great assistance. Admiral
Chadwick's Spanish-American War has also been helpful.
For the frontispiece to this volume the Society is indebted to the
kindness and generosity of Mr. Lawrence Shaw Mayo.
G.W.A.






CONTENTS




JOHN DAVIS LONG IN  906
I. INTRODUCTION...
II. LETTERS FROM SECRETARY LONG:
897. Frontispiece


V


March
October


23
I1


To Selwyn Z. Bowman. Copy..
Alfred Noon. Copy..


8
25


March      2
April      2
8
June       25
27
July      11
21
28
August     6
6


1898
To Milton Eames. L.S......
Henry L. Nelson. L.S.
B. F. Long. L.S.
Francis D. Millet. L.S.
B. J. King. L.S.
Henry Cabot Lodge. Copy.
Henry T. Scott. Copy.
Henry J. Wright. Copy.
William R. Hearst. Copy.
Lieutenant Augustus N. Mayer. Copy.


60
82
88
'44
146
I55
159
i6p
178
179


February 28
March     17


I899
To B. F. Brown. Copy...
Rear-Admiral Winfield S. Schley.
Copy.........
Admiral George Dewey. Copy.
Rear-Admiral William T. Sampson.
Copy.....


April
October


237
239
250
275


12
20


1900
February  16    To George McAneny. Copy.


312




x


CONTENTS


x              CONTENTS


February
October
November
December


26
28
6
26


1901
To James McMillan. L.S....
T. A. Tompkins. L.S..
Charles D. Sigsbee. Copy.
Benjamin H. Ticknor. Copy.
1903
To Theodore Roosevelt. Rough draft..
Mrs. Thomas B. Reed. Rough draft.
Theodore Roosevelt. Rough draft.


353
397
401
414


October


I4
I4
'7


434
436
438


III. LETTERS TO SECRETARY LONG:
I897


March      3
4
4
6
I9
31
April      i
5
7
8


IO
I3
21
May         3
II
'5
June       12
July       12
August      5
September 29
October     2
6
25
28
November 8


From Robert M. Morse. A.L.S.
Carleton Hunt. L.S.
Francis D. Millet. A.L.S.
Francis Bartlett. A.L.S.
Commander Caspar F. Goodrich. L.S.
Nathan Appleton. A.L.S.
Francis Bartlett. A.L.S.
Benjamin F. Tracy. L.S.
William R. Grace. L.S.
Rear-Admiral Thomas O. Selfridge.
L.S.
Commander Caspar F. Goodrich. L.S.
General James H. Wilson. A.L.S.
Roger Wolcott. L.S.
Roger Wolcott. L.S.
Captain Philip H. Cooper. L.S.
Commander Caspar F. Goodrich. L.S.
William R. Day. Copy.
Commodore Charles O'Neil. L.S.
Nathan Appleton. A.L.S.
Rear-Admiral Montgomery Sicard. L.S.
Commodore Henry L. Howison. L.S.
Henry Cabot Lodge. L.S.
Commander Henry W. Lyon. L.S.
Captain Philip H. Cooper. L.S.
William Endicott, Jr. A.L.S.


3
3
5
6
7
I0
II
12
13
'4
'5
i6
'7
'7
18
'9
20
21
22
23
24
25
27
29
31




CONTENTS                            xi
November 9     From Nathan Appleton. A.L.S. (with enclosure).........   32
i8        Captain French E. Chadwick. A.L.S..  33
19        Rear-Admiral Thomas O. Selfridge.
Unsigned.                           34
19        Commander Henry W. Lyon. L.S..       36
20        Captain Caspar F. Goodrich. L.S..    38
1898
January    4   From Theodore Roosevelt. L.S..           40
22        Theodore Roosevelt. L.S.....         4
February   8        Theodore Roosevelt. L.S....         42
I         Captain Caspar F. Goodrich. L.S. (with
enclosures)........         47
12        Rear-Admiral   Montgomery    Sicard.
A.L.S.                              51
14        Horace N. Fisher. A.L.S.              52
i6        Theodore Roosevelt. L.S....      53
17        Theodore Roosevelt. L.S....     55
17        Theodore Roosevelt. L.S.              56
19        Theodore Roosevelt. L.S....     57
19        Edward O. Wolcott. A.L.S....       58
26        A. Maurice Low. A.L.S.....       59
March      I        William C. Whitney. A.L.S...       60
2        John W. Candler. A.L.S..62
2        Walter L. Bouve. A.L.S....       62
4        Captain William T. Sampson. L.S..    64
4        Gamaliel Bradford. A.L.S..          65
4        William Lloyd Garrison. A.L.S..      67
6        Robert M. Morse. A.L.S....         67
10        William E. Chandler. A.L.S...       68
io        Eugene Hale. A.L.S.               69
10        Thomas H. Talbot. A.L.S...       69
12        Lieutenant-Commander Frederick A.
Miller. A.L.S.......              70
14        Nathan Appleton. A.L.S..71
16        Captain William T. Sampson. L.S..    71
22        William H. Lincoln. A.L.S...         73
23        Horace N. Fisher. A.L.S.....         74
24        Captain Caspar F. Goodrich. A.L.S..  75




xii


CONTENTS


xli            CONTENTS


March      24
24
28
29
3'
3'
April       2
3
4
4


From Carleton Hunt. A.L.S.....
James De Normandie. A.L.S.
William H. Moody. L.S.
George S. Boutwell. L.S.
Edwin D. Mead. A.L.S.
Joseph R. Leeson. L.S..
Lieutenant William H. H. Southerland.


76
77
78
78
79
8o
82
83
84


5
To
I0
'II
I'I
1 2
'5
i6
'7
'9
20
22
22
25
27
28
30
3
3
5
5
5
6
7
9


A.L.S.
William Claflin. A.L.S.
Theodore Roosevelt. L.S.
Commander Willard H.
A.L.S.
Horace N. Fisher. A.L.S.
Roger Wolcott. A.L.S.
Horace N. Fisher. A.L.S.
Theodore Roosevelt. L.S.
Gamaliel Bradford. A.L.S.
Theodore Roosevelt. L.S.
Theodore Roosevelt. L.S.
Theodore Roosevelt. L.S.
Henry L. Higginson. L.S.
Theodore Roosevelt. L.S.






Commodore Henry L. Howison. I
Horace N. Fisher. A.L.S..
W. Sturgis Bigelow. A.L.S.
Henry L. Higginson. L.S.
Roger Wolcott. L.S.
Rear-Admiral Peirce Crosby. A.L.S.
Roger Wolcott. L.S.
Captain Caspar F. Goodrich. A.L.S.
Henry L. Higginson. L.S...
Captain French E. Chadwick. L.S.
William F. Draper. L.S.
Horace N. Fisher. A.L.S.
Charles H. Allen. A.L.S.
Henry L. Higginson. L.S.
Paul Leicester Ford. A.L.S.
Theodore Roosevelt. L.S.
Captain Philip H. Cooper. L.S.
Horace N. Fisher. A.L.S..


Brownson.


84
86
89
89
91
92
93
93
95
96
97,.S.  99
100
103
103
104
105
io6
107
107
io8
109
112
113
I114
" 5
" 5


May




CONTENTS                          x.i.
May       io, From William C. Whitney. A.L.S....i 19
10     Captain Alfred T. Mahan. L.S...
10        Henry Lee. A.L.S. (with enclosure)  i120
14        Richard Harding Davis. A.L.S..    121
14        Jesse H. Jones. A.L.S. (with enclosures)  1 23
i6     Henry Lee. A.L.S..                  I124
19        William E. Chandler. A.L.S..1 26
19        Captain Caspar F. Goodrich. A.L.S  I126
30        Samuel Hoar. A.L.S..               128
30        William Endicott, Jr. A.L.S...
June       I        Commodore Arent S. Crowninshield.
L.S.                              132
4        Brigadier-General Adolphus W. Greely.
L.S..                             13 3
6        Rear-Admiral William T. Sampson. L.S. 13 3
Io     Captain French E. Chadwick. L.S..134
i6       Rear-Admiral Montgomery Sicard. L.S. 138
i6       Horace N. Fisher. A.L.S..           I39
17       Captain Albert S. Barker. A.L.S.    141
2 1       Horace Binney Sargent. A.L.S.      1 42
27        Roger Wolcott. L.S..-146
July       IRoger Wolcott. L.S..                       1 47
4        Eugene Hale. L.S..-147
5        Colonel Charles Heywood. L.S.      148
5        Thomas Wentworth Higginson. A.L.S. 149
6        Captain Philip H. Cooper. A.L.S..  io
6        Brigadier-General Adolphus W. Greely.
L.S..                             I50
6        James M. Barker. A.L.S..           151I
7        Nathan Appleton. A.L.S..            5 5'
8        James De Normandie. A.L.S..1 52
10     Captain Caspar F. Goodrich. L.S.  I. 5
1 3       Captain Caspar F. Goodrich. A.L.S.  15
1 5       Horace N. Fisher. A.L.S.I5
2 1       Rear-Admiral Montgomery Sicard. L.S. i 6o
28        Moorfield Storey. L.S..            163
2 8       Captain Alfred T. Mahan. A.L.S.    i66
29        Captain Alfred T. Mahan. A.L.S.    i67
29        Benjamin F. Stevens. L.S..         167
29        George W. Stone. A.L.S..           1 69




xiv


CONTENTS


xiv    CNTENT


July
August


31
I
2
5
5
7
7
8
9
9
I0
I9


23
29
[September?]
September 2
4
I0
14
October    6
6
I4
I7
18
24
November I
I
3
4
4
I0
16
18


From Thomas H. Talbot. A.L.S...
Frederick C. Shattuck. A.L.S.
William B. Allison. L.S.
Captain Alfred T. Mahan. A.L.S.
Horace N. Fisher. A.L.S.
Captain Alfred T. Mahan. A.L.S.
George S. Boutwell. A.L.S..
Henry Cabot Lodge. L.S.
E. Benjamin Andrews. A.L.S.
Sherman Hoar. L.S.
Rear-Admiral William T. Sampson. L.S.
Commodore Arent S. Crowninshield.
L.S.
Rear-Admiral Montgomery Sicard.
A.L.S..........
Rear-Admiral George Dewey. Copy.
Rear Admiral William T. Sampson.
A.L.S.
Joseph R. Hawley. L.S.
Rear-Admiral William T. Sampson.
A.L.S.
William H. Moody. L.S....
Captain Alfred T. Mahan. A.L.S.
George Frisbie Hoar. L.S.
Captain Charles E. Clark. A.L.S.
Captain Charles E. Clark. A.L.S.
Commander Richardson Clover. L.S.
Henry Cabot Lodge. L.S.
Captain Alfred T. Mahan. A.L.S.
Captain William C. Wise. L.S.
Edward Atkinson. L.S.
Ira N. Hollis. A.L.S.
Commander Charles H. Stockton. A.L.S.
Rear-Admiral William T. Sampson. L.S.
Captain William C. Wise. L.S..
Captain Alfred T. Mahan. A.L.S.
Captain Alfred T. Mahan. A.L.S.
Rear-Admiral William T. Sampson.
A.L.S.
Captain Albert S. Barker. A.L.S.


'7'
'73
'74
I75
176
179
i80
ISI
182
I83
185
i85
I87
i88
I90
19'
192
192
'94
I96
I96
'97
198
200
201
202
203
204
205
206
206
209
209
211
211


I9




CONTENTS


XV


CONTETS         x


November 22
December    i
5
26
28


January    14
16
'7
i8
19
I9
I9
February    3
7
7
25
26
March       8
9
I7
20
22
30
31
April       8
II
20
20
May         2
IO
13
22
31
June        7
7
28


From Everett Frazar. L.S.
Captain Albert S. Barker. A.L.S.
Charles F. Dole. A.L.S...
Horace N. Fisher. A.L.S...
Captain Alfred T. Mahan. A.L.S.
1899
From Commodore John W. Philip. A.L.S.
Captain Alfred T. Mahan. A.L.S.
Edward Everett Hale. A.L.S.
Captain Charles D. Sigsbee. A.L.S.
Captain Alfred T. Mahan. A.L.S.
Orville H. Platt. L.S. (with enclosure)
Ira N. Hollis. L.S.
Captain French E. Chadwick. A.L.S.
Captain Charles D. Sigsbee. A.L.S.
Captain Charles D. Sigsbee. A.L.S.
Horace N. Fisher. A.L.S.
Captain Alfred T. Mahan. A.L.S.
Admiral George Dewey. L.S.
Rear-Admiral William T. Sampson.
L.S.
Rear-Admiral Winfield  S. Schley.
A.L.S
Henry Cabot Lodge. L.S.
Alexander Agassiz. A.L.S.
Lieutenant Sidney A. Staunton. L.S.
Captain French E. Chadwick. L.S.
Captain Albert S. Barker. A.L.S.
Allan D. Brown. L.S.
Rear-Admiral John W. Philip. L.S.
George Batchelor. L.S..
Captain Alfred T. Mahan. A.L.S.
Edward A. Horton. L.S.
Horace N. Fisher. A.L.S.
T. Jefferson Coolidge. A.L.S.
Horace N. Fisher. A.L.S.
Captain Alfred T. Mahan. A.L.S.
Captain Alfred T. Mahan. A.L.S.
Captain French E. Chadwick. L.S.


213
215
216
220
223


224
224
226
226
227
227
230
231
232
232
233
236
238
239
240
240
241
242
245
247
249
251
252
254
254
256
259
259
262
264
265




xvi


CONTENTS


July       6
23
August    2 I
September I
27
28
October    4
I3
I3
22
23
29
31
November 20
23
December   5
12
12
x6
I7
19
23
27


From James B. Thayer. A.L.S.
Richard Harding Davis. A.L.S.
Captain Alfred T. Mahan. A.L.S.
Henry L. Higginson. L.S.
Captain Alfred T. Mahan. L.S.
Theodore Roosevelt. Copy.
Edwin Ginn. Signed by his secretary.
Commander    Richard   Wainwright.
A.L.S.
Charles Francis Adams. L.S.
Rear-Admiral William  T. Sampson.
A.L.S.........
Elihu Root. L.S.
Horace N. Fisher. A.L.S.
Commander John P. Merrell. A.L.S.
(with enclosure)
Major-General Fitzhugh Lee. A.L.S.
Lieutenant-Commander William H. H.
Southerland. L.S.
Arthur Lord. L.S.
Captain Alfred T. Mahan. A.L.S.
Henry L. Higginson. L.S.
Theodore Roosevelt. L.S.
Henry L. Higginson. A.L.S.
Theodore Roosevelt. L.S.
Lieutenant-Commander William H. H.
Southerland. L.S......
Rear-Admiral William T. Sampson. L.S.


265
266
267
268
269
271
272
273
274
276
277
277
278
279
280
283
284
285
287
288
288
289
293


January


1900
4   From Theodore Roosevelt. L.S.
17        Rear-Admiral William T. Sampson. L.S.
17        Richard Henry Dana. L.S...
i8        Captain Charles H. Davis. A.L.S.
19        Rear-Admiral William  T. Sampson.
L.S.
19        Commander William    W. Kimball.
A.L.S.
22        Lieutenant John J. Knapp. L.S.


294
294
295
298
299
300
301




CONTENTS


xvu


--- - - ----


January
February
March
June


23 From Thomas L. Livermore. A.L.S..
24       Rear-Admiral William T. Sampson. L.S.
24       James B. Thayer. A.L.S.
26       Henry Cabot Lodge. A.L.S.
30       Captain Henry C. Taylor. A.L.S.
31       Captain Alfred T. Mahan. L.S.
5       Captain Alfred T. Mahan. A.L.S.
6       Captain Richmond Pearson Hobson.
A.L.S.
9       Roger Wolcott. L.S.....
14       Captain Henry C. Taylor. A.L.S.
3       Charles H. Cramp. L.S..
5       Theodore Roosevelt. L.S..
15       Rear-Admiral George E. Belknap. L.S.
16       Captain Bowman H. McCalla. A.L.S.
22       W. Murray Crane. L.S.
4       Charles H. Allen. A.L.S.
I5       Edward Everett Hale. A.L.S.
26       Everett C. Bumpus. L.S.
29       John C. Spooner. L.S.
29       Captain Richmond Pearson Hobson.
A.L.S.
2       Lieutenant-Commander William H. H.
Southerland. L.S......
19       Eugene Hale. L.S.
23       Brigadier-General Charles Heywood.
L.S..........
8       Captain Bowman H. McCalla. A.L.S.
8       Samuel L. Gracey. A.L.S.
21       Charles William Eliot. L.S.
22       Roger Wolcott. A.L.S.
6       Roger Wolcott. A.L.S.
11       Captain Charles E. Clark. A.L.S.
It       George Frisbie Hoar. L.S.
13       Rear-Admiral William  T. Sampson.
L.S.
28       A. Bushnell Hart. L.S.
i6       Charles G. Washburn. L.S.
23       Major-General Wesley Merritt. A.L.S.


303
303
304
305
305
306
308
309
310
3"I
3I3
3 6
319
320
321
325
327
327
329
329
331
333
333
334
335
336
337
338
339
340
34I
342
343
343


July


August
September
October




xviii


CONTENTS


xviii            CONTENTS


November 13    From  Curtis Guild, Jr. A.L.S..
December    i        Curtis Guild, Jr. A.L.S..
17        A. Bushnell Hart. L.S..


*344
*344
* 345


1901
January    6  From Captain Henry C. Taylor. L.S.
7        Henry S. Pritchett. L.S.
13        Captain Francis T. Bowles. A.L.S. (with
enclosure)
21        George Frisbie Hoar. L.S.
February  17        Theodore Roosevelt. L.S.
20        Rear-Admiral Norman von H. Farquhar. L.S.
26        Admiral George Dewey. L.S.
March     22        Frank W. Hackett. A.L.S.
25        LeBaron R. Briggs. L.S..
28        Rear-Admiral Henry C. Taylor. A.L.S.
April      4        Arthur Lord. L.S.
20        Captain Charles D. Sigsbee. L.S.
25        Captain Alfred T. Mahan. A.L.S.
May       I3        George Frisbie Hoar. L.S.
i6        Rear-Admiral Arent S. Crowninshield.


June
July


I
8
I7
18
20
25
28
28
29
3
5
I9
20
21


L.S.
Henry Cabot Lodge. L.S.
Rear-Admiral Henry C. Taylor. A.L.S.
Captain Alfred T. Mahan. L.S.
Bliss Perry. L.S.
George Frisbie Hoar. L.S.
Commander Richard Wainwright. L.S.
Rear-Admiral William T. Sampson.
L.S. (with three enclosures)..
George Frisbie Hoar. L.S.
Captain Willard H. Brownson. A.L.S.
Rear-Admiral Arent S. Crowninshield.
A.L.S. (with enclosure)
Joseph E. Chamberlin. A.L.S.
Rear-Admiral William T. Sampson.
LL.S.
Joseph E. Chamberlin. A.L.S.
Captain French E. Chadwick. A.L.S.


347
348
349
35'
352
353
354
355
357
358
359
360
362
363
364
365
367
369
370
371
373
375
378
379
379
381
382
383
383




CONTENTS                           xix
August     4   From Captain French E. Chadwick. A.L.S.. 385
9        Henry G. Beyer. A.L.S.               385
12        Rear-Admiral Henry C. Taylor. A.L.S. 387
21        Captain Samuel C. Lemly. A.L.S... 387
25        Captain Samuel C. Lemly. A.L.S... 389
September 3          Rear-Admiral Arent S. Crowninshield.
A.L.S.........      390
12        Rear-Admiral William   T. Sampson.
L.S.                             392
i8        Captain Bowman H. McCalla. A.L.S. 392
19        Lieutenant-Commander William H. H.
Southerland. L.S... 393
25        Captain Samuel C. Lemly. L.S... 394
27        Robert M. Thompson. L.S...          395
October     I        Theodore Roosevelt. L.S.             396
26        T. A. Tompkins. A.L.S.... 396
3'        Malbon Gore Richardson. L.S. (with
enclosure).... 398
November 5           Theodore Roosevelt. L.S.             399
6        Captain Charles D. Sigsbee. L.S... 400
8        Horace N. Fisher. A.L.S..         402
i8        Horace N. Fisher. A.L.S. (with enclosure).... 404
December    6        Rear-Admiral Francis T. Bowles. L.S. 408
17        Cyrus Townsend Brady. L.S.... 409
18        Charles Francis Adams. L.S... 4
i8        Captain Richmond Pearson Hobson.
A.L.S.........                    412
23        Winslow Warren. A.L.S..             413
23        Charles P. Greenough. A.L.S.        413
1902
January    4   From Theodore Roosevelt. L.S.... 415
9        Theodore Roosevelt. L.S..     415
27        William  Lawrence. L.S...        415
29        Captain Henry W. Lyon. A.L.S... 420
29        Horace N. Fisher. A.L.S...    421
30        George Frisbie Hoar. L.S.... 424
February   9         Captain Alfred T. Mahan. A.L.S... 424
24        William  H. Lincoln. A.L.S..     425




XX


CONTE;NTS


xxCOTET


March
May


II
12
14
i8
2
20


From Henry Cabot Lodge. A.L.S.
Cyrus Townsend Brady. L.S.
Henry S. Pritchett. L.S..
A. Bushnell Hart. L.S.
Captain Charles E. Clark. A.L.S.
George Frisbie Hoar. L.S.


425
426
427
427
428
430


June       19
October     2
12
15


1903
From Frank W. Hackett. L.S...
Jacob W. Miller. L.S...
Theodore Roosevelt. L.S.
Theodore Roosevelt. L.S..


*432.432
433
437


I9o4
March     i8  From Henry Cabot Lodge. A.L.S.
IV. MISCELLANEOUS PAPERS:


439


March


February
March
April
June
December


I897
23 From Redfield Proctor to William McKinley.
L.S.
30        William  L. Strong to Henry Cabot
Lodge. L.S.
I898
I   From Captain Francis J. Higginson to Theodore Roosevelt. L.S.
2        Memorandum for Mr. Ward.
i8        Rear-Admiral Henry Erben to the
Naval Committee of the Senate. Copy.
25        Captain John W. Weeks to Roger Wolcott. L.S.
6        A. K. McClure to William McKinley.
Copy.


9
9


46
6i
98
I44


2 8


March


1900
7 From Rear-Admiral A. S. Crowninshield to
Secretary Long. Memorandum..
22        Rear-Admiral George E. Belknap to W.
Murray Crane. L.S...


317


321




CONTENTS


xxi


April     13  From Rear-Admiral A. S. Crowninshield to
Secretary Long. Memorandum... 322


V. APPENDIX:


Vessels of the United States Navy in
Commission during the SpanishAmerican War....     441.........     445


VI. INDEX








PAPERS
OF
JOHN DAVIS LONG
I897-I904










Papers of John Davis Long
1897
ROBERT M. MORSE TO SECRETARY LONG
BOSTON
March 3, I897
MY DEAR LONG:
I have been delaying to send you my congratulations on your
appointment to the cabinet only to get something more definite
about it. But I don't want to delay longer and wish you to believe
that I heartily congratulate you and wish you all success. You could
not return to public life in a more honorable or satisfactory way
and I am glad to believe that you will be on hand to prevent at the
outset any such deplorable calamity as the jingoists would pull us
into as a war with Spain. With my kind regards to Mrs. Long as
well as yourself, believe me
Yours truly
ROBERT M. MORSE'
CARLETON HUNT TO SECRETARY LONG
Supreme Court
State of Louisiana
NEW ORLEANS
March 4, i897
DEAR GOVERNOR:
I send you best congratulations, on the occasion of your appointment to be secretary of the navy. This appointment is not without special interest for me, as being held now by you, and as having been filled in the time of President Garfield, by my dear kinsman,
William H. Hunt,' under whom I grew up as a lawyer.
The subjects of naval architecture and ordnance are truly engrossing. They have developed in the last thirty-five or forty years at
such a rate as to form of themselves no unimportant part of moder
science, and have, at last, revolutionized naval warfare. Strange to
say, the world has yet to judge, by the actual results of naval battle,
1 Robert McNeil Morse (I837-1920), college classmate of Governor Long and
a prominent Boston lawyer.
1 William Henry Hunt (1824-1884), secretary of the navy i881-1882.




4


PAPERS OF JOHN DAVIS LONG


[ 897


of the real extent of the mighty forces which have been called
into play.
Your life as secretary will, without doubt, be very gratifying,
as it brings you in contact with the rights and duties, and with the
privileges and honor of the naval profession. This has always been
proudly represented in the service of the United States, where the
spirit and devotion, and where the talents and accomplishments of
our American officers place them on a fair level with the finest naval
officers that the history of Great Britain can boast. While, no doubt,
considerable credit may be due our mutual friend, Secretary
Herbert,2 it is only part of the truth of history that the party affecting to be the party of the people has, at least until recently, with
persistent penuriousness and want of patriotism obstructed the establishment of a suitable navy. I welcome the tardy change. I wish
it had been a greater change. I wish we had many times our present
number of ships of war. Here, close to Cuba, it is a sign of the times
that people are eager for true protection to American citizenship
from the navy, a protection, which, while respecting international
obligations, will claim for the government of the United States all
of the deference which its greatness, and which its peculiar situation and interests justly entitle it to.
If it should happen that actual military and naval service are
required by the cause of our country, the men of the South will
rush in multitudes, with absolute devotion to its support.
As the duties of your place are to bring you constantly into the
councils of the President, for the general welfare, perhaps you will
be pleased to have my testimony to the good feeling which is undoubtedly to be found for him here, as he enters upon his great
office.
If there is a place where the necessity of keeping inviolate the
good faith of the country, by redeeming its financial obligations,
in the sense insisted on by him in his campaign addresses is understood, that place is the commercial city of New Orleans. The
party of repudiation disappears and will be lost. The best results
have attended the expression of the ardent patriotism of the President. Indeed, I can not but believe there is to be a better order of
things here, and one, as I hope, that he will be able to direct. If
ever there has been a time when the un-American heresy of tariff
2 Hilary Abner Herbert (I834-I919), secretary of the navy in President
Cleveland's second term.




I 897 ]


PAPERS OF JOHN DAVIS LONG


5


for revenue only was weak and tottering (you and I helped once
to overthrow it in a close struggle over the Morrison bill) that time
is happily now.3
Let me add that it is, at last, deeply felt in Louisiana that the best
interests of the state have been sacrificed to the false, delusive and
ruinous industrial policy of the Democratic party.
With wishes, my dear governor, for a prosperous and happy
official residence for you in Washington, and for the success and
honor of the administration of President McKinley, I am,
Very sincerely yours,
CARLETON HUNT4
The Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
FRANCIS D. MILLET TO SECRETARY LONG
Russell House
Broadway
WORCESTERSHIRE
March 4 [i8971
DEAR GOVERNOR LONG:
I see by the Times to-day that you are to be or, indeed, already
are the secretary of the navy and I can not help sending you a line
to say what a satisfaction it is to see this fact recorded. It is a very
long time since I have had the pleasure of seeing you but I can not
forget the place you held in my father's 1 estimation and the great
regard I have always had for your personality and attainments.
When you retired from public life it seemed to me a great misfortune for the country and now that you are in active work again
I know the interests of the office will be well served and the nation
be much richer for your help.
From this remote corner we watch the affairs at home with a
keen attention and are, naturally, very jealous of the good name
of our government. Therefore we feel it a personal gain to have a
3 William R. Morrison, of Illinois, chairman of the committee on ways and
means, introduced in the House of Representatives, in i884, a tariff bill, according
to which coal, lumber, and salt were to be placed on the free list, and a horizontal
reduction of twenty per cent. was to be made on all other dutiable goods. The
Democrats were in control of the House, but forty-one of them joined the
Republican minority to kill the bill.
4 Carleton Hunt (0836-I92i), Harvard College '56, lawyer and professor of
law in New Orleans, M. C. i883-i885.
1 Dr. Asa Millet, of East Bridgewater, Massachusetts.




6


PAPERS OF JOHN DAVIS LONG


[ I897


good man put in a good place. And this is why I have ventured to
write you, hoping it may not be amiss to hear a note of pleasure
from this country comer.
Mr. Gage2 who is the secretary of the treasury is a good friend
of mine and is one of the finest men I ever knew. It was a great
pleasure to be with him in Chicago and his influence did more,
probably, than any other one man to keep the exhibition up to the
high standard it maintained.
Yours faithfully,
F. D. MILLET3
FRANCIS BARTLETT TO SECRETARY LONG
WASHINGTON
March 6, 1897
DEAR JOHN:
I am certain you will be surprised, but I trust not disturbed, to
find me appearing as an office seeker thus early in your new career.
I enclose with this a more formal note, relating to the appointment
of Commander William H. Emory,l United States Navy, as inspector. My reason for so doing is that Commodore Perkins,2 of Boston,
(whose remarkable services under Farragut 3 at Mobile and New
Orleans you may remember) whom I met here yesterday, asked
what Commander Emory was doing now, told me that he was
"waiting orders," but hoped he might receive the appointment
spoken of asking me if I knew you well enough to state the facts
of the case, which I trust I was not assuming too much, in saying
that I thought I did. I accordingly told Commodore Perkins that
I would write you, not asking for the appointment for Commander
Emory, which I have no right to do, but to call your attention,
as I have done, to the merits of the case, as understood by those
whose opinions should, it would seem, have weight.
My interest in Commander Emory comes from meeting him in
China in 1896 when he was in command of the Petrel and when
I formed a most favorable opinion of him both from what I myself
discovered, as from the talk of the naval officers of other nations,
2 Lyman Judson Gage (1836-1927).
3 Francis Davis Millet (1846-1912), Harvard College '69, lost on the Titantic,
April, 1912.
1 William Hemsley Emory (1846-1917).
2 George Hamilton Perkins (I836-899).
3 Admiral David Glasgow Farragut (1801-1870).




1897]


PAPERS OF JOHN DAVIS LONG


7


who spoke of him in a way that made you feel very proud of our
service. I am on my way back from Florida, stopping over here for
the inauguration.
You have my heartiest well wishings for your success in your
new office, of which I am perfectly assured.
Very faithfully yours,
FRANCIS BARTLETT
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
[Endorsement]
Refer to Navigation: FRANCIS BARTLETT, 236 Beacon Street, Boston, Massachusetts,
writes in behalf of Commander William H. Emory, who seeks detail as an inspector.
COMMANDER GOODRICH TO SECRETARY LONG
Naval War College
Personal                                         NEWPORT, RHODE ISLAND
March 19, 1897
DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I take the liberty of sending you, under separate cover, some
of the publications relating to the War College    and its aims, begging that you will kindly glance over them and thus get an idea of
the college work. The Abstract of Course touches upon matters
of more special interest to naval officers and is therefore marked
confidential. These are sent with a view of preparing you somewhat
for the conference I expect to have with you shortly. Through
these pamphlets, it can be made to consume as little as possible of
your time. I am, my dear Mr. Secretary,
Yours very truly,
C. F. GOODRICH
President
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
Navy Department
WASHINGTON, D. C.
4 Francis Bartlett (1836-1913), Harvard College '57.
1 The Naval War College had its origin in the report of a board of officers
appointed May 3, 1884, by William Eaton Chandler (1835-1917), secretary of the
navy. The board consisted of Commodore Stephen Bleecker Luce (I827-1917),
Commander William Thomas Sampson (I840-1902), and Lieutenant-Commander
Caspar Frederick Goodrich (1847-1925). See John D. Long, The New American
Navy (New York, 1903), I, 75.




8


PAPERS OF JOHN DAVIS LONG


[ 897




SECRETARY LONG        TO S. Z. BOWMAN
March 23, 1897
[S. Z. BOWMAN]
Your telegrams with regard to Commander Merry     are at hand.
You know I would do anything to oblige you personally, - but
let me tell you how this matter stands. Commander Merry stands
next in line for sea service, and has been ordered to the Katahdin.
If there is any reason why he should not go there, the regulations
strictly require that he should apply to the department officially,
stating the reasons for his application, and the rule is also clearly
to the intent that he should not resort to personal influences to accomplish his purpose.
Commander Merry has made no application to the department,
which is certainly very peculiar; but on receiving his orders appeals
to personal friends of mine, like yourself,2 Bailey3 and Hale,4 to
whom it is almost impossible to refuse a request, and he floods me
with telegrams. These, also, state no reason for his not complying
with the order which has been issued.
The command of the Katahdin is a highly honorable position.
As to Commander Merry's desire to go to Asiatic waters, his last
cruise at sea was on the Asiatic station, from I884 to the latter
part of 1887. If this was a case that stood out by itself, it would
be different. But if his request is granted it will be known throughout the length and breadth of the navy in twenty-four hours, and
it will be known that it was done in an irregular way and by his
bringing the personal requests of my warm personal friends to
bear on me. It is the very thing that the rule is intended to prevent,
and not only contrary to the rule but to all propriety of official
conduct. If I start in that way, my whole time will be taken up
with demands from officers, their wives and friends, to change
them from one berth to some other which they prefer a little more,
and I should be powerless to refuse, because it would be said that
I had done it in a home case. I do not believe that you will ask me
to put myself in this position, and yet it is the hardest work in the
1 John Fairfield Merry (1840-I916).
2 Probably Selwyn Zadoc Bowman (1840-1928), Harvard College '60, M. C.
from Massachusetts 1879-1883.
3 James Alderson Bailey, Jr. (b. I867), Harvard College '88.
4 Edwin Blaisdell Hale (1839-1926), Dartmouth '64. Secretary Long had received telegrams from these three.




1897]


PAPERS OF JOHN DAVIS LONG


9


world for me not to instantly comply with the slighest wish of my
friends. I can not bear that they should think me disobliging or ungracious. I have explained the matter to McCall,5 who has telegraphed me. I shall also explain it to Barrett,6 who sees the difficulty.
I wish you would show this letter to Hale, who also telegraphed
me from Boston, and to Bailey, who [you?] say is interested in
the matter.
Very truly yours,
[JOHN D. LONG]
SENATOR PROCTOR TO PRESIDENT MCKINLEY
United States Senate
WASHINGTON, D. C.
March 23, 1897
TO THE PRESIDENT:
I like Theodore Roosevelt. His honesty and energy and courage
sometimes trouble those who are easily alarmed at any exhibition of
these qualities, but I honor and respect him for them, and believe
that if he was appointed assistant secretary of the navy he would
do credit to himself and to your administration, and am glad to
heartily endorse him for that appointment.
Very respectfully
REDFIELD PROCTOR1
WILLIAM L. STRONG TO SENATOR LODGE
CITY OF NEW YORK
Office of the Mayor
March 30, 1897
MY DEAR MR. LODGE:
Police Commissioner Roosevelt is somewhat desirous of being
assistant secretary of the navy, and after a long conversation with
him yesterday I am quite well satisfied that I shall have to relinquish my claim on him to retain his present position until the
first of January, 1898, not because I want to, but because I am
quite sure it will be to his interest to take the position of assistant
secretary, if the secretary would like to have him. I had hoped
5 Samuel Walker McCall (1851-1923), Dartmouth '74, M. C. from Massachusetts 1893-1913, and governor 1916-1918.
6 William Emerson Barrett (1858-1906), Dartmouth '80, M. C. from Massachusetts I895-I899.
1 Redfield Proctor (183I-1908), Dartmouth '51S, U. S. senator from Vermont.




o1         PAPERS OF JOHN DAVIS LONG                 [1897
that he would remain in his present position until the fight was over
here, but I can not ask him to do that, against a prospective position
that would be more to his taste, and one I am very sure he can fill
with signal ability, as he has the position of police commissioner.
I can not tell you, Mr. Lodge, how much I shall regret this change,
even for nine months, but he is bold, courageous, vigorous and full
of integrity, and to me just an ideal man for any municipal or
governmental position, and I can not say too much in his favor,
and in justice to him I must wish him success in getting this appointment, but I shall part with him with sincere regret.
I have the honor to remain
Very sincerely yours,
W. L. STRONG
Honorable HENRY CABOT LODGE
United States Senate Chamber
WASHINGTON, D. C.
NATHAN APPLETON TO SECRETARY LONG
66 Beacon Street
BOSTON
31 March, 1897
MY DEAR SIR:
I hope, in the midst of your numerous occupations, you have
not forgotten the Panama Canal, the annexation of Hawaii, the
cable across the Pacific Ocean, and the development of Pearl
Harbor, near Honolulu. As regards the first I would say that a commission of engineers should be sent to the isthmus to see just what
the situation at Panama is, and what work is being done there.
For the Hawaiian Islands also a commission should be sent to remain there several months, and show our people what folly it would
be for us by the vis inertiae to allow Japan or England to have
possession of the only harbor in the Pacific Ocean north of the
equator.
Personally I would say, that, while you know very well I have
been a public spirited and patriotic citizen of our country for more
than thirty years, the best work I could do, and the one most fitted
to my knowledge of the situation, would be to have some sort of
credentials from our government to go to France any time [during]
the next three months to find out at what price the old and new
Panama Canal companies would be willing to sell out all they have
1 William Lafayette Strong (827-900oo), mayor of New York City.




1897]


PAPERS OF JOHN DAVIS LONG


II


either to our government, or to a joint stock American company.
That done, in my opinion, the canal can easily be finished.
Yours very truly
NATHAN APPLETON1
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
FRANCIS BARTLETT TO          SECRETARY LONG
Monument Club
BOURNE, MASSACHUSETTS
April I, 1897
MY DEAR JOHN:
I enclose a note received to-day from Mr. Hamilton Perkins,'
a son-in-law of Mr. William Bliss,2 president of the Boston & Albany
Railroad formerly of the navy and brother of Commodore George
Perkins. In regard to Captain Gridley I can only say that of course
I am too much of a layman to pass upon his professional capacity
for any position, but I was his guest last spring upon an inspection
trip upon his visit to the light-houses on Lake Ontario, and I can
imagine no one with whom I should be better pleased to have daily
relations than with him, and should be greatly pleased to think
that any word of mine would have weight in procuring for him any
position for which he was fitted.
It can but seem strange to me as it must you that I am again in
the position of asking a favor of you in your new position, but in
both cases so far as my opinion is of weight, I am certain you will
be willing to consider it.
Yours very truly,
FRANCIS BARTLETT
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
1 Nathan Appleton (1843-1906), Harvard College '63, captain U. S. V., in the
Civil War, authority on the subject of isthmian canals.
x Lieutenant Hamilton Perkins resigned from the navy in I888.
2 William Bliss (I834-1907).
3 Charles Vernon Gridley (1845-1898).




12          PAPERS OF JOHN DAVIS LONG                 [I897
BENJAMIN F. TRACY TO SECRETARY LONG
35 Wall Street
Personal                                            NEW YORK
April 5, 1897
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
As I understand that Captain Schley 1 is shortly to be ordered to
duty as a member of the lighthouse board, I venture to take the
liberty of writing to you in reference to his selection as chairman
of the board.
I suppose it is hardly necessary for me to say much about Captain
Schley's reputation and position as an officer. His admirable services
in command of the relief expedition for the rescue of Greely2
are well known to every one, and he subsequently made an excellent record as chief of the bureau of equipment. While I was
in the navy department, he was the efficient commanding-officer
of the Baltimore, and he was subsequently detailed for lighthouse
duty in charge of the principal depot at Tompkinsville3 of the
lighthouse establishment.
As you doubtless know, the chairman of the board is elected by
the board. The naval members as a rule vote for the senior naval
officer, the army members for the senior army officer, and the civil
members have the casting vote, including the secretary of the treasury, who is ex-officio a member of the board. I always regarded the
lighthouse establishment, though under the treasury department,
as being primarily a nautical bureau, and this opinion was shared
by the secretaries of the treasury 4 while I was in the Cabinet. The
lighthouses exist for the benefit of navigation and it has always
seemed to me that the executive head of the establishment should
be a sea-faring man. They have no connection whatever with the
army and the only reason why the army should take part in their
administration is in order that the services of the army engineers
may be made available in their construction. The relation even of
these engineers to the establishment has always seemed to me to
be entirely subsidiary.
Knowing as I do the natural conflict of interests which seems
1 Winfield Scott Schley (i839-1911).
2 Lieutenant Adolphus Washington Greely (i844-I935), in command of the
Arctic expedition, I88I-I884.
3 Staten Island.
4 William Windom (1827-I891) and Charles Foster (1828-i904).




1897]


PAPERS OF JOHN DAVIS LONG


I3


always to exist in Washington between the two services and that
the chairmanship of the lighthouse board is one of the points of
conflict, I have ventured to write you on the subject, as my personal interest in the navy did not cease at the time of my leaving the
department. If I had the pleasure of knowing Secretary Gage personally, I should feel disposed to write also to him, but perhaps if
you show him my letter it will serve the same purpose. I would add
that my personal knowledge of the worth and ability of Captain
Schley and my personal regard for him have a strong influence
with me in writing to you on the subject.
Very truly yours,
B. F. TRACY5
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
WILLIAM    R. GRACE TO SECRETARY LONG
1-2 Hanover Square
Personal                                          NEW YORK
7 April, 1897
MY DEAR GOVERNOR LONG:
I had the pleasure of calling on you the other day, to renew our
acquaintance of some years ago. I was glad to see you looking so
well, and I hope that you are enjoying your new post as secretary.
It is a great office, one that grows more and more important, and
attracts more and more attention throughout the country from year
to year, and I have no doubt you will be able to discharge your
duties to the satisfaction of the people and with great credit to
yourself.
I want to congratulate you upon the appointment of Theodore
Roosevelt as assistant secretary. I have known him since he made
his first appearance in public life, and was much impressed by his
way of accomplishing things in the assembly of this state. No one
man has ever accomplished more in that body in the interests of
reform in the city of New York than Mr. Roosevelt, and his
public record since then is well known to us all. I have not the
slightest doubt that his ability, studiousness and energy will make
themselves felt to his own credit and your advantage. I hope some
day to have the pleasure of voting for him as mayor of New York
5 Benjamin Franklin Tracy (I830-I915), secretary of the navy in President
Harrison's administration; New York lawyer.




14


PAPERS OF JOHN DAVIS LONG


[ 1897


City, or governor of the state, although he does not belong to my
party. With best wishes, I am,
Yours very truly,
W. R. GRACE
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
REAR-ADMIRAL SELFRIDGE TO SECRETARY LONG
U. S. Flagship San Francisco
Personal                                     SMYRNA, ASIA MINOR
April 8, I897
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
As the oldest Massachusetts officer on the active list, and with
mutual friends in Boston, I take the liberty to send my congratulations that our native state has been honored in your selection as
secretary of the navy; and that my profession is to reap the benefit
of the presence of a gentleman who has been so eminent in both
public and state affairs.
It is coupled with regret however that it will be my privilege
to serve under you but for a short period (as I retire in less than
a year); for in my long service of forty years, it is the first time that
the secretary of the navy has been appointed from my native state.
As a Massachusetts officer and native of Boston, the neglect of
the Boston Navy Yard has been a blow to my pride. The closing
of this important navy yard has not been the result of any legal act,
but due to stronger local prejudices on the part of your predecessors in office. To be sure the plea has been made that two navy
yards are cheaper to run than three, but I know it to be a fact that
the gathering of too many vessels at New York and Norfolk, have
so obstructed the water front, as to compel ships to lie in tiers of
two or three, and thus greatly increase the cost of repairs.
When commandant of the Boston Navy Yard, from 1890 to 1893,
with the slender means at my command, I put the Boston yard in
a position to make repairs, but I could not succeed in overcoming
the local prejudices that I mentioned. There is a report in the navy
department by a board of officers, of which Admiral Luce  was
president, on the resources of the different navy yards, and it would
be worth your while to send for it. Chief Constructor Hichborn
1 William Russell Grace (I832-1904), mayor of New York City 1881-1886.
1 Rear-Admiral S. B. Luce.
2 Philip Hichborn (1839-1910), chief of bureau of construction and repair.




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IS5


could get it for you. In this report you will find ample justification
if you desire to reopen the Boston Navy Yard, which only requires
an order from you to send one or more ships there to be repaired.
The facilities for doing so are already at hand.
In I890 I formulated plans for the permanent improvement of
the Boston Navy Yard on business principles, but for obvious reasons I could not obtain a sanction for them, as they required a money
appropriation. When I retire from this cruise, I shall be pleased
to lay them before you if you desire.
I have just returned from a cruise along the Syrian and Asia
Minor coast, and the situation is more encouraging than I could
have hoped. Our missionaries in the interior reached from Alexandretta and Mersina do not write with any apprehension of future
disturbances, and their schools are all in operation. I conversed with
several of the Turkish governor[s] and they all assured me that it
was their desire to maintain tranquillity. There is much suffering
among the Armenians and many widows and orphans, the result of
the awful massacres of last year.
The Turk, unless his religious fanaticism is aroused, is lethargic,
and easy to govern. But still there is a rabble in all the towns whose
appetite for plunder has been whetted, and it will be some time before apprehensions from outbreaks from them will entirely disappear. I am satisfied it is entirely within the power of the local
authorities to control the turbulent, and they will do so if upheld
by the Sultan. The latter is the unknown quantity.
Yours truly
THOMAS O. SELFRIDGE, JR.3
Honorable JOHN D. LONG,
Secretary of the Navy.
WASHINGTON, D. C.
COMMANDER GOODRICH            TO SECRETARY LONG
Naval War College
United States Naval Station
NEWPORT, RHODE ISLAND
April Io, i897
SIR:
I am sorry to have to report that Senator Lodge will be so busy
with work in connection with the tariff as to be unable to deliver
3 Thomas Oliver Selfridge (I836-i924). Admiral Selfridge's father, Rear-Admiral T. O. Selfridge, Sr., who entered the navy in i818, was still living at this
time.




16         PAPERS OF JOHN DAVIS LONG                 [1897
an address at the opening of the college. I have hopes that perhaps
at some other time he may be able to come.
2. I shall be very glad and the college would be greatly honored
if you would yourself take Senator Lodge's place. You may remember that I asked you originally to open the college. If you can
not come perhaps Mr. Roosevelt will do so. He has already expressed to me his readiness to accept the invitation extended in
your name to lecture at the college at a date as yet undetermined.
In this way Mr. Roosevelt might open the college and Mr. Lodge
address it at his convenience during the summer.
3. Begging the favor of an intimation of your wishes in this
matter I am,
Very respectfully,
C. F. GOODRICH
SECRETARY OF THE NAVY                          President
Navy Department
WASHINGTON, D. C.
GENERAL     WILSON   TO SECRETARY LONG
Stockford
Personal                                 WILMINGTON, DELAWARE
April I3, I 897
MY DEAR GOVERNOR:
I have been trying for several days to congratulate you on the
appointment of ROOSEVELT as your assistant secretary. It is in my
judgment a capital stroke of business for both the government
and for yourself.
I have had a great deal of experience in handling young and ambitious men and it is to me an immense satisfaction to have such as
Roosevelt about. You will find it a constant delight to have his cooperation. His perfect honesty, fearlessness and enthusiasm for work
- his untiring industry, and his intense Americanism will make him
invaluable to you and to the service. And he will be as loyal and
obedient as the stupidest man you could find!
I look upon your department as under ideal control, and I bespeak for you increased honor and usefulness in the service of the
great republic!
Yours sincerely,
Honorable JOHN D. LONG                  JAMES H. WILSON'
Navy Department
1 James Harrison Wilson (i837-1925), major-general U. S. V., in the Civil War,
and U. S. A. (bvt.)




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GOVERNOR WOLCOTT TO SECRETARY LONG
Commonwealth of Massachusetts
Executive Department
BOSTON
April 2I, 1897
MY DEAR SIR:
My attention has been called to the fact that September 30, 1897,
is the one-hundredth anniversary of the launching of the Constitution from Constitution Wharf in this city, and that there is a feeling
among certain members of the legislature that it would be a proper
and fitting thing to have this day publicly observed by the presence
of the Constitution in this harbor and by such exercises as might
be later determined upon. The wish is very strongly expressed that
the President and Cabinet might find it possible to be present and
take part in this proposed commemoration of the most famous ship
that ever belonged to the navy of the United States.
I have been asked to communicate with you informally in regard
to it in order to ascertain your views as to whether the above plan
meets your approval and seems to you to be feasible, and especially
whether in your opinion we could probably hope to secure the
presence of the President and other members of the Cabinet on the
occasion. In case your reply is a favorable one I think it is proposed
that the legislature shall adopt some resolve providing for the
carrying out of the plan.
Believe me with much respect
Very truly yours,
ROGER WOLCOTT 1
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
GOVERNOR WOLCOTT TO SECRETARY LONG
Commonwealth of Massachusetts
Executive Department
BOSTON
May 3, I897
MY DEAR SIR:
I beg to acknowledge receipt of your favors of April 30 and
May i relative to the proposed celebration by this commonwealth of
the one-hundredth anniversary of the launching of the frigate
1 Roger Wolcott (x847-1900), Harvard College '70, governor of Massachusetts.




PAPERS OF JOHN DAVIS LONG


[ I897


Constitution and enclosing a letter addressed to you by Senator
Chandler,' a communication addressed to him by the New Hampshire Society of the Sons of the American Revolution, and a letter
addressed to you by Mr. Henry Bainbridge of Brooklyn, New
York.
I am glad that the proposed celebration appears to you proper
and feasible, and as soon as any definite action is taken by the legislature regarding it I will promptly communicate it to you.
Thanking you for the interest you have taken in the matter, I am,
with much respect,
Very truly yours,
ROGER WOLCOTT
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
CAPTAIN COOPER TO SECRETARY LONG
United States Naval Academy
Personal                                  ANNAPOLIS, MARYLANP
May i I, I897
SIR:
With reference to the subject of your unofficial letter of May io,
1897, I have to state that it must be acknowledged that the law can
not discriminate against colored boys, if members of Congress will
recommend them for appointment. If therefore the government entrusts the Naval Academy authorities with the responsibility of
educating and protecting the boy who is to report for examination
in September I hope that there will be no doubt in the mind of the
secretary that the duty will be faithfully discharged.
I can not think that it is desirable to make any special point with
the cadets that the law must be observed in this case. Their entire
training is preparing them for any event that may arise and there
is not in my opinion the least fear to be apprehended after the
young man enters the academy, if perchance he qualifies. He will
have the same examination and the same opportunities as the other
candidates; he will not be discriminated against, nor will he be especially guarded. The trouble to be apprehended will be that before
he becomes a cadet he may have rough treatment from outsiders,
but that is a matter for the civil authorities to handle.
1 William E. Chandler, of New Hampshire, former secretary of the navy.




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I can foresee the life he will lead at the academy in part. He will
not of course be persona grata with other cadets; he will lead a
solitary and forlorn existence in social relations; in official matters
he will be as the others are and have the countenance of the authorities. Within the walls of the academy he will have no associates of
his color, for he can not look to the servants and messengers for
companionship and if he can stand four years of such a life he will
be rewarded with a certificate of proficiency.
The newspaper reports you have referred to have not been inspired at the Naval Academy and I trust that you will be able to
answer your anxious correspondents that you are confident that
the officers and cadets will give the young colored man every chance
to make his record upon his merits.
Very respectfully,
P. H. COOPER
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
Navy Department
WASHINGTON, D. C.
COMMANDER GOODRICH TO SECRETARY LONG
Naval War College
Personal                                   NEWPORT, RHODE ISLAND
May 15, 1897
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
As a result of my conferences in Washington I beg to say that
Senator Lodge is so deeply engaged this coming summer as to be
unable to address the class at the War College, but he holds out some
hope of favoring us next year. He begged me to express to you
his appreciation of the compliment paid him. He suggested Senator
Frye 1 rather than Senator Elkins inasmuch as the latter has taken
up the subject of mercantile marine with practically a sole purpose
of advocating subsidies, while the former, as chairman of the committee on commerce, has made the whole subject his own and can
therefore speak with a greater authority. Shall I in your name invite
Senator Frye?
1 Captain Philip Henry Cooper (1844-19I2), superintendent of the Naval
Academy.
1 William Pierce Frye (I831-19II), Bowdoin '50, U. S. senator from Maine.
2 Stephen Benton Elkins (1841-191I), U. S. senator from West Virginia.




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[ 1897


Mr. Justice Brewer3 was unable to give me a definite answer but
he thinks he may possibly be able to address the class here on the
proposed subject, namely: " Venezuela and the Monroe Doctrine."
He was much impressed by the courtesy of your invitation and
begged me to convey to you his thanks.
Senator Hale4 was most grateful for your kind invitation. He
asked me to thank you for your consideration and to say that for
this year at least it would be impossible for him to come to Newport
for the purpose mentioned, much as he would like to do so.
Mr. Foster5 thought he would be able to come later in the session
and for that reason he gave no positive answer. If he can come at
all it will probably be in the month of September.
Mr. Charles H. Cramp 6 is very much pleased by the honor you
have conferred upon him in asking him to be one of the lecturers
and he will come. I think that from him we shall hear something
which will be well worth listening to.
I am awaiting replies to letters addressed to the other distinguished
gentlemen whom you named. From some at least I look for favorable replies.
With much respect, sir, I am
Yours very truly,
C. F. GOODRICH
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
Navy Department
WASHINGTON, D. C.
SECRETARY DAY TO SECRETARY            LONG
June 12, 1897
The Honorable
THE SECRETARY OF THE NAVY:
A note just received from the Spanish minister1 reports information that a carload of arms left Jacksonville yesterday morning by
Florida East Coast Railroad and passed New Smyrna last evening
south-bound, that a second carload of rifles and dynamite left
3 David Josiah Brewer (I837-1910), Yale '56, associate justice, U. S. Supreme
Court.
4Eugene Hale (1836-I918), U. S. senator from Maine.
5 John Watson Foster (1836-1917), diplomatist and former secretary of state.
6 Charles Henry Cramp (I828-I913), shipbuilder, of Philadelphia.
1 Don Enrique Dupuy de Lome.




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Jacksonville yesterday morning on the regular freight train for the
probable purpose of being transferred to some vessel on the east
coast probably the yacht Valusia which has been engaged to transfer these munitions from the railway to the vessels destined for
Cuba. He asks renewed vigilance on the south-east coast of Florida
adding that it is probable that the vessel which will receive these
arms will not come close to shore.
Respectfully yours,
WILLIAM R. DAY2
Acting Secretary
COMMODORE 0 NEIL TO SECRETARY LONG
Department of the Navy
Bureau of Ordnance
WASHINGTON, D. C.
July I12, I1897
Memorandum for the
SECRETARY OF THE NAVY:
The high explosive shell invention of the Messrs. Hanson would
appear, from their description, which is herewith returned, to probably consist in loading the shell with materials which when separate
are inert, but which when mixed together by some means on firing
the shell, become violently explosive. This idea is one which for
years has been periodically proposed to the bureau. It is considered
entirely impracticable.
It might be, of course, that this particular invention is a valuable
one, but it is extremely unlikely, and when the number of persons
writing to the department and requesting the test of their inventions,
which they always think of very great value and importance, is
considered, it seems evident that it would be unwise to agree to the
conditions which Messrs. Hanson propose.
The bureau thinks that it is not advisable to agree to test at government expense any invention at all, until a knowledge of all its
details has enabled a judgment to be formed as to its probable value.
CHARLES O'NEIL 1
2 William Rufus Day (1849-1923), University of Michigan '70, assistant secretary, later secretary of state, and afterwards associate justice of the U. S. Supreme
Court.
I Captain Charles O'Neil (i842-I927), chief of bureau with the rank of commodore.




22


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[i897


_


NATHAN APPLETON TO SECRETARY LONG
66 Beacon Street
BOSTON
5 August, I897
MY DEAR SIR:
I take pleasure in enclosing a short article of mine on the Panama
Canal, with six views of the work now going on there, which give
a good idea of the progress of the great enterprise.
I wrote the President about ten days ago a letter asking to be
appointed one of the three commissioners to examine and report
upon a deep waterway from the Great Lakes to the Atlantic Ocean,
and have received a reply from Secretary Porter saying that my
communication had been referred for the consideration of the secretary of war.2 I informed the President of my knowledge of canals
from the time I was the delegate of the Boston board of trade at the
opening of the Suez Canal in November, I869, down to the present
time. I can now tell you that I consider myself thoroughly competent to do my part as one member of the commission, and also
that I believe in such a commission it is advantageous for many
reasons to have one of the three commissioners a person of general
knowledge on the subject, but not a professional engineer.
I watch with great interest all that is transpiring in the Hawaiian
Islands, and would say that I shall not feel at ease until our flag is
hoisted in Pearl Harbor, which I believe we have a right to do from
the present treaty. Professor Alexander,3 an old American engineer,
who has lived there for years and whom I met during my sojourn
nearly a year ago, could easily attend to the small amount of dredging needed to enter the harbor.
Believe me, dear Mr. Secretary
Yours very truly
NATHAN APPLETON
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
1 John Addison Porter (856-900oo), Yale '78, secretary to President McKinley.
2 General Russell Alexander Alger (I836-1907).
3 Edward Porter Alexander (1835-I910).




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REAR-ADMIRAL SICARD TO SECRETARY LONG
Flagship New York, First Rate
Personal                                   YORKTOWN, VIRGINIA
September 29, I897
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I have your letter of the twenty-sixth instant and in reply would
say that I have been intending to go to Boston with the New York,
Brooklyn, Iowa, Indiana, Massachusetts, Maine and Texas.
It is probable that, on account of the ferries, the harbor proper
can only accommodate three of the ships safely, and I had selected
the New York, Massachusetts and Maine to anchor there, the other
ships to anchor in President Roads.
It has been my intention to reach Boston about October I3,
but yesterday I was in receipt of a letter from the department enquiring whether the squadron would be at Hampton Roads on the
fourteenth of October, with a view to receiving a visit from the
New York Life Insurance Association, which expects to be there
at that time.
Yesterday I wrote to the department, discussing certain matters
involved in the trip to Boston, which seemed to militate against
the reception of the association above mentioned, at Hampton
Roads on the fourteenth. As there has not yet been time to receive
an answer to this letter, I am just now somewhat in doubt about
the precise date of sailing from this neighborhood and consequent
arrival at Boston, and I shall be obliged to await information from
the department before I can fix a date for reaching Boston. Will
you therefore please inform me by telegraph whether I am to be
at Hampton Roads on the fourteenth of October, as in such case
I can not, unless I use high speed, enter the port of Boston before
October 17, and more probably the eighteenth, whereas the seventeenth would be the latest date on which we should arrive if the
convenience of the tide is to be considered, which I think is necessary.
If we leave the drill ground on the ninth, we could reach Boston
on the twelfth or thirteenth, probably.
My letter of the twenty-eighth explains about the tides at Boston.
Very truly yours,
MONTGOMERY SICARD 1


1 Montgomery Sicard (1836-1900), commanding the North Atlantic Squadron.




24


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[ I897


COMMODORE HOWISON TO SECRETARY LONG
Navy Yard
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS
October z, 1897
MY DEAR SIR:
Your two personal letters, relating to the centennial celebration
of the launching of the Constitution, reached me last evening.
I shall, as instructed, communicate with Mr. Haskins 1 in regard
to exhibiting the relics in his possession.
I doubt very much the advisability of having such a valuable
collection of relics on board the old frigate at this time, as it is
expected that there will be a vast number of visitors, and such valuable articles are difficult to properly care for in densely crowded
places.
Referring to the matter of invitations, I have called on Governor
Wolcott, who informed me that he intended giving the names of
persons to be invited and that the list would include the names
of some six or seven hundred persons, some of whom would probably not accept; estimating that some four or five hundred would
come with, and present the tickets admitting them to the deck of
the vessel at the time of the proposed ceremonies.
The spar deck of the old frigate offers standing room for about
four or five hundred. After the ceremonies on October 21 the general public are to be admitted, using all care possible to avoid crowding and endangering the lives of the persons going on board. The
old ship is now open to visitors from IO A.M. to 4 P.M., daily except
Sundays and Wednesdays. Wednesdays are reserved to give the
vessel one day in each week for cleaning.
I have declined to reserve any days for societies or other bodies
to commence the celebration of the launching, until after the governor has completed the ceremonies which are to take place on the
twenty-first instant.
I understand this is a celebration by the state and city here, and
as the governor is arranging for the invitations, and is to say to
whom they are to be sent, would it not be well to refer all such
requests to him?
I am, Sir,
Faithfully yours,
Honorable JOHN D. LONG                       H. L. HowISON2
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
1 David Greene Haskins, Jr. (i845-1926), Harvard College '66.
2 Henry Lycurgus Howison (1837-19I4), commandant of the Boston Navy
Yard.




1897]      PAPERS OF JOHN DAVIS LONG                    25
SENATOR LODGE TO SECRETARY LONG
Personal                                 NAHANT, MASSACHUSETTS
October 6, 1897
DEAR GOVERNOR LONG:
The Boston Fruit Company,' which has been built up by our
people here in Massachusetts until now it is a very strong concern,
and doing a large business in, the West Indies, are anxious to put
on four American built steamers to run between here and Jamaica.
Their competitors are a subsidized English line and they can not do
it unless they receive a mail subsidy, as provided in the act of
ninety-one.2 I have written to the postmaster general in regard
to it, and I hope you will do all you can to assist them. We are
pledged to the encouragement of American shipping, and I do not
know a case where aid could be better bestowed. It will encourage
our ship building and help our commerce in the West Indies.
With kindest regards,
Very sincerely yours,
H. C. LODGE
SECRETARY LONG TO ALFRED NOON
Navy Department
Personal                                         WASHINGTON
October i, 1897
SIR:
I am in receipt of your letter of October 8.
Evidently there is some misapprehension as to the post tradership at the Charlestown Navy Yard. When I came here the system
which had been adopted was to permit some man to establish a post
tradership or canteen, as it is sometimes called, in the various yards.
There has been such a one at Charlestown for many years. It has
been, more or less, under the supervision of marine officers. I suppose the purpose of its establishment was to prevent enlisted men
from going outside the yard and patronizing liquor saloons, which
exist, as you know, in every city in close proximity to such yards.
It seemed to me that I could improve even upon this. I found that
the army had successfully tried the experiment of abolishing these
canteens, which inured entirely to the profit of the person who
1 Later the United Fruit Company.
2 Act of March 3, I89I.
3 James Albert Gary (1833-1920).




26


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[ 897


happened to have the privilege of running them. The army plan
substituted a system by which the immediate management is under
the direction of officers who keep strict account, so that every
dollar of profit instead of going to the liquor seller goes back to
the men, and is expended in the improvement to their food and for
the purchase of books, periodicals, gymnastic appliances, better
food and other means of improving their moral and physical condition. This new system, also, as you see, tends to eliminate the
element of greed on the part of the liquor seller who, under the
old system is constantly under temptation to sell as much beer as
possible, in order to enlarge his profits. The overwhelming testimony is that it has proved a great success in the army, as I am informed, both in the way of improving the habits of drinking on
the part of the men, and in securing for them additional comforts.
The assistant secretary of the navy, Mr. Roosevelt, who has
charge of matters relating to the marine corps, has therefore established this new system in several places, including Charlestown.
I need not assure you that the only purpose is to make an improvement. From the nature of your letter I infer that you are not
familiar with the facts.
As the navy yard at Charlestown is a part of the United States
reservations, I suppose the state liquor laws including the requirement of municipal licenses, do not apply to it.
In I890 Congress enacted in the army appropriation bill, that no
alcoholic liquors, beer or wine should be sold to any enlisted man
at any military post in any state in which the sale of such beverages
is prohibited by law. The law officer of the department informs me
that no such act of Congress has been passed with regard to enlisted
men in the navy at naval stations, and that the only statute against
the sale of alcoholic liquors, beer or wine is the above statute as
to army stations, in those states only in which such sale is prohibited
by state law.
The new system changes the responsibility of the officers charged
with its management, rather in degree than in kind. Under the
former system it was under the supervision of the commanding
officer of the marines; and a council of administration, composed
of marine officers, controlled the accounts at stated times, so that
it was their duty to keep things straight and in order. Under the
new system, the charge of the accounts and the management of the
saloon are under their control and immediate direction, as, of




1897]


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27


course, they ought to be. Do you not think this is a better system?
If your friend, who is a naval officer, is a true man, he will be glad
of the opportunity to do something to improve and control this
business. I am told that in the army the officers were very unwilling to undertake the system when it was introduced; they objected, I suppose, to the additional care it put upon them, and
it is possible there may have been a feeling that the post traders,
who had been making a living out of the old system were subjected
to the loss of what had been an income to them. But, as I have
said above, the experiment has proved so successful that I do not
believe the army would think of abandoning it.
If Congress should prohibit all sales at such a yard, of course
the enlisted men would purchase outside and be subjected to all the
demoralizing influences of the regular liquor traffic. Prohibition
would be of little value if limited to a few acres of land on the
edge of a great city and surrounded by a cordon of rum shops.
You will bear in mind, also, that these places, which under the
old system, were called post traderships or canteens, and under the
new are called post exchanges, are not merely for the sale of beer,
but are a sort of cooperative store, furnishing enlisted men, at
reasonable prices, with articles of ordinary use, wear and consumption which are not supplied by the government. I enclose a copy
of the army regulations, which are practically those now adopted
for the navy post exchanges.
Very truly yours,
JOHN D. LONG
Reverend ALFRED NOON 1
36 Bromfield Street
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS
COMMANDER LYON TO SECRETARY LONG
U. S. S. Dolphin, Third Rate
Personal                               Off BRIDGEPORT, CONNECTICUT
October 25, 1897
DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I write in type to save you time in reading.
This was our day to be in New York, and although I have made
my best efforts to get there, the weather has been, for the first
time this season, really bad.
1 Alfred Noon (b. 1845), secretary of the Massachusetts Total Abstinence
Society, of which Secretary Long was president.




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We left Boston at seven o'clock A.M. on the twenty-second,
steaming down the harbor in [the] rear of the fleet; but, once past
the light, hoisted the despatch flag and passed by the vessels rapidly.
There was a heavy sea from the northeast, - so much so that the
great Brooklyn, after every dip into it, rose and showed not only
her ram, but seventy or eighty feet of fore-foot. The Massachusetts
would not have made the agreeable promenade she did in Boston
Harbor, for every sea swept up and over her forward deck.
As the weather became more threatening, I ran into Provincetown for shelter, and extended the "glad hand" to the residents.
In a couple of hours the Fern came in; but the fleet went out past
the cape, and then stood along to go outside the shoals.
The next day I started out during a deceptive lull, proceeding
towards the Pollock Rip entrance to Nantucket Sound, but I found
the sea still heavy outside, and knew that it was breaking almost
across the passage. For this reason I kept on to the entrance called
Great Round Shoal, where there is plenty of water, and the sea
does not break or threaten destruction to vessels of this draught.
That evening at sundown we charged up Narragansett Bay like
a race horse, having five-sixth boiler power on, with wind and
tide favoring. Off the naval station a boat took the household effects
of Mrs. Kautz, and the starboard cabin door was again put in commission. Commodore Kautz 1 had come down with me as stevedore
and supercargo, and was a most entertaining and agreeable guest.
Sunday forenoon did not hold out any temptation to go out,
my desire being to pass to the southward of Block and Long islands,
and to anchor at Tompkinsville.2 However, at one o'clock it seemed
practical to go on by way of the sound, and so I started. Thick
weather closed in, and I was glad to run into New London for
shelter. This takes me up to last night. This morning was not good,
but at nine o'clock I thought it was good enough for my purposes in
the closed waters of the sound, being encouraged by a treacherous
sheet published in New London, and rejoicing in the name of the
Morning Telegraph. It stated that the hurricane, predicted for the
night before, had gone off the coast. Before long the weather became thick, with much rain, and we had a very poor time of it.
I had hoped to make Hempstead Bay, which is within striking distance of New York, but had to anchor, after passing Stratford
1 Albert Kautz (839-1I907).
2 Staten Island.




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Shoal Light, and here I am now, wishing for the day like St. Paul, -
or "like sixty," perhaps.
We were most courteously treated in Boston by the state and
by the clubs, and made to have a very enjoyable visit. The procession was a great success. I had the pleasure of dining in the wardroom with Mr. Hemenway and Mr. Barnes,3 and of taking Mr.
Wheeler and his family around the Massachusetts and New York
the evening of the illumination. Southerland 5 and I do not think
either of those vessels was as complete and perfect in the details
of illumination as was our little ship.
Mrs. Lyon has been at my father's since her return from Pennsylvania, where she left Harry at school, and we are getting the very
best reports from him as well as from his teachers.
All the officers join me in kindest regards to you and to your
family.
Very sincerely yours,
H. W. LYON6
THE SECRETARY OF THE NAVY
Navy Department
WASHINGTON, D. C.
CAPTAIN     COOPER TO SECRETARY LONG
United States Naval Academy
Personal                                     ANNAPOLIS, MARYLAND
October 28, r897
MY DEAR SIR:
It was due entirely to your intelligent comprehension of the
view that we ought to educate our young officers at home, and
not abroad, that we have been enabled to establish a post-graduate
course in naval construction at the academy. Having gained the
foot-hold it has been my ambition to so firmly establish this one
branch that there can be no shadow of turning from it, nor adverse
criticism of the results.
Great things can not be accomplished without adequate means
and in this matter I can not believe that too much has been requested
towards the initial steps. And I am frank in my belief that the
Naval Academy in equipment and outfit has never received the
3 Alfred Hemenway (1839-I927), Yale '6i, and Charles Benjamin Barnes (b.
I868), Harvard College '90, Secretary Long's law partners in Boston.
4 Probably Jesse Franklin Wheeler (I845-1912), Harvard College '68.
5 Lieutenant William Henry Hudson Southerland (1852-1933).
6 Commander Henry Ware Lyon (I845-1929).




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[II897


consideration commensurate with its status as a great national
school. Attention has been called to this fact repeatedly without avail
and I marvel at the excellence of the output when contrasted with
the circumstances. It is not for me to judge wherein, or with whom,
lies the blame, but I do know that a most perfect system of training
is carried on with imperfect instruments and in uncongenial surroundings.
The first obstacle to be met when we realized that the postgraduate school was an accomplished fact was within what walls,
in what building, should the students perform their daily task.
Not a square foot of space was available in any building existing for
academic work, for we are marching our cadets to and fro to seek
places for daily recitations, and having to exercise much ingenuity
to supply the necessities of this service, owing to the entire lack of
unity in the establishment.
Finally, it was decided that a building formerly used as a photographer's studio, then converted into a paint and repair shop, was
absolutely the only building within the grounds approaching suitability. Painters and carpenters were turned out, and work commenced to fit up this building in such a manner as to supply the
needs until that future day when Congress will uplift this academy
from its present condition.
A floor plan of the little building is enclosed to exhibit to you
what we intend to do, and every article on the requisition for outfit,
which is in the department, is necessary to success. Once having
this outfit there will be no occasion to call upon the appropriation
for "pay miscellaneous " for such articles until in due course of
time these are worn out and useless.
The second requisition for supplies covers much that is expended
from day to day, and can not be avoided. But if my recommendation receives favorable action from you that the Naval Academy
appropriation for " special course " be increased from three thousand to five thousand dollars, at which amount it formerly stood,
there will be no reason to ask for assistance from the department
on that line.
I beg leave to state that Mr. Hobson 1 must not be held responsible
for the requests which have been submitted for your approval; I
assume the entire responsibility. I will state also that in my opinion
Mr. Hobson is a zealous and accomplished officer; that he is heartily
1 Richmond Pearson Hobson (i870-1937), assistant naval constructor.




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with me in my desire to make this course a success. I earnestly
deprecate any effort to organize a board to take this matter into
consideration; it appears to me that this question can be better
settled by one man, and if bounds of prudence and propriety are
overstepped that man can be held responsible; that man can be
no other than myself, and I am willing to be held to responsibility.
If it is your desire to have Mr. Taylor2 confer with me it will
be entirely agreeable to me to meet him, or it will be agreeable for
me to go to Washington to explain to you in person. In the meantime I can not refrain from stating that our work is being delayed
from lack of outfit and that much is being done with borrowed
material such as typewriter and paper.
You have done me the honor to state that you will be glad to
hear from me and this statement is frankly made from my standpoint of interest, zeal and responsibility.
Very respectfully,
PHILIP H. COOPER
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
Navy Department
WASHINGTON, D. C.
WILLIAM     ENDICOTT, JR., TO SECRETARY LONG
BOSTON
November 8, 1897
MY DEAR GOVERNOR LONG:
I felt greatly relieved on seeing in this morning's paper what appeared to be an authorized statement from you that there was really
no ground for the war scare that has so generally prevailed here
during the last week. It has been very general and has caused much
anxiety. Of course all chance of improvement in business is at
once knocked in the head by it, if it continue.
As war is almost the greatest calamity that can afflict a nation, the
evil effects continuing to generations yet unborn, I sincerely hope
that the administration will not be tempted by the jingo talk of impulsive and hot-headed persons to allow our country to drift into
one in which we have little interest other than sentimental.
I should regard the acquisition of Cuba as a great misfortune. It
is contrary to our theory of government for this country to have
2 David Watson Taylor (b. 1864), naval constructor.




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subject populations, and there is mighty little material there of which
to make intelligent citizens. Our problem is sufficiently difficult
now, without complicating it by the infusion into our body politic
of a lot of ignorant semi-barbarians.
With high regard, I remain,
Yours very truly,
WILLIAM     ENDICOTT, JR.1
NATHAN APPLETON TO SECRETARY LONG
66 Beacon Street
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS
9 November, i897
MY DEAR SIR:
I was rather surprised to see the enclosed in the Boston Journal,'
for I would have supposed it was ever the intention of the executive
to have a fair and impartial survey of the Nicaragua route for a
canal on its merits. This, I do not hesitate to say, can not well be
done if Mr. Menocal 2 is a member of the commission to go there. I
have known him since we were both delegates to the canal congress, called together by Ferdinand de Lesseps 3 at Paris in May, 1879,
and he has been, and still is, so prejudiced in favor of Nicaragua
that I have never thought that he was in a condition to give fair attention to any other route. You might say the same of me in relation to Panama, and so I dare say I should not be the right person
to be one member of a commission to go there, to report on its
merits. I have been connected with the old Panama Canal Company,
and I believe Mr. Menocal has had a position in the Nicaragua
Canal Company of Honorable Warner Miller.4
1 William Endicott (1826-1914), Boston merchant.
1 NEW YORK, November 2. - Chief Civil Engineer A. G. Menocal has received
leave of absence from the navy yard and been ordered on duty in connection with
the Nicaraguan Canal Commission, of which Rear Admiral Walker [John Grimes
Walker (1835-1907)] is at the head. Mr. Menocal expects to leave the yard on
November 17 and will be away about six weeks. Mr. Menocal has been chief engineer of the canal from its inception, and it is on the plans made by him between
1872 and I891 that the present commission is to report.
2 Anecito Garcia Menocal (1836-I908), civil engineer, U. S. N.
3 Ferdinand de Lesseps (1805-1894).
4 Warner Miller (I838-1918), Union College '60, a leader in the manufacture
of paper, was elected to the House in I878 and sat in the Senate for New York
from I88i to 1887. Miller was one of the two new senators chosen to replace
Conkling and Platt. In i888 he was defeated for governor of New York by David
Bennett Hill.




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At any rate, when this new commission goes to the isthmus, 1
would ask you to see that they look carefully over the Panama
route, and have proper official letters of introduction to the director
general of the new Panama Canal Company, and other officers at
Colon and Panama. I want them to see the ten to fifteen miles of
canal at the Atlantic end, also the excavating at Emperador, Culebra,
etc., with some American machines at work, and then the work at
the Pacific terminus, where the railroad will go to a wharf and, with
a channel dredged, ships can come to the end of the railroad, soon
to be the Pacific beginning of the canal. This trip can be made by
the commission with little time and trouble.
Believe me,
Yours very truly,
Honorable JOHN D. LONG                  NATHAN APPLETON
Secretary of the Navy
[Enclosure]
CAPTAIN CHADWICK TO SECRETARY LONG
Personal                                 FRANKFURT, [ GERMANY]
i8 November, I897
DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I beg to thank you for the excellent command 1 with which you
have honored me, and which gives me the greatest pleasure.
I must express, too, my obligation that it was found possible to
allow my delaying here a few days, until Mrs. Chadwick could be
enabled to leave. We are here, on account of heart weakness with
which she has been troubled for some time, to meet a Dr. Schott who
is the head of what is known as the Nauheim system of treatment,
and who has effected some remarkable cures, one of the most remarkable being that of a friend of our own. I am thus hoping as
good results in Mrs. Chadwick's case. It was of such importance
that she should be here at least ten days, that I felt justified in asking
a little delay, in case circumstances at home would allow it. As
the methods can, after a time, be pursued elsewhere, she can accompany me home without difficulty on the twenty-seventh, in the
St. Paul from Southampton.
We have had a very pleasant and interesting journey here, and
I was particularly interested in seeing something of Spain under
present conditions.
1 Command of the armored cruiser New York.




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We both unite in kindest regards to Mrs. and Miss Long and
yourself, and believe me,
Sincerely yours,
F. E. CHADWICK2
REAR-ADMIRAL SELFRIDGE TO SECRETARY                 LONG
U. S. Flagship San Francisco
Personal                                      SMYRNA, ASIA MINOR
November 19, I897
MY DEAR SIR:
About to sever my active connection with the navy, and actuated only for the good of the service, I take the liberty of writing
you on the subject of " navy personnel."
Yearly before the meeting of Congress the newspapers abound
in allusions and statements regarding the quarrel between the line
and staff. It is in the line of sensational journalism so much in vogue
at the present, calculated to give an erroneous and alarming idea
of the condition in the navy, totally at variance with the truth.
There is no quarrel between the line and staff. If there were, it
should be found on naval ships where all officers are thrown into
the closest relations. That there are serious differences between the
two branches which are active in Washington is not to be denied.
These differences stripped of all side questions lie wholly in the
desire of the staff to appropriate to themselves the titles of the line;
for which the latter, always on the defensive, assert that there is
no reason for such claim, nor does the good of the service demand it.
Take any ship of war, the San Francisco for example, all officers
are in friendly associations.
The chief engineer has sole charge of his department. His orders
to his subordinates are as implicitly obeyed, as are those of the line
officer on deck. The same can be said of the surgeon and paymaster,
each supreme in his own department; no one does or can give orders
to these officers, except their commanding officer.
When at sea, the motive power is under the chief engineer, receiving orders direct from the captain regarding revolutions of the
engines, expenditure of coal, etc. Only in an emergency, such as
( a man overboard," or sudden dangers would the officer of the deck
2 Captain French Ensor Chadwick (I844-1919).
1 For the passage of the personnel bill, which attempted to settle the line and
staff controversy, see the letter of Professor Hollis, January 19, 1899, note.




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give orders regarding the speed, to stop, back, or go ahead, and
then only as the representative of the captain who can not be always
on deck. The assertion widely spread, that engineer officers are
placed under the command of junior line officers has no foundation
in fact.
You will find harmony in the ward room and junior officers'
messes throughout the service afloat. Officers of all corps mingle
together aboard and ashore, as members of a common profession
should do, and the social standing of a staff officer is just as good
as a line officer, for such depends upon the individual himself. As to
military honors or the etiquette of the service, the line and staff
share such equally.
This whole question of line and staff was gone over, and settled
by the law of March 3, 1871, which in itself was a compromise to
reconcile the views of the different interests. By this law staff officers were given the distinctive titles of director and inspector ranking with captains and commanders with all the honors accruing
to such grades. In addition, officers of the rank of director were
relieved from sea duty, and the staff were given six years preference
over the line of corresponding dates of entry in the service.
This law was supposed to have settled this question for all time.
That it has not done so is owing to no action of the line, but to
the craving on the part of certain portions of the staff, not all, to
the titles of the line, and which is sought to obtain under the specious demand for positive rank, claiming that without positive rank
they can not properly command in their own departments. That this
is not the case, an inquiry into the actual condition of affairs on our
naval vessels will quickly show.
The proposition to mix the line and engineer corps by an interchange of duties would be fraught with great injury to the service.
The line officer not only must be a seaman, which can only be
acquired by experience on deck, but he must have a knowledge of
ordnance, gun mounts, projectiles, torpedoes, and how to use them,
electricity, navigation and international law. To be proficient in
such is as much as any man can acquire without requiring him to
become an engineer. A knowledge of machinery afloat sufficient
to command his ship he already has, more than this is not necessary.
The engineer officer must not only have a practical knowledge
of the motive power which can only be acquired by experience in
the engine room, but he must be able to design and build engines,




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duties quite sufficient to employ all his time, without compelling him
to take up the duties of a line officer, possibly spoiling a good
engineer and making an indifferent line officer.
Upon our naval engineer corps lies the responsibility of designing
and constructing the motive power of our ships of war, duties requiring talent and education of the highest order. The management and care of the motive power afloat is mechanical and does not
require the technical education of the constructing engineer.
If I am permitted to make a suggestion that concerns the good of
another corps than my own, I would dignify the present engineer
corps by no longer requiring them to stand watch in the engine
room. These duties should be performed by warrant engineers,
whose status would be similar to our present warrant officers, and
filled by engineers from the merchant marine, and machinists of
the first class, who had performed one cruise as such satisfactorily.
These would be under an officer of the constructing engineer corps,
of which there would be but one on ships below first rates and
flagships, and two on the latter.
In regard to the personnel of the line, the right to retire after
thirty years' service would be a privilege that all grades ask for.
Commanding officers should not be over forty and commanders
of squadrons not over fifty-five upon first being detailed for such
positions. This could be only accomplished by some kind of selection, a discussion of which is not permitted in this letter, already
too long.
I have written my views solely for your information, my dear
Sir, and I would request when this letter has served this purpose you
would destroy it.
Very respectfully,
Honorable JOHN D. LONG          [THOMAS 0. SELFRIDGE, JR.]
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
COMMANDER LYON TO SECRETARY LONG
U. S. S. Dolphin, Third Rate
Navy Yard
Personal                                 NEW YORK, NEW YORK
November i9, I897
DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I am very much gratified to learn from Mr. Snowden" of your
kind inquiries for us all, and of your continued interest in your
1 Lieutenant Thomas Snowden (1857-I930).




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"flag-ship." 2 It is a very sad looking vessel at present, but with
the coming of spring weather and lengthening days, I hope to present her to you in Washington a thing of beauty and comfort.
I am much pleased with my orders, and think, personal feelings
apart, that it is best for me to be here during the repairs. Mr. Bowles
heartily agrees with me in this.
I have, as you may have noticed, always refrained from offering advice or asking favors for the very many officers who have
written me to do so, for the reason that your bureau chiefs have
been detailed as your advisors on naval affairs, while my detail is
to simply command the Dolphin. My only safe-guard is to have
and maintain a cast-iron rule in this respect. You can not imagine
the number of importunities that assail one who is "near to the
secretary."
I do not think I am breaking this rule of mine in the request I
am about to make in regard to Lieutenant Snowden, for he has
served with me, and is to serve with me again after a brief interim.
This fact causes me to have the almost paternal feeling that an
officer ought to have for those serving under him, and, it seems to
me, that it is a case where I am not opposing the bureau of navigation, but merely doing my manifest duty in striving to look after,
as far as possible, the interests of a faithful and capable subordinate.
If possible, will you have him given duty in Washington? I
understand that there is no particular limit to the number of officers
that can be ordered to the yard as " under instruction in ordnance "
or to the office of naval intelligence; but to whatever department he
is ordered he is sure to be in evidence from his zeal and faithfulness,
to say nothing of his high professional abilities. This requested duty
in Washington will keep him with his family, as Mrs. Snowden
opened her house in Washington under the impression, well founded
at the time, that the ship was not to go out of commission. After
all, it was not Snowden's fault that she did.
Mrs. Lyon is visiting cousins in New Jersey, and I had a " pleasant
call" from her last Monday. It is the last luncheon on board for
a long time. During the work of going out of commission, we
thought it best for her not to be too near, but after we have spent
Thanksgiving with Harry at his school, she will come to Brooklyn
to the St. George Hotel, where we have engaged rooms.
2 The Dolphin was used by secretaries of the navy on their official trips and
was known as the secretary's yacht.
3 Francis Tiffany Bowles (I858-i927), naval constructor, U. S. N. See the memoir in Proceedings, Massachusetts Historical Society, LXIV, 415-421.




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I had an acute attack of malaria last week, but am "pretty fit,"
as the English say, now; but it was a reminder of a case of breakbone fever contracted in the gulf many years ago.
With kindest regards to Mrs. Long and the young ladies, in which
the officers join me,
Faithfully yours,
The Secretary of the Navy                          H. W. LYON
CAPTAIN     GOODRICH     TO  SECRETARY       LONG
Naval War College
Personal                                     NEWPORT, RHODE ISLAND
November 20, 1897
DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
Commander Stockton1 has just reached San Francisco in the
Yorktown after a creditable cruise of two years. When his ship
is inspected, etc., he will, in the natural sequence of events, be detached, sent home and granted two months leave. Doubtless the
orders have already been issued.
Stockton has been identified with the college, off and on, for
many years, his special branch being international law. On the death
of the late lamented Professor Freeman Snow 2 of Harvard, Stockton was directed by the navy department to edit his lectures.3 How
well he did his work the constant requests for copies from all parts
of the world and the universal encomiums of disinterested jurists
attest.
You may not, and probably do not, remember my expression
of regret that the course in international law last summer was not
more detailed and systematic. I feel that our captains and admirals
can not be too well grounded in the principles of this science, that
they may decide promptly and correctly the many questions with
which they have to deal. There is no person in the navy, and precious
few outside, better fitted to treat of this branch than Stockton who
is conservative in opinion, mild of tongue and manner, and scholarly
in every spoken or written word. Were he not so good and proved
1 Charles Herbert Stockton (1845-1923).
2 Freeman Snow (184I-I894), Harvard College '73.
3 International law. Lectures delivered at the Naval War College by Freeman
Snow, Ph.D., LL.B., late instructor in international law in Harvard University.
Prepared and arranged for publication by direction of the Honorable H. A.
Herbert, secretary of the navy, by Commander Charles H. Stockton, U. S. N., in
1895.




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a naval officer I should say nature had cut him out for a university
professor.
After this long preamble you will not be surprised when I confide to you my hope that you will, if the suggestion meets with
your approval, direct that Stockton be ordered to " Proceed to
your home and report to the commandant of the naval station,
Newport, Rhode Island, for special duty in connection with preparing a course of lectures to be delivered at the Naval War College." This is substantially the form employed when Mahan' was
ordered to write lectures on strategy and when I was similarly
given the subject of coast defense.
Stockton lives in Newport. His family are here. His eldest daughter, a sweet girl, is wretchedly ill, and has been so for several months.
I am certain that nothing you could do would give Stockton so
blessed a sense of comfort as the receipt of orders which would take
him home, keep him there and relieve his mind of all apprehension
of being sent away from Newport to perform duty which might
indeed be welcomed by many but which would be uncongenial
to his quiet and reflective temperament. It will be no hardship for
him to take up immediately the work outlined above. For a commander with wife and children to support, the hardship lies rather
in going off duty and losing pay at the rate of twelve hundred
dollars a year.
Of course, Stockton has agreed to this arrangement - but being
the most modest of men, he prefers that I do the asking. As he
would not tell you how valuable his services have been in the past
and, I hope, will be in the future, to the college, it is perhaps well
that I should speak for him and in saying one word for him say two
for myself.
This detail does not put him into the college staff nor involve
quarters. It is only an accident that he happens to live in Newport.
Mahan lived in New York and I in Pomfret while on like duty,
and Stockton may, if he wishes, move to Boston or Kalamazoo.
Very respectfully,
C. F. GOODRICH
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
Navy Department
WASHINGTON, D.C.
4 Captain Alfred Thayer Mahan (i840-I914). President of the Naval War College, x886-i893.




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[ 898


I898
THEODORE ROOSEVELT           TO  SECRETARY      LONG
Navy Department
WASHINGTON
January 4, I898
SIR:
I have for some time been much interested in the development
of our gun practice. It looks very much as if we were behind the
age in this all-important branch of naval work - the very branch
in which we possessed the decisive superiority that mainly contributed to our victories in 1812. I have a number of reports from
our naval attaches abroad. I finally got together Captain O'Neil,
Captain Crowninshield,1 Captain Clover,2 and Mr. Dashiell,3 and
we had a long consultation on the subject which resulted in Captain
Clover furnishing to the bureaus of navigation and ordnance copies
of what he had learned regarding foreign practice, and in my issuing directions to Admiral Sicard for special practice to test the
capacity of the best trained crews with the four, five, six and eightinch guns in his squadron this winter. When Mr. Dashiell comes
back from his trip in England, in which he will try to get all the
information he can about the gun practice there, I should like to
send a board of inspection, composed, say, of Captain O'Neil, Mr.
Dashiell, and Lieutenant Fletcher,4 to visit, not only our gunnery
training ship, but two or three of the vessels of Admiral Sicard's
squadron when they return to northern waters. I am certain that
a board of experts who know something of what foreign navies
can achieve in gun practice, as well as from practical experience
what our people can do, could from personal inspection of our
training ships and our cruisers, not merely give valuable hints in
the way of improving the gun practice, but also get information that
would be of great assistance to us.
I enclose a letter from the American minister to Venezuela.5 If
one of the light cruisers could be sent as he requests it seems to me
it would be a good thing. At any rate, I commend the letter to
1 Arent Schuyler Crowninshield (1843-I908), chief of bureau of navigation.
2 Richardson Clover (1846-1919), chief intelligence officer.
3 Paul Joseph Dashiell (b. I867), Johns Hopkins '87, professor of physics at the
Naval Academy.
4 Frank Friday Fletcher (1855-1928), ordnance expert.
5 Francis Butler Loomis (b. I86I).




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you for your personal attention. Judge Day asked me to do whatever could be done for Mr. Loomis.
Very respectfully,
THEODORE ROOSEVELT
Assistant Secretary
The Honorable
THE SECRETARY OF THE NAVY
THEODORE ROOSEVELT TO SECRETARY LONG
Navy Department
WASHINGTON
January 22, 1898
SIR:
I beg to call your attention to the three enclosed memoranda.
The first is a copy given me by Captain Bradford of a report on
the desirability of the Dry Tortugas as a naval station for the fleet.
I have submitted it to the chief of the bureau of naval intelligence,2
who practically endorses it. Key West would be the best place,
in my opinion, if there were a good harbor for our big battleships
there, but there is no such harbor, and this leaves the Dry Tortugas
the only desirable place south of the Chesapeake. I think it would
be well worth while for the navy department to carefully examine
into the situation at the Dry Tortugas, and to take steps so far as
might be to make it the proper base for possible operations in the
Caribbean Sea.
I also call your attention to the memorandum from the chief
intelligence officer on the subject of torpedoes. I would suggest
this being put before the chief of the bureau of ordnance.3 We
should have an ample supply of torpedoes both on the Atlantic and
Pacific.
Finally I call your special attention to the report from the naval
attache4 at Rome that the Italian government has made arrangements to sell to the Spaniards the two very powerful armored
cruisers now building at Leghorn and Genoa. These two cruisers
are superior in force to the New York. When they are finished
and can be turned over to Spain, their existence would probably
1 Royal Bird Bradford (I844-1914), chief of bureau of equipment.
2 Commander Clover.
3 Captain O'Neil.
4 Lieutenant Albert Parker Niblack (I859-I929).




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make it a serious question whether it would be safe to send the
Flying Squadron5 over there, as outlined in the plan I have laid
before you.
I would also respectfully call your attention to the steady way
in which the Spanish force grows relatively to our own. If we had
had war with Spain a year ago they would have had but three
ironclads to put against us. Now they can probably put seven.
Six or eight months hence they will probably be able to put nine
or ten. During all this time our own force has remained and will
remain at seven battleships and armored cruisers. Even when they
get all these ironclads our force will be superior, thanks to the
quality of our men, but instead of the superiority being overwhelming, as it was a year ago, it will be small, so far as the
Atlantic Ocean is concerned. The naval situation has steadily turned
a little to our disadvantage, and is continuing so to turn.
Very respectfully,
THEODORE ROOSEVELT
Assistant Secretary
The Honorable
THE SECRETARY OF THE NAVY
THEODORE ROOSEVELT TO SECRETARY LONG
Navy Department
WASHINGTON
February 8, i898
SIR:
In reference to the memoranda made for the chief clerk  by
F. H. Stickney2 and M. L. Croxall on February 7, I have to report
as follows:
According to this memorandum it appears that my office has
used thirty-one dollars' worth of stamps since March 4, 1897, (Mr.
Stickney says in one place thirty dollars and in the other thirty-one
dollars) these stamps being used for official business. Mr. Stickney
further says that my private secretary during that time has paid for
one hundred two-cent stamps; Mr. Croxall saying that the private
secretary has paid for none.
Of the stamps charged to this office, twenty five-cent and two
5 A squadron to be assembled at Hampton Roads and held ready to move
at short notice; later put under the command of Commodore Schley. See Long,
The New American Navy, i, 148, 207, zo2, and 2I2.
1 Benjamin F. Peters.        2 Disbursing clerk.




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hundred two-cent stamps were bought prior to April 19, the date
on which I took office. This leaves one thousand two-cent and
one hundred twenty five-cent stamps which have been used since
I took office, some of which are now on hand; this being an average
of about four stamps a day. A small number of these stamps have
been used by Lieutenants Sharp  and Gibbons,4 but too small a
number to be counted. The others have been put on my letters,
either by Mr. Howell5 or Mr. Hinman, or occasionally by the
messenger William Wilkes; my directions being that in case of
doubt, the doubt should always be construed in favor of the government -that is, against the letters being considered of an official or
semi-official nature. The five-cent stamps I find have largely been
used in sending abroad such publications as the personnel bill, the
lecture to the War College, and the digest of the opinions of the
presidents. These would generally go as first-class mail, because
a short letter would accompany them. For this foreign mail the
frank is not generally available, so that both official and semiofficial letters have to be stamped. Sometimes the two-cent stamps
were used for sending foreign mail as second-class matter. This
leaves an average of about three two-cent stamps a day on the
home mail of a semi-official type. During the past two or three days
I find by my letter book that I have sent as semi-official letters
the following:
A letter to the Reverend Sylvester Malone,6 answering certain inquiries of his as to the possibility of getting a given man back into
the navy yard, and then replying to some remarks of his about the
Republican organization in New York. (It was because of the last
that the letter was not franked, but of course it was written primarily with reference to the laborer who wanted a government
position.)
A letter to the late consul at Turin, Mr. Mantius,7 answering an
inquiry about the personnel bill, and in addition, certain remarks
about the way to deal with our merchant marine.
A letter to Captain Goodrich,8 answering a request that I try to
procure him an audience with you, and also thanking him for some
personal expressions of regard.
3 Alexander Sharp, Jr. (1885-I9IO), naval aid.
4 John Henry Gibbons (b. i859), in charge of naval militia.
5 William Howell, private secretary to the assistant secretary.
6 Not identified.
7 William E. Mantius.             8 C. F. Goodrich.




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A letter to Captain Davis9 promising to speak to you about that
man whom he wished to have discharged from the observatory.
A letter to Captain Cooper 10 asking for some information about
the case of a cadet in whom Colonel John McCook," of New York,
was interested; and so on and so forth.
It is possible that Messrs. Howell and Hinman have not been
quite as strict as they should be in seeing that all cases of doubt
were construed in favor of the government, but they both assure
me that there will be no trouble of this kind hereafter; and if there
has been any laxity of the sort (which I doubt) it is I find because
until I took this position it had been the invariable custom for all
of the mail sent through the assistant secretary's office to be either
franked or stamped at the government expense. You may remember
that last June, or thereabouts, when this custom was brought to
my attention, I at once had it changed and directed that all stamps
be purchased for my own account when they were to be used on
my private letters.
I find that during the period of my incumbency I have given to
Messrs. Howell and Hinman $66.78 for sundries. They submitted
to me monthly statements of how this was expended, but these
statements have not been kept. Mr. Howell says he thinks about
one-half of this money went for stamps; Mr. Hinman thinks about
three-fourths did. At any rate, the amount was in the neighborhood
of thirty-five or forty dollars. In the majority of cases these stamps
were purchased outside of the building. Indeed all of the stamps
purchased by Mr. Howell and Mr. Hinman were purchased outside of the building. But most of the purchases of stamps were made
by the messenger, William Wilkes, whom you know, and who is
a particularly honest and trustworthy man. Frequently, probably
in the majority of cases, he also has purchased the stamps outside
of the building, it being discovered when the mail was made up after
office hours that we were short of stamps, and he then being given
one or two dollars to purchase them. In addition to this, however,
I find that he has purchased stamps on at least half a dozen occasions,
from Mr. Stickney and Mr. Croxall, for my account, and on a number of other occasions has purchased small amounts from them for
Lieutenant Sharp. Messrs. Stickney and Croxall would of course
9 Charles Henry Davis (1845-1921).
10 P. H. Cooper.
11 John James McCook (1845-1911).




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have been ignorant that he was purchasing for Mr. Sharp, and
would have supposed that he was purchasing for my office. Mr.
Stickney, in his memorandum, which I herewith return, states that
my private secretary paid for one hundred two-cent stamps since
March 4; and Mr. Croxall says that while he was in the office my
private secretary paid for none. As above explained my private
secretary personally never purchased any stamps at all from Mr.
Stickney. The purchases were made through William Wilkes. The
two dollars which Mr. Stickney admits was paid was in the form of
a check which was passed last Saturday. William states positively
that on at least half a dozen other occasions he purchased one or
two dollars' worth of stamps from both Mr. Stickney and Mr.
Croxall. I myself saw him on one occasion go out with a two dollar
bill, without his hat, to get the stamps from Mr. Stickney's office,
and saw him return within a few minutes with the stamps. Mr.
Sharp and Mr. Legare have both been eye-witnesses of similar
incidents. Mr. Stickney and Mr. Croxall both stated to me that
they did not recollect any such incidents, but admitted that they
had never kept an account of cash purchases of stamps, and that
they could not say that such purchases had not taken place. They
at first stated that they had no recollection even of William purchasing from them small amounts of stamps, which, as before stated,
he procured for Mr. Sharp himself. I consider it very extraordinary that they should have forgotten these purchases by William,
of which, as I have said, Mr. Sharp, Mr. Legare and myself have
been, at times, eye-witnesses. Their statements are certainly erroneous.
I have directed Messrs. Howell and Hinman hereafter to keep
an accurate account of the number of stamps purchased for me
and ordered for this office, whether from outside the building or
from within, and have repeated with even greater emphasis that
in mailing the letters they are to construe every doubt in favor of
the government. It is of course an impossibility for me to look at
every letter when the stamp is on, as I usually sign the mail about
four, and it is press-copied, stamped and posted after I leave the
office.
Very respectfully,
THEODORE ROOSEVELT
The Honorable                           Assistant Secretary
THE SECRETARY OF THE NAVY




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[ 898.


CAPTAIN    HIGGINSON TO THEODORE ROOSEVELT
U. S. S. Massachusetts, First Rate
DRY TORTUGAS, FLORIDA
February I, 1898
MY DEAR MR. ROOSEVELT:
Were you ever pursued by the odium of an act which you
never committed? If so you may realize my feelings when I read
in the Army and Navy Journal the fact that the Massachusetts had
been on shore. Now whether at fault or not there is a certain discredit attached to a vessel that goes ashore and her reputation
becomes in a measure spotted so I am naturally indignant to see
the misfortunes of the Iowa and Texas ruthlessly and recklessly
fastened upon the innocent Massachusetts.
Do you suppose it is possible that the editor' of the Army and
Navy Journal could have taken the statement from the public press
and republished it without verification? It seems impossible. Officers
expect misrepresentation and even slander from the public press
because some journals are animated only by self-interest guided by
ignorance and malice or both. But officers look to a service journal
to correct the misrepresentation of the press, to act as censor and
to publish only what is true.
I am curious to see when the official report of the accident is
given out if Mr. Church will make a correction. I suppose editors
never apologize except by an order from a court, as that would be
a blow to their infallibility.
We all felt very blue the day of the accidents and it seemed as
if it was not only raining but pouring. It created too a nervous
distrust of the whole place and even now we are all shy of discolored
water whether shoal or sunshine. We are taking no chances.
Not a particle of blame can be attached to either Sampson 2 or
Philip.3 They are both able seamen and skillful navigators, (above
the average) and according to the chart were piloting their vessels
in perfectly safe and clear water.
The channels we were using were improperly surveyed and improperly buoyed. This has now been done in the southeast channel
and we can enter and depart through it with safety-/ think.
(After what has happened I must make a mental reservation to any
1 William Conant Church (1836-1917).
2 Captain William T. Sampson, of the Iowa.
3 Captain John Woodward Philip (1840-I900), of the Texas.




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statement about this place). We only know, or think we know,
this one channel (southeast) but "there are others " -No one in
the navy is much surprised at anything the Texas may do, even
if she struck bottom in one hundred fathoms of water, because
that is her history and reputation, but to have our pride and delight the lowa come to grief was disheartening. I think it was these
accidents and the anxiety about more to come every time he moved
his fleet which broke Sicard down. Or rather it was his conscience
which worried him so about his duty as never to give him any rest.
You've got to take chances in this life and no man can afford to
sit up all night trying to circumvent fate. We are very sorry for
Admiral Sicard as he is much respected and is gentle and moderate
in his intercourse with his subordinates.
The Texas and Iowa will I think last until there is a chance to go
north and repair.
I sincerely hope that while these vessels are in dock under repair
that no foreign complications will arise. Can not you stay the hand
of war until we are prepared? The fleet is in good health. Both the
men and officers are getting good experience. No gun practice yet
but some highly interesting and instructive manceuvres.
Fortunately Dry Tortugas is a rough water anchorage and the
boating is good practice for the men. Just now we are all hands
coaling ship out of Bradford's coal fleet which all arrived here on
time.
Very truly yours,
FRANCIS J. HIGGINSON4
CAPTAIN    GOODRICH TO SECRETARY LONG
Naval War College
NEWPORT, RHODE ISLAND
February I I, 1898
MY DEAR MR. LONG:
Thanks for your kind letter of the eighth instant which I fully
appreciate. Had I known that a resumption of our conversation
of Monday would have been agreeable to you, I should have stayed
a day longer in Washington. Doubtless we should have reached a
mutually satisfactory conclusion. I thank you for the unexpected
4 Captain Francis John Higginson (I843-I931), of the Massachusetts. See the
letter of Assistant Secretary Roosevelt dated February 17, 1898.




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[I898


honor of a presentation to the President. I have never been so near
the throne before!
Referring to the first subject in your letter; like all libraries of
reference, that of the college does not show the extent of its use.
The number of officers who resort to it constantly is small - comprising only those stationed in Newport and outsiders, like Mahan
and Stockton, who are working for the college. During the summer
their number is of course greatly increased. On the other hand, the
topics touched upon range far and wide. As you well know, the
variety of these topics largely determines the size of a library.
Eventually I hope that no legitimate question asked the college
library can remain unanswered. Such is not the case now. Only
last week, one of the college staff, in making a study of the battle
of Actium, was obliged to buy, out of his own pocket, a copy of
Plutarch's Lives-, in order to get the best account extant, the library
not possessing the book. This appears to be a fitting occasion to
say that the college is quite as busy during the winter as during the
summer, as the enclosed schedules of exercises will show. The mornings are devoted to special and individual work, and the routine
business of the college, the making of plans of campaigns., etc.
As to the principal subject of your kind favor, I seem to have
failed to make myself clear. I hold one of the most important and
honorable places in the gift of the navy department, with two years
longer occupancy, according to the custom of the service and the
precedents of the case. I have ventured to express what I hope is
a praiseworthy ambition, viz, to command a battleship, even at
the sacrifice of a portion of my present duty, but I have asked for
and I desire nothing else. Until you can give me that, let me continue where I am to the end of my regular term, when I shall accept cheerfully whatever disposition you please to make of me and
my services.
Not being available, in the usual sense, for sea duty, but only
seeking sea duty on board a battleship from a desire to better fit
myself for the highest employment to which I am bound - Deo
volente - to arrive, you can understand that the Boston, however
desirable she may be, is not what I wish. In other words I asked for
one definite thing. What I am offered is something very different.
As to the justice of which you speak, I can say nothing. Any
captain is eligible to the command of any ship of and above a certain tonnage. The gift of the command lies entirely with yourself.




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There is absolutely no other rule. If you think proper to give a
junior captain a good ship you can do so. You did so, for example,
when you appointed Chadwick,1 the junior captain, to the New
York. Cook2 was promised the Brooklyn before he was promoted.
Evans3 had the New York as junior captain and he was still one
of the junior captains when given the Indiana, our first big battleship. Gridley 4 was near the bottom of the list when assigned to the
Olympia, and Sigsbee,5 that admirable fellow, got the Maine within
three weeks of promotion. Except as to Cook and Evans these
things have all happened under your own administration and their
wisdom, not questioned at the time, is justified by the event.
In short, my dear Mr. Long, I am not the junior captain on the
list, and am not due to go to sea, unless on my own application or by
your wish - so that I do not fit the conditions you imply.
If the best ship in the navy were in need of a captain and half a
dozen captains were ready to go to sea - I say frankly - seniority
should only be considered in selecting her captain, cceteris paribus.
I should rather say (I hope you will pardon my frankness) that it
is advisable to so dispose of that command that the service and the
country get the best return from the experience that goes with it.
To give that experience to a man whom you would not, in war
time, be glad to see on board your best ship, or who, through age
or other reason, is unlikely to profit by the experience in subsequent
command of a fleet is to waste a great educational opportunity. Of
these we have few. Their disposal entails quite a responsibility.
As to the personal equation upon which you touch, I there can
make myself plain. When I was asked to accept, as a commander,
the presidency of the college, I felt that in justice to my prestige, I
could not refuse a position which is generally conceded to be one
of the most important in the whole service. Since I have been here,
I have received abundant proof that, with a few exceptions, all the
officers in the navy are of this opinion and that they regard it as
second to hardly any one open even to a captain. Under these
circumstances, you can hardly blame me for believing that the
chair of president here would suffer in public estimation and my
good name be harmed if for no fault of mine I were removed be1 F. E. Chadwick.
2 Francis Augustus Cook (1843-19i6).
3 Robley Dunglison Evans (1846-1912).
4 Charles V. Gridley.
5 Charles Dwight Sigsbee (I845-I923).




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fore the end of my three years' term unless it were to advance me
to a position of even greater professional honor and responsibility.
It will be an all-sufficient answer to any captain to say that when
asked if I wished to go to the Boston I replied that I preferred to
finish my tour of duty as president of the War College.
While writing the above, I received the enclosed letter from the
secretary of the Naval Institute.6 I thought you might care to congratulate me.
I am, my dear Mr. Long,
Very sincerely yours,
C. F. GOODRICH
[Schedules enclosed]
[Naval War College]


PROGRAM ME


January 12
January I9
January 26
February 2
February 9
February 16
February 23
March 2
March 9
March 16
March 23


Actions to be c
Captain Goodrich
Lieutenant Murdock


Ensign Willard 2
Ensign McCormick
Commander Merrell 4
Captain Goodrich
Commander Merrell
Lieutenant Murdock
Ensign Willard
Ensign McCormick
Lieutenant Blish* 5


described
Salamis
Syracuse; the overthrow of the
Athenian fleet
Actium
Constantinople; victory of the
Genoese under Doria over
the Venetians
Naupaktus
Lepanto
Portland
Texel
Hereclea of Minos
La Hogue
Off Isle of Wight


* Was promised me by the bureau of navigation but was sent to
the Michigan 6 instead - much against his will. His duties must be performed by some other person.
6 Lieutenant Herman G. Dresel (d. 1898).
1 Joseph Ballard Murdock (1851-1931).
2 Arthur Lee Willard (I870-1935).
3 Benjamin Bernard McCormick (b. I873).
4 John Porter Merrell (I846-1916).
5 John Blish (1860-1921).
6 An old wooden cruiser stationed on the Great Lakes.




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March 30
April 6
April 13
April 20
April 27
May 4
May ii


Captain Goodrich
Commander Merrell
Lieutenant Murdock
Lieutenant Blish
Ensign Willard
Ensign McCormick
Lieutenant Blish


Capture of Havana
Tricomalee
Granada, 1779
Prince Rupert Bay,
Camperdown
Basque Roads
Beachy Head


1782


Schedule of staff work for the winter and spring of 1898


Monday: -
At 2.00 P.M.
Tuesday: -
At 2.00 P.M.
Wednesday: -
At 2.00 P.M.
Thursday: -
At 2.00 P.M.
Friday: -
At 2.00 P.M.
Saturday: -
At 9.30. A.M.
REAR-ADMIRAL
Personal


Fleet Game
Von Moltke
Single Ship Game
Description of Actions
Fleet Game
Von Moltke
Single Ship Game
Strategic Game
(Every two weeks)
SICARD   TO SECRETARY       LONG
U. S. S. Fern
KEY WEST, FLORIDA
February 12, I898






DEAR SIR:
I beg to inform you that, pursuant to the permission contained
in your very kind telegram of the ninth instant, I left the squadron
in charge of Captain Sampson on the tenth instant, and took the
Fern into Key West, when finding that I could not then make the arrangements that I regarded as essential to getting proper benefit
from my sick leave, and also feeling immediately somewhat benefitted by change, I determined to return to the squadron, and delay
my leave, indefinitely if I proved well enough, otherwise to some
time when the necessity for it should again press.




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I shall accordingly rejoin the part of the squadron at Tortugas
Harbor on the morning of Monday the fourteenth instant and I
have so officially telegraphed the department.
Again with many thanks for your kindness, I am,
Very truly yours,
MONTGOMERY SICARD
The Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
HORACE N. FISHER        TO SECRETARY LONG
Personal                                                 BOSTON
February 14, 1898
DEAR LONG:
In reply to your note of [the] eleventh I may say that Von
Holst's 1 address, - apparently intended to annihilate Hawaiian annexation by combined action of its opponents in the East and West
(largely mugwumps), speaking through the author of the Constitutional History of the United States, also professor of history at
[the] University of Chicago, - is an argument a priori and capable
of conclusive answer. My memorandum, criticising this address
and exposing its shallowness and fallacies, is completed and will be
mailed to you as soon as copied. To make sure that my reply appeals to the calm judgment of thinking men, I have submitted it to
several friends: our friend M. P. Kennard2 summed up his opinion in one word -" comminution," a sort of pulverizing process
whereby solids become dust and disappear. But Kennard is sometimes too enthusiastic, you know. Yet, upon re-reading, I am satisfied that Professor Von Holst's address is much in the condition of
Humpty-Dumpty who had a fall from a wall with such fatal results
that
"All the King's horses and all the King's men
Can't put Humpty Dumpty together again."
Yours very truly
HORACE N. FISHER3
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
WASHINGTON, D. C.
1 Hermann Eduard von Holst (I841-1904).
2 Martin Parry Kennard (b. i818).
3 Horace Newton Fisher (1836-1916), Boston lawyer, college classmate of
Governor Long, authority on Latin-American affairs, and Chilean consul at Boston.
During the Civil War he was lieutenant-colonel, U. S. V., and inspector-general of
the Army of the Cumberland.




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THEODORE ROOSEVELT TO SECRETARY                LONG
Navy Department
WASHINGTON
February i6, 1898
SIR:
In view of the accident to the Maine, I venture respectfully, but
most urgently, to advise that the monitors,' instead of being laid
up, be put in commission forthwith. If we had gone to war with
Spain a year ago we should have had seven armored ships against
three; and there would be no chance of any serious loss to the
American navy. Month by month the Spanish navy has been put
into a better condition to meet us. A week ago it would have been
seven sea-going armored ships against seven. To-day it would be
six against seven. When the Numancia 2 is ready, as she soon will
be, it will be six against eight. By adding the three monitors and the
ram Katahdin we can make it ten to eight. We have lost in peace
one of our battleships, a loss which I do not believe we would have
encountered in war.
I would not intrude on you with any suggestion or advice did
I not feel, Sir, the greatest regard and respect for you personally,
no less than a desire to safeguard the honor of the navy. It may be
impossible to ever settle definitely whether or not the Maine was
destroyed through some treachery upon the part of the Spaniards.
The coincidence of her destruction with her being anchored off
Havana by an accident such as has never before happened, is unpleasant enough to seriously increase the many existing difficulties
between ourselves and Spain. It is of course not my province to in
any way touch on the foreign policy of this country; but the navy
department represents the arm of the government which will have
to carry out any policy upon which the administration may finally
determine, and as events of which we have not the slightest control
may, at any moment, force the administration's hand, it seems to
me, Sir, that it would be well to take all possible precautions. If
over some such incident as the De Lome affair,3 or this destruction
1 The Puritan, Amphitrite, and Terror were in commission at this time. By
July I fourteen monitors were in commission, eight of them being old Civil War
vessels used for harbor defence.
2 An obsolete Spanish ironclad.
3 The Spanish minister at Washington, Don Enrique Dupuy de L6me, had
"some time ago" in a private letter, afterwards published, made offensive references to President McKinley, which forced his retirement. See Lawrence Shaw
Mayo, America of Yesterday (Boston, I923), i6i.




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of the Maine, war should suddenly arise, the navy department
would have to bear the full brunt of the displeasure of Congress
and the country if it were not ready. It would in all probability
take two or three weeks to get ready vessels laid up in reserve, and
these two or three weeks would represent the golden time for
striking a paralyzing blow at the outset of the war.
I would also suggest that the Merritt Wrecking Company, or else
some other as good, be directed at once to make preparations to get
the Maine up.
I note Captain Sigsbee and Consul-General Lee 4 advise against
a warship going to Havana at present. It seems to me they would
not thus advise unless they felt that there was at least grave suspicion
as to the cause of the disaster. In any event I hope that no battleship
will be again sent there. In point of force it is either too great or
too small. The moral effect is gained as much by the presence of
any cruiser flying the American flag, a cruiser such as the Marblehead, for instance. If there is need for a battleship at all there will
be need for every battleship we possess; and the loss of a cruiser
is small compared to the loss of a battleship.
I venture again to point out how these events emphasize the
need that we should have an ample navy. Secretary Tracy,5 in his
address at Boston the other day, was able to show that he had no
responsibility for our present inadequate navy; that he had given
advice which, if followed by Congress, would have insured us at
the present moment, a navy which would have forbid [sic] any danger of trouble with either Spain or Japan. The question of economy
is very important; but it is wholly secondary when compared with
the question of national honor and national defense. An unsuccessful war would cost many times over more than the cost of the most
extravagant appropriations that could be imagined. Congress may,
or may not, adopt your recommendations, if you recommend, in
view of what has happened, the increase of the navy to the size
which we should have; but at any rate the skirts of the department
will then be cleared; and it is certain that until the department takes
the lead, Congress will not only refuse to grant ships, but will hold
itself justified in its refusal. For a year and a half now we have been
explaining to Spain that we might, and very probably would, in
certain contingencies interfere in Cuba. We have therefore been
4 Fitzhugh Lee (1835-I905), major-general, C. S. A., in the Civil War.
5 Secretary of the navy i889-1893.




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giving her ample notice, of which she has taken advantage, to get
ready all the fleet she could, until the margin of difference between
our force and hers has become so small that by the sinking of the
Maine it has been turned in her favor so far as the units represented
by the sea-going armorclads on the Atlantic are concerned. It is
of course true that the department will be blamed for extravagance
if it recommends that the navy be increased, as it should be increased, and as the interests of the nation demand; but this blame
will be baseless, and we can well afford to stand it, whereas it may
be held against us for all time to come, not merely by the men of
to-day, but by those who read history in the future, if we fail to
point out what the naval needs of the nation are, and how they
should be met.
Very respectfully,
THEODORE ROOSEVELT
Assistant Secretary
The Honorable
THE SECRETARY OF THE NAVY
THEODORE ROOSEVELT TO SECRETARY LONG
Navy Department
WASHINGTON
February 17, 1898
SIR:
Although the enclosed letter of Captain Higginson is in form
private, it really relates to a public matter, and I therefore send it
to you, for it calls attention to the fact of the extreme defectiveness
of the surveys of the Dry Tortugas. It ought not to be necessary
to employ battleships to make surveys. It seems to me that it would
be well to have an immediate and full report as to why the coast
survey did not have these channels thoroughly charted, so that the
blame, if any there be, may be placed where it belongs.
Very respectfully,
THEODORE ROOSEVELT
Assistant Secretary
The Honorable
THE SECRETARY OF THE NAVY
[Enclosure. See Captain Higginson's letter of February iI, 1898.]




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[ I898


THEODORE ROOSEVELT TO SECRETARY LONG
Navy Department
WASHINGTON
February 17, I898
SIR:
The Journal the other day, and the World to-day, have pictures
of the Vizcaya I shelling and destroying New York, and interviews
of men who say that under such circumstances they would destroy
her. I wish it were possible in some way to point out the criminal
character of such articles. Until the sinking of the Maine they
amounted to mere hysterics, compounded in part of sensationalism,
and in part of physical cowardice. Now they are more serious, and
represent incitement to murder. It almost seems to me that an authoritative statement from you to this effect might do good.
In any event it seems to me that the situation is serious enough
to warrant extra precautions being taken by us to secure the safety
of the Vizcaya. Undoubtedly whatever the facts may be, a very
considerable number of our people will believe that the Maine was
destroyed by a torpedo in some such way as the Journal depicts
this morning; and the Journal and the World may be relied upon
to do their scoundrelly best to inflame any weak-minded and vicious
person to the point of making an attempt upon the Vizcaya. Of
course it is unlikely that such an attempt will be made, or that it
would succeed, but I think your department should take every
precaution against it; and I should suggest that you have special
boat patrols kept around the Vizcaya by day, and especially by
night, throughout her stay in the harbor, and that you consult with
the chief of the bureau of navigation to see what other steps can
be taken to insure the safety of the Spanish ship while she is our
guest.
Very respectfully,
THEODORE ROOSEVELT
Assistant Secretary
The Honorable
THE SECRETARY OF THE NAVY
1 Spanish armored cruiser in New York Harbor.




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THEODORE ROOSEVELT TO SECRETARY LONG
Navy Department
WASHINGTON
February 19, 1898
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
In reference to our conversation of yesterday, and to a brief conversation which I had with Judge Day this morning before you
came, let me again earnestly urge that you advise the President
against our conducting any examination in conjunction with the
Spaniards as to the Maine's disaster. I myself doubt whether it will
be possible to tell definitely how the disaster occurred by an investigation; still it may be possible, and it may be that we could
do it as well in conjunction with the Spaniards as alone. But I am
sure we never could convince the people-at-large of this fact. There
is of course a very large body of public opinion to the effect that
we sometime ago reached the limit of forbearance in our conduct
toward the Spaniards, and this public opinion is already very restless, and might easily be persuaded to turn hostile to the administration. The outrageous attacks of Senators Allen and Mason 2 yesterday, which were so well answered by Lodge and Wolcott,3 show
that even in our own party, as well as among our foes, there is
already a disposition to look with suspicion upon our attitude about
Cuba. I feel that for our own sakes the administration should scrupulously refrain from doing anything which would give a color of
right to our critics, and they would undoubtedly seize upon a joint
investigation as an excuse for denouncing us, and for asserting that
we were afraid to find out the exact facts. Of course such an accusation would be absurd; but it might be damaging nevertheless; and
it would at present have weight with a great many decent people
who would not normally pay any heed to it, but who think that
we should intervene on behalf of Cuba.
There is another subject of which I spoke to you yesterday, and
about which I venture to remind you. This is in reference to additional warships. I was informed that both Speaker Reed4 and
Senator Hale 5 had stated that we must cease building any more
1 William Vincent Allen (I847-1924), U. S. senator from Nebraska.
2 William Ernest Mason (i850-I921), U. S. senator from Illinois.
3 Edward Oliver Wolcott (I848-I905), U. S. senator from Colorado.
4 Thomas Brackett Reed (I839-1902), Bowdoin '6o, of Maine, Speaker of the
House of Representatives.
6 Eugene Hale, of Maine, chairman of the senate naval committee.




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battleships, in view of the disaster to the Maine. I can not believe
that the statement is true, for of course such an attitude, if supported by the people, would mean that we had reached the last
pitch of national cowardice and baseness. Nevertheless, while I
can not believe that any of our own party leaders would adopt
such an attitude, there is no question that it is one which appeals
to people who are timid and foolish; and furthermore, it will appeal even to persons who are neither timid nor foolish, but who
are ignorant of the subject, and who believe that we should have
more monitors and torpedo boats instead of battleships. I shall
not repeat what I said in my letter of yesterday about torpedo boats
and battleships; but I earnestly wish you could see your way clear
now, without waiting a day, to send in a special message, stating
that in view of the disaster to the Maine (and perhaps in view of
the possible needs of this country) instead of recommending one
battleship, you ask that two, or better still, four battleships be
authorized immediately by Congress. If such action were taken
promptly I believe it would not only be of great service to the
country, but of great service to the administration; for I believe
it would be an admirable thing politically, and would do much to
set at ease many good men who have felt that our policy in reference to the navy, and on foreign affairs, was not strong enough. If
only Congress could be persuaded to act upon such a suggestion at
once, and authorize the battleships immediately, it would do more
for the national tone than could be done in any other way.
Very respectfully,
THEODORE ROOSEVELT
Assistant Secretary
The Honorable
THE SECRETARY OF THE NAVY
SENATOR WOLCOTT TO SECRETARY LONG
United States Senate
WASHINGTON, D. C.
February 19, 1898
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY LONG:
Thank you for your very kind note of this morning. I only
voiced feebly the sentiment of pride our whole country feels in
the American navy: a sentiment that has been strengthened by the
dignity and wisdom with which its present chief is guiding its
policy in these critical times.




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Higginson 1 in one of his essays tells us that the average age of
the captains who sailed out of Salem and Marblehead in the War
of 181 2, and who brought such glory to the flag, was under twentytwo! Their descendants still adorn the service, and their example
still kindles the patriotism of the officers of our navy.
With best wishes,
Yours sincerely,
EDWARD 0. WOLCOTT
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
A. MAURICE LOW TO SECRETARY LONG
HAVANA
February 26, 1898
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
This is the first opportunity I have had to send you a few words
as it is not advisable to send anything but ordinary communications
through regular mails.
Belief grows stronger every day among the American correspondents here - careful men and not the sensationalists - that a
mine caused the explosion. I came here without any preconceived
theories, I have been trying to convince myself that the disaster
was an accident, and yet conclusion is forcing itself upon me that
[the] mine theory is correct. Your recent order all the officers - unfortunately for us - are obeying literally. Not a word do they tell
us. Perhaps you don't realize how hard our task is. Captain Sigsbee
desires me to convey his regards and say how much he appreciated
your kind message. It was very cheering to him to know his course
had met with your approval. He is a magnificent fellow and an
honor to the country and the service. If he would only talk!
Outwardly Havana is quiet; under the surface there is a seething
volcano. Will it break out?
I must close as General Lee has the pouch ready. With regards,
Faithfully yours,
A. MAURICE Low1
1 Colonel Thomas Wentworth Higginson (1823-191i), Harvard College '4I.
See his Life and Times of Stephen Higginson (Boston and New York, 1907), 39-42.
1 Alfred Maurice Low (1860-1929), newspaper correspondent.




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WILLIAM    C. WHITNEY TO SECRETARY LONG
Joye Cottage, Easey Street
Confidential                             AIKEN, SOUTH CAROLINA
March i, I898
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I imagine all the suggestions in this note have already been considered by the President. If war comes the only point is damage to
be done to us by an enemy's ships of war. Cuba would be overrun
and Spain be on the defensive there [on] short notice. But nothing
but an overpowering superiority on the ocean would prevent a
panic, war risks in all directions and general commercial disaster no
matter how the war ended. Q. How can this be prevented? Only
by purchasing vessels of war. This can only be done by paying
twice what they are worth. But Spain has no money and we have.
If we had a dozen more first class fighting ships there could be no
war. This purchasing can only be done by confidential, quiet advances being made in a variety of directions, without Spain knowing
of it, and without publicity. The avenues through which such advances can be made will readily occur to you and the President and
will suggest themselves - diplomatic of course.
Pardon this repetition of what you have already considered. But
we should not go to war unless we can end it at once. A long fight
with such a country as Spain would be humiliating. But the South
with no ports and no navy, with one privateer the Alabama inflicted
hundreds of millions of damage (directly and indirectly, war premiums, etc.) upon this country.
If there is nothing new in this letter tear it up. It does not require
an answer.
Yours sincerely,
Honorable JOHN D. LONG                   W. C. WHITNEY
Secretary of the Navy
SECRETARY LONG TO MILTON EAMES
Navy Department
WASHINGTON
March 2, 1898
MASTER MILTON EAMES:
I am in receipt of your letter of the twenty-seventh ultimatum,
enclosing ten cents.
1 William Collins Whimey (I841-1904), Yale '63, secretary of the navy in
President Cleveland's first administration.




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As no subscription is being received for the building of a battleship, I have turned the money over to the ladies having in charge
the raising of a fund for the relief of the Maine sufferers.
Very truly yours,
JOHN D. LONG
Secretary
Master MILTON EAMES
BROOKLYN, NEW YORK
MEMORANDUM        FOR MR. WARD
Department of the Navy
Bureau of Navigation
WASHINGTON, D. C.
March 2, I898
The data furnished in the Report of the Chief of the Bureau of
Navigation for the fiscal year ending June 3o, I897, is made up
from a careful count of the men who were actually on board of
the vessels of the navy and at the different navy yards and stations
on the thirtieth of June. The number of men in the general service
was 8,685, number of apprentices 1,642, total 10,327. Number of
men in special service, including fish commission and coast survey,
i,0o8; grand total, I 1,345.
Of the number of men in the general service, 2,845 are petty
officers; of this number, over forty-eight per cent. are native born,
and eighty-three per cent. are actual citizens of the United States.
Of the 5,840 men in the general service, holding other ratings, fiftyeight per cent. are native born, and seventy per cent. are actual citizens. Of the number of men in the special service 351 are petty
officers, eighty-six per cent. native born and ninety-one per cent.
citizens of the United States. Of the 667 men in special service under
other ratings, forty-eight per cent. are native born and over sixtyeight per cent. are citizens.
Of the whole number of men in the service, over fifty-four per
cent. are native born, and seventy-four per cent. are actual citizens.
Of the remaining twenty-six per cent., over twelve per cent. have
declared their intentions of becoming citizens. Of the apprentices
in the service, over eighty-six per cent. are native born.
[JOHN D. LONG]




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JOHN W. CANDLER TO SECRETARY LONG
66 State Street
BOSTON
March 2, 1898
MY DEAR SECRETARY LONG:
A friend of mine has given me from time [to time] very interesting accounts of the "Holland Sub Marine Boat,"1 it seemed from
what has been said to me it is valuable. They write me that Mr.
William H. Tagues, the president of the company, is to be in Washington to arrange for a trial, or something of that kind. If it meets
the approval of the department, I take pleasure in recommending
Lieutenant Commander W. W. Kimball to be detailed to be present. I believe him to be a very reliable and capable officer.
I have no personal interest whatever in the invention, but as an
old Cuban merchant I am tired of the cruelty and tyranny of the
Spaniards in Cuba, which I have been familiar with for about forty
years, and hope new inventions will aid in destroying them if necessary to drive them from rule on this side of the Atlantic.
Sincerely yours,
JOHN W. CANDLER3
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
WALTER L. BOUVE TO SECRETARY LONG
COMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS
Senate Chamber
BOSTON
March 2, 1898
DEAR MR. LONG:
I have hesitated to bother you by writing during a period that
I knew must be very trying and wearying and which, quite possibly, was overworking you. Moreover it has been a time for deliberation on the part of every one, and I for one, did not wish to
let feeling carry me off my feet, especially in any endeavor to give
you my impression of public sentiment; - which perhaps you will
not be sorry to learn, - as it appears to me. Last year, in the House,
I made a very vigorous fight against the passage of resolutions intended as advice to Congress, - although entirely sympathising with
1 Invented by John Philip Holland (I840-I914).
2 William Wirt Kimball (1848-1930).
3 John Wilson Candler (1828-1903), M. C. from Massachusetts I88I-I883.




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their spirit, - and finally voted with only ten others against their
passage, while they passed by a vote of one hundred and twentyone. A like conservative course has influenced me this year on at
least two occasions. So I think you will give me credit for endeavoring to speak impartially.
To me personally, the loss of the Maine, - due to any probable
cause, - does not appear to be a justifiable reason for war. If Spain
connived at or brought about the calamity, of course I should think
directly the opposite. Whether a refusal of indemnity if caused by
her citizens would be a proper reason, is to me doubtful. So the
Maine disaster is to me a sad and unfortunate incident. But the
people at large, -and thoughtful and high minded portions, at
least, -feel much more strongly. The views of those who agree
with my opinion are expressed perhaps better by saying that, as
a whole, the Maine's loss should be made a pretext for an interference in Cuba by our government, which ought really to be undertaken on other grounds.
There can be no doubt that there is great restraint being exercised
all round and that the least apparent yielding of proper claim against
Spain would lead to the greatest and bitterest outburst since I86i.
The people here have great confidence in you and in the President,
and it is this confidence which has resulted in the quiet thus far
apparent. But if you and the rest of the Cabinet - and especially
Congress - could hear the denunciation of Boutelle ' of Maine and
of Speaker Reed, both in and out of the legislature, you would
realize how near we are to a popular explosion, even after these
two weeks.
Really all hands had accepted the certainty of war, and, excepting those for peace at any price, and those who were troubled about
its effect on their pockets, there was an almost universal feeling
of satisfaction that the misery and cruelty in Cuba was to be stopped.
For my own part I should prefer that the United States act honestly,
and interfere openly; first in the cause of humanity, and second
because I believe it to be for our national interest to do so. I think
the real desire for action by our government is based on the same
reasons, but that almost all are willing to make a pretext of the
Maine disaster - as said before. However that may be, I have never
seen such a general quiet acquiescence in, and desire for, the extremest measures. There is universal denunciation of Congress for
1 Charles Addison Boutelle (I83-1901), M. C. from Maine.




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its real or supposed failure to back up your wishes and vote men
and money, for men, guns and ships, and especially for dry docks.
I have been with two committees of the Senate and House within
a few days where most radical talk was the result of hesitation or
inaction, - and Mr. Reed received unstinted denunciation. I wish
you could see all that the papers have printed and hear all that
has been said about you. It could but please you. There is universal
confidence in your dignified course. It is felt that if you were
secretary of state it would be " none too good for you."
I think there is less satisfaction with Mr. McKinley from the
fear that he will not only seek peace honorably but be disposed to
yield everything for its sake. Still almost every one believes in the
administration and thinks it will do the wise thing. If peace can
be maintained without sacrifice, the people desire it, but they are
not in a mood to yield much; and there is a general desire to have
action taken to free Cuba.
I am delighted at the immense and deserved gain you have made
in popular esteem. I hope you are not being overburdened.
If the most serious thing should happen, Massachusetts is admirably prepared to do her part efficiently.
Very truly yours
WALTER L. BouvE 2
Don't trouble yourself to write. I know you have enough to trouble
you.
CAPTAIN SAMPSON TO SECRETARY LONG
U. S. S. Iowa, First Rate
KEY WEST, FLORIDA
March 4, I898
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
It may appear out of place to write you about a personal matter
at this time, when my whole thought should be, and really is, occupied by the court of inquiry. We are about to start for Havana,
where I shall be more fully occupied than here.
I had for some time past supposed that the way was clear for
my promotion to the grade of rear admiral, because of the retirement of Captain Robeson.' I now learn by a few lines in the paper
2 Walter Lincoln Bouve (b. I849), lawyer, state senator, militiaman.
1 Henry Bellows Robeson (1842-1914).




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that he is likely to receive his promotion. For his sake I am glad
that it is to be so; and I am ashamed that for [a] personal reason I
should take any other view of it.
My situation is a peculiar one. There are six officers above me who
are younger than I am; consequently I can never reach the grade
of rear admiral, as there seems to be no chance for our reorganization
measure. It has occurred to me that if Robeson would voluntarily
retire, on condition that he were reported favorably by the medical
board, he would secure all he expects, and would not block my
promotion. Evidently he would subsequently pass for promotion
to admiral, for no reason would exist against it which does not hold
good now. This is the reason why I find the outlook so hopeless.
Of course, if he were ordered to command a squadron, he would
ask to be retired; but in these times no secretary would take such
a responsibility, for he might accept the command.
You will wonder, my dear Mr. Secretary, why I should write
you on this subject. Principally for two reasons: I can do nothing
for myself; and because you might start the train which would lead
Robeson to ask for his retirement. This only on condition you
think it entirely proper.
I confess I am greatly in doubt whether I should ask this.
Yours sincerely,
W. T. SAMPSON
THE SECRETARY OF THE NAVY
Navy Department
WASHINGTON, D. C.
GAMALIEL BRADFORD TO SECRETARY LONG
502 Beacon Street
BOSTON
March 4, I898
DEAR MR. LONG:
Of the many rumors floating about one is to the effect that the
administration is trying to negotiate with Spain and Cuba for the
independence of Cuba against an indemnity of one hundred (or
two hundred) millions of dollars to be raised by a loan guaranteed
by the United States. This report has moved me so deeply that I
can not help trespassing upon your time and patience.
If Mr. McKinley wishes to make his name second only to those
of Washington and Lincoln in the history of the country, and to




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make his reelection in i900 absolutely certain; if he wishes to raise
the United States higher in the eyes of the world than they have
ever stood before; if he wishes to give the Republican party a
new lease of power, now is his opportunity.
While - thanks largely to your attitude - I have not much fear
from the Maline incident, I have very great fear that intervention
can not be long averted. Any attempt to buy the island for ourselves would be peremptorily refused by Spain, and even its acceptance would involve annexation which I regard as the last of
evils, and I believe that feeling is shared by the country. The alternative, war, with its train of endless evils, could hardly bring
any greater than the annexation which would be one of its results.
But the separate independence of Cuba would avoid all these
evils. Having so large a mortgage on it, we could take it if it ever
seemed desirable, while we should have an interval to decide calmly
whether it was so or not. That this great democracy could do so
magnanimous and wise an act - I do not say unselfish because it
would be the very perfection of enlightened self-interest -would
fill Europe with astonishment and raise it enormously in their estimation. As to the cost, if we never got back a cent it wvould be less
than that of six months of war and hardly more than one year's
pension list; while the interest at three per cent., six millions, would
scarcely exceed the cost of one ironclad. The difference both
present and future in the moral effect upon the country of the
maintenance of peace as compared with war would be cheaply
purchased at the capital sum.
Of course the condition would be included that slavery should
never again be permitted in the island.
Spain would not accept? Then having made the proposal would
justify anything we might afterwards be compelled to do. And our
position in making it would be entirely different from that of
trying for ourselves. We could use every possible conciliatory
expression; pain and regret that such a noble nation should be compelled to give up her ancient dependency; total disclaimer of any
selfish purpose beyond that of securing peace on our border; readiness to do anything to make the settlement honorable to both sides;
but that it would be impossible much longer to restrain our people
who are becoming more and more excited; while with our seventy
millions of population and their enormous wealth, the result in the
long run could not be doubtful and the end, after unspeakable




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disaster to both nations, could not fail to be worse, much worse
than that proposed.
It seems to me that except the first Revolution and the Civil War,
there has never been a time when the government of this country
held its future welfare and that of untold generations in its hands
more completely than the present.
If there is anything which I can do either by word or deed to
promote the result I am ready at a moment's notice, and meantime
I will ask you to pardon this irrepressible outburst of feeling.
Believe me,
Very truly yours,
GAMALIEL BRADFORD
WILLIAM    LLOYD GARRISON TO SECRETARY LONG
BOSTON
March 4, i898
MY DEAR MR. LONG:
While the scandalous portion of the press is maligning you, I
am sure you are conscious that the best people are grateful for your
admirable bearing in a troublous time. The thinking people of
Massachusetts feel that you have added renown to the commonwealth, and rejoice that you are in a position to do such great
public service.
Among the men whose good opinion you value, whether of your
party or not, there is but one expression of approval. They feel
also that the President has acted with conscience and discretion.
I enclose [an] editorial from [the] New York Journal of Commerce
which [is] a deserved and fitting tribute.
Very sincerely yours,
WILLIAM LLOYD GARRISON
ROBERT M. MORSE TO SECRETARY LONG
Burroughs Street
JAMAICA PLAIN, [MASSACHUSETTS]
March 6, 1898
DEAR LONG:
I wish it understood that I join in the chorus of approval and
gratitude which goes up from intelligent people all over the country
1 Gamaliel Bradford (183I-I191), Harvard College '49.
1 William Lloyd Garrison, Jr. (I838-1909).




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to the President and yourself for your conduct over the Maine
disaster. Nothing in our experience has been so vile as the course
which has been taken by a large part of the press in manufacturing
lies and in trying to stir up a war feeling. To make an accident
like this, occurring in a friendly port where our ship had been
received with every courtesy and where, upon the happening of
the accident, both authorities and people have hastened to show
their horror at the act and their sympathy with us, the occasion
for precipitating us into a causeless war, is too wicked for adequate
description in words. I believe that to-day our greatest danger as
a people is in the existence of this braggart and jingo spirit which
is ready to insult other governments and nations and to threaten
war and perhaps go to war. All the more we are proud and thankful that the national administration is calm and just and that it
will not permit such a blot on civilization as a war with Spain
would be. With kind regards, believe me,
Very truly yours,
Honorable JOHN D. LONG                   ROBERT M. MORSE
Secretary of the Navy
SENATOR CHANDLER TO SECRETARY LONG
Senate Chamber
Private and personal                             WASHINGTON
March Io, 1898
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
Shouldn't our Asiatic squadron be strengthened by adding a battleship, if the squadron is to remain there? With a battleship it
could take Manila; without it, it can do little and might as well
come home. But I should not favor its return. Our Pacific Coast
hasn't many harbors like the Atlantic; and besides, a Spanish fleet is
not likely to appear there. Therefore I hope you will send over a
battleship, which will stop en route at Hawaii. It is a long journey
and ought to begin at once. Excuse me for writing to you. I am
unable to reach the department this morning to see you. I congratulate you upon the creditable action of the department so far.
Thank God Cuba is to be free; and we are to take at least a little
part therein. The birth of a new American republic is a great event,
my friend, although its beginnings may be feeble!
Sincerely your friend,
Honorable JOHN D. LONG                    W. E. CHANDLER
Secretary




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SENATOR HALE TO SECRETARY LONG
iooi Sixteenth Street
[WASHINGTON, D. C.]
IO March, I898
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I am off for Maine to get a whiff of winter as there are four feet
of snow there on the average.
You are surrounded by men who are eager for war and I am
glad I am not in your shoes. But I thank the Lord you are just where
you are. The President will not apportion the money except as it
is really needed, and I am sure he will stand by you in resisting
the hungry crowd who want to get hold of it.
Yours most sincerely,
EUGENE HALE1
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
THOMAS H. TALBOT TO SECRETARY LONG
23 Court Street
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS
March IO, I898
DEAR GOVERNOR AND SECRETARY:
You fellows in charge of the nation's affairs will not, I believe,
do much that I shall not approve, either to avoid, or to prepare
for, war.
Probably it will soon be apparent that practically, Cuba can not
be well governed save by the United States. But I hope that the
island will come under our government without war.
Yet, it did me good to see the other day that we had warships
in waters of the East Indies: for, in the event of war made upon us
by Spain, I hope to see even her Philippines seized and strongly
held by our forces, until we see fit to give them up.
Further, it is a pleasant rumor to me, which comes this morning,
of sympathy and an approach to a good understanding between
the United States and Great Britain, as to affairs in the extreme
East. I do not know a great deal about the issues out there, now
becoming acute. But it would be difficult to make me believe, that
we had no interest in those issues. In preventing the closing of portions of China to the world's free commerce, I think we should
I U. S. senator from Maine and chairman of the naval committee.




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have a substantial interest, even, if we were now, what we once
were, a nation with only an Atlantic seaboard.
Now, however, we have a long stretch of Pacific Coast, fronting
eastern Asia; and I do not think we can too carefully provide for
the great future of these Pacific interests of ours.
It was my opinion of the foreign policy which our nation ought
now to adopt, which chiefly deter[mined] my choice of candidates for President in 896. What I knew of Cleaveland's [sic] views
thereon would have prevented my repeating my votes for him,
had he been a candidate. And yet, if Olney,1 the other day, at
Cambridge, spoke for Cleaveland, as well as for himself; then Cleaveland's so far are not so objectionable to me, as I had regarded them.
As, indeed, for some years I have considered the doctrine of
Washington's "Farewell Address " as not good gospel for to-day.
I think of it as a " back number," ever since we were able by warlike force to restore the integrity of the Union. Our new powers, of
which we then became conscious, impose upon us altogether new
duties; and we can not shirk them, if we would.
Nor are we always to be a mere continental, land-bound people.
The sea and foreign parts have a loud call for some of our people;
and we must try to find them fit opportunity on the ocean and
abroad.
Yours truly,
THOMAS H. TALBOT2
LIEUTENANT-COMMANDER MILLER TO
SECRETARY LONG
Hotel du Bazar Slave rue Nicolskaia
Moscou
March 12, 1898
MY DEAR MR. LONG:
After the occupation of Mobile in the early spring of 1865 I was
engaged in dragging for torpedoes and saw several of our vessels
destroyed by them - was within fifty feet of the Milwaukee - she
had but two or three feet of water under her - the Osage, a gunboat, a "tin clad" and two tug boats with my own boat-the
1 Richard Olney (I835-1917), Brown '56, secretary of state in President
Cleveland's second administration.
2 Thomas Hammond Talbot (1823-1907), Bowdoin '46, Boston lawyer, assistant attorney-general in President Grant's administration; brevet brigadier-general, U. S. V., Civil War.




I898]      PAPERS OF JOHN DAVIS LONG                    71
launch of the Cincinnati were all destroyed by torpedoes.1 In no
case was any internal explosion caused by the external explosion
of the torpedoes. Conditions differed of course. The torpedoes were
made of beer kegs anchored by "mushrooms" filled with gunpowder and ignited by means of nipples filled with fulminate of
mercury. While you have nearer and more valuable sources of
information I consider it my duty to lay this before you.
Very respectfully
FREDERICK A. MILLER 2
To the
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
NATHAN APPLETON        TO SECRETARY LONG
66 Beacon Street
Personal                                             BOSTON
14 March, 1898
MY DEAR SIR:
I enclose a short article of mine which appeared in the Boston
Herald of to-day. As regards that part of it which refers to the
Panama Canal I would say that the director general of the present
Panama Canal Company has quite recently started for the isthmus,
and is expected to return to New York, en route for Paris, about
the middle of April. You will remember our conversation in relation to the canal last summer at Washington, and I wish as much
now as I did then that, should I meet Mr. Hutin on his return from
Panama, I could give him some encouragement as to our cooperation in the great work which is quietly going on. Believe me,
Yours very truly,
NATHAN APPLETON
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
CAPTAIN SAMPSON TO SECRETARY LONG
U. S. S. Iowa, First Rate
KEY WEST, FLORIDA
March I6, 1898
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I have been very much impressed during the past few weeks
by what the papers have had to say concerning the coming of the
1 The Milwaukee, Osage, and Cincinnati were ironclads.
2 Frederick Augustus Miller (d. I907).




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Spanish torpedo boats. This has been asserted and contradicted
several times. On my arrival here from Havana, I see that it is finally
stated that they are to come at once. I therefore venture to write
you my opinion, and to advise in the most positive manner that
Spain should be informed that it will be considered a hostile act
if they are sent here. Such vessels can only be used against us, and
under the present conditions, in the most effective manner. This
North Atlantic Squadron is now very open to an attack by such
boats; they might approach us under a friendly guise and destroy a
battleship without our power to resist. Not so in the case of big
ships. Their approach to our coast would in itself be a suspicious
circumstance; we would not mind if she did attack us, and got in the
first blow. We are always ready, and probably would make short
work of her; but a torpedo boat, from her invisibility, may need but
one shot to sink a ship. If such a boat approached us to-day, I would
not know whether to treat her as a friend or a foe.
I think the government should warn Spain that if those torpedo
boats are sent over here, that we will destroy them at once. Self
preservation demands such a course. If we are not to follow this
course, the ships should be withdrawn to a position where, if a
torpedo boat comes, it will plainly indicate that she is on hostilities
bent.
Upon another point I venture to express my opinion, my dear
Mr. Secretary, without knowing your views, and again having my
information only from the papers. Briefly, I would not purchase
any foreign built warship. Let us make the best of what we have.
We should have more, but we can win without more. I do not
think that England will sell to us under the present conditions, and
it would probably be humiliating to have her refuse; though that
is not of much importance.
The spirit of the international rule against supplying war material
during war would be violated, if not the letter. War may come at
any moment, and England will be careful not to put herself in the
position she was when the Alabama cost her so much. Spain will
secure no appreciable advantage by such purchases. She is dead
broke.
Warn England, and any other country having ships for sale, not
to sell to Spain at the risk of our subsequent action, and then keep
our own ships clear by not attempting to purchase ourselves; it
will give great strength to our claims against any nation who does




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sell ships to Spain. Let us proceed at once to build our own ships, -
such as we want.
Yours sincerely,
THE SECRETARY OF THE NAVY                 W. T. SAMPSON
Navy Department
WASHINGTON, D. C.
WILLIAM    H. LINCOLN TO SECRETARY LONG
114 State Street
BOSTON
March 22, 1898
DEAR GOVERNOR LONG:
I have refrained from writing you, because I did not wish to
trespass upon your time, realizing what demands are now made
upon you.
You will always be Governor Long to your old friends whatever
position you may fill. I want to say that your calm, deliberate course
of action has increased the admiration of all classes in this community for you and the grand old commonwealth has reason to
be proud of her worthy son and representative. I have always remembered what you once said to me, many years ago, that the
height of your ambition was to be in the Senate of the United
States. It seems now, that in the good providence of God you have
been called to a much more responsible and prominent position,
and next to the President, the eyes of the whole people are turned
toward you. We have confidence in your ability - your judgment
and your sense of justice. I fervently trust and pray that the demon
of war may not be let loose upon this country - and I have faith
that somehow peace may be maintained and with national honor.
But my object in writing is to offer you my tribute of praise and
to endeavor to strengthen your hands if need be by assuring that
the people of this state believe in you - and in your wisdom and
your sense of responsibility.
The export trade of this country was never in a more flourishing
condition, and the country was entering upon a period of unprecedented prosperity.
The mission of commerce is to proclaim peace and good will to
men,- to bring the nations into closer relations with each other.
May peace be established.
With kind regards and high esteem -
Sincerely yours,
WILLIAM H. LINCOLN1
1 William Henry Lincoln (1835-1925), Boston merchant.




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74       PAPERS OF JOHN DAVIS LONG      [1898


HORACE N. FISHER TO SECRETARY LONG
BOSTON
March 23, 1898
DEAR LONG:
My letter of twenty-first instant suggested the importance of
forestalling the Spanish crafty scheme of arbitrating the Maine disaster, whereby Spain would probably get European support to some
extent, with a view of forcing a modification of our Monroe Doctrine. Therefore I suggested the recognition of Cuba's independence, which as a proper act of sovereignty can not be subject to
arbitration.
Moreover such recognition does not necessarily involve war; yet
it would carry with it belligerent rights, assure Cuba's demand for
rights by the laws of war and thereby render offenders outlaws
and personally responsible.
This recognition of Cuba's independence would really be a peace
measure, because it would probably be followed by similar recognition by other Spanish American governments and not unlikely by
the British government; whereas giving precedence to the " Maine
disaster" is really an opportunity for dilatory tactics on the part
of Spain and a continuance of the starvation condition of the reconcentrados, for which we would thus make ourselves jointly responsible.
There is another reason for holding this to be a peace measure;
Spain, - now practically having lost Cuba and therefore not loser
in anything but prestige by confessing it, - would be under bonds
to us not to consider our recognition of Cuba's independence as an
act of war. Those bonds would be Porto Rico and the Philippines,
which Spain would be likely to lose if she declared war on us; to
say nothing of other grave inconveniences, such as financial ruin,
crippling of commerce and industry of the peninsula and possibly
civil war at home. For which reasons I think that recognition of
Cuba's independence decidedly less liable to cause war than to
cause pacification of the island of Cuba.
Of course if war should result, we would become allies of the
Cubans after their recognition as an independent power. Spain
must realize that our alliance would immediately follow Spain's
declaration of war, and commercial intercourse would cease between the two countries. Whereas, a graceful acceptance by Spain




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of our recognition of Cuba's independence, would not interfere
with commerce between Spain and the United States; and moreover might be conditioned upon our guarantee of a certain amount
to be paid to Spain by Cuba and thus help the Spanish treasury.
These points, tactfully communicated to Spain, would not be
without influence with so wise a statesman as Sagasta.'
Yours truly,
HORACE N. FISHER
P.S. You are too busy, my dear classmate, for me or any one to
expect an answer to letters from friends. Everybody is nobly upholding the hands of the President and his advisers in this most
critical time. That is my only excuse for writing you.
Yesterday I sent to Senator Hoar a duplicate of my letter of [the]
twenty-first instant to you, for his consideration: for, as the poet
says,
"Timeo Danaos et dona ferentes,"
I am awfully afraid of European arbitration, for reasons stated in
my letter.                                          H. N. F.
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
CAPTAIN    GOODRICH TO SECRETARY LONG
Personal                                             NEW YORK
March 24, 1898
DEAR MR. LONG:
I am making good progress with the scheme of a proposed coast
signal service,' have secured through my friend Mr. Hudson,2 president of the Bell Telephone Company, offers of most hearty cooperation and from Mr. Eckert 3 of the Western Union Telegraph
Company, through influential friends here, equally pleasant assurances.
I think, entre nous, that I shall be able to save the department
the expenditure of many thousands of dollars and to secure efficiency with economy. So far I have spent nothing except for unavoidable travel.
I hope to bring my work to a conclusion inside of three weeks.
1 Praxedes Mateo Sagasta (1827-1903), prime minister of Spain.
1 See Long, The New American Navy, 1, i6i.
2 John Elbridge Hudson (1839-I900), Harvard College '62.
3 Thomas Thompson Eckert (1825-1910).




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If you should need my services in a more active way before then
I have " an understudy " ready to take the burden.
I am distressed by the clouds that will gather on the political
horizon but ready to do what I ought to do when the call comes.
The bureau of navigation has my address always.
Sincerely yours,
C. F. GOODRICH
CARLETON HUNT TO SECRETARY LONG
NEW ORLEANS
March 24, 1898
DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
In his letter which came to-day, Lieutenant Ridgely Hunt expresses his gratitude for your appointment of him to be naval expert
in the branch hydrographic office, New York, in order that I, too,
may write and thank you. I do so. I speak for him, and for myself
also, with all my heart, because I am not without some hope, that
with your usually gracious disposition, your thoughts, as you acted,
may have turned towards me as well as Ridgely.
As you will perhaps remember, I have from the beginning of
President McKinley's administration considered that the Cuban
troubles would have to be seriously dealt with. I welcomed your
appointment as sure to be useful, and as one in which distinguished
public service would be rendered by you. Observation, as practised
as is yours in public life, does not fail, I am very certain, to perceive all the perplexities of the present time in this part of our
great and common country. It is difficult to imagine anything more
deplorable than the effort being made in the name of what is called
democracy, to defraud the fifteenth amendment to the Constitution
of the United States. If only the attempt could be wisely met and
overthrown, how happy the conclusion would be!
The war with Spain will, as all war must, bring its measure of
calamity to the people of this state. It will, however, be, as I believe,
not without good results. It will fire their patriotism. It will show
them full of courage. It will prove them devoted to the cause of the
country. The first gun that is fired will unite our countrymen
everywhere North and South, and bring them gloriously to the
support of the wise and firm course of the President. Please God,
1 Ridgely Hunt (I854-1916).




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the triumphs that are to follow by land and sea will tend to the
suppression of Bryanism and repudiation!
Wishing you every success, and highest honors in your great
place, I am, with every sympathy, personally and as a citizen in
this public crisis,
Yours faithfully,
CARLETON HUNT
The Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON
JAMES DE NORMANDIE TO SECRETARY LONG
First Church, Roxbury
BOSTON
March 24, I898
DEAR MR. LONG:
You have not time, I fear, to read commendations for yourself
- and yet you must be helped in these critical moments, by knowing of the highest praises in every one's mouth. It seems to me I never
heard such a consenting voice - and for the President also. It is
surely the great desire of the vast majority hereabout, that you
may be able to go on for some time in your present course. We
are surely too great to mind any taunts of being afraid to go to
war - but when we do go, let us all be sure the moment has come,
and we are ready to demand our own terms. So many of us feel
that if you could spend a hundred millions more in preparation, it
would be as nothing to the expenses of war, and might be one of
the means of preventing it. In any event we are all putting great
confidence in you, and a strong assurance that you will meet any
emergency in the right spirit and with success.
May every good help be on your side.
Most truly yours,
JAMES DE NORMANDIE1
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
1 Reverend James De Normandie (I836-1924), Antioch '58. Abstract of Secretary Long's reply, written in short-hand on the back of this letter: "I thank you
for your letter and sympathize with your views. The difficulties are very thick, but
the sun will shine through. The President is exercising the utmost discretion and is
exhausting every means of peaceful settlement. If the sword is raised it will be for
the purpose of extending succor."




78          PAPERS OF JOHN DAVIS LONG                  [1898
REPRESENTATIVE MOODY TO SECRETARY LONG
House of Representatives
WASHINGTON, D. C.
March 28, I898
MY DEAR GOVERNOR:
I am somewhat embarrassed about the naming of a ship
Gloucester. I understand, doubtless without sufficient foundation,
that when we talked over the question some little time ago you told
me the first opportunity which offered would be taken to give that
name to some war vessel, first because it was a resonant name, and
second because of the peculiar relations of Gloucester to the sea.
When I was in Gloucester at the meeting of the Master Mariners'
Association a week or so ago, I stated that fact in my speech with
the result of great applause.
I appreciate the difficulties in the way but hope they may be
overcome. I should call on you but I realize the tremendous pressure under which you are acting at this time.
Yours very truly,
Honorable JOHN D. LONG                       W. H. MOODY
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
GEORGE S. BOUTWELL TO SECRETARY LONG
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS
March 29, 1898
MY DEAR SIR:
It is always a question of doubt with me whether a letter from an
outsider can be of any value to those who are entrusted with the
management of affairs, but there are indications in the newspapers
that the public opinion of this section of the country in regard to
the difficulties with Spain may be misunderstood at Washington. I
have been in contact daily for the month preceding with many
persons in varying conditions in life, and I have not met one who
is in favor of hostilities with Spain upon any of the grounds that
are supposed to exist. There is, as you might expect, a very general concurrence in the opinion that, if unhappily, we should be
brought into a condition of war, the government must be sus1 William Henry Moody (1853-1917), Harvard College '76, M. C. from Massachusetts and Governor Long's successor as secretary of the navy; later associate
justice of the United States Supreme Court.




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tained in its prosecution until an honorable peace can be secured.
I think it is safe to assume that any arrangement by which peace
shall be secured will be acceptable to the people of Massachusetts,
and I think it will be acceptable to the people of this part of the
country.
As to forcible intervention in the affairs of Cuba for the purpose
of securing peace, it is safe to say that there are no advocates of
such a policy. For myself, I may say from my experience of four
years during the former war, and from my knowledge of Spanish
character acquired then and since, that Spain will never yield her
hold upon Cuba except through war with the United States. Should
such a war occur, the administration will find support in Massachusetts, but few or no advocates of the policy which may have led
to such a war. It may be practicable, and on this point you can
judge much better than I, - but it may be practicable to effect an
arrangement by which as much freedom in government shall be
secured to the inhabitants of Cuba as is now enjoyed by the inhabitants of Canada. If such an arrangement can be made, it will
be accepted and approved very generally in this part of the country.
If in Congress and out there should be wordy declamation against
such a policy, its effect will be temporary and its influence limited
to a very few persons. In one phrase I am of opinion, in which I
think there is very general concurrence here, that forcible intervention in the affairs of Cuba should not be thought of, and that
it would be wholly indefensible upon moral grounds, as well as a
proceeding hostile to the best interests of the country.
Very truly yours,
Honorable JOHN D. LONG               GEORGE S. BOUTWELL1
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
EDWIN D. MEAD TO SECRETARY LONG
20 Beacon Street
BOSTON
March 31, [i898]
MY DEAR MR. LONG:
I hope you receive enough letters from the serious and earnest
men of Massachusetts to make you quite sure that a lot of the newspapers, always anxious to put into the soup all the pepper and salt
1 George Sewall Boutwell (08&8-I905), former governor of Massachusetts.




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there is on the table, do not at all represent the best in the general
Massachusetts sentiment. I speak confidently, for I touch many
circles. The President's temper and words, and yours, are what
give satisfaction and confidence here in Boston, and are what we
bank on. If Mr. Lodge went back to Washington and reported a
" war feeling " in Boston, it was because he hunted for it and wanted
to find it. Such explosions as Mason's' in the Senate day before
yesterday, and all those war resolutions at this critical time, are most
solemnly condemned by your Massachusetts and mine. Thurston's2
and Gallinger's3 melodramas are without effect here. Senator
Proctor's speech moved everybody profoundly - the speech of a
man not loving war, but loving peace, but loving truth and duty
more than peace. Our obligations of neighborhood and humanity
forbid our allowing this suffering and wickedness to go on; but we
want it stopped by men who are not playing to the galleries, but
facing the judgment seat of God, and whose patience can last much
longer than from one Thursday to another, where the great interests of peace and order and international reason are concerned -
the interests which it has been the pride and glory of Sumner's
Massachusetts and of this great republic to stand for. I hope you
know that Massachusetts feels that, with you in the cabinet at this
critical time, her true self and true influence are there.
Yours truly,
EDWIN D. MEAD4
JOSEPH R. LEESON TO SECRETARY LONG
226 Devonshire Street
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS
March 31, 1898
DEAR MR. LONG:
Before leaving Boston for New York last week, I was so much
impressed by the grave aspect of national affairs, as well as with a
lively sense of appreciation of the wisdom with which the President has guided and largely controlled events, that I caused a meeting to be called by the Boston Chamber of Commerce, to strengthen
the President's hands by a public expression of this feeling, which
is general in this community. Having requested that Mr. William
1 Senator Mason of Illinois.
2 John Mellen Thurston (1847-1916), U. S. senator from Nebraska.
3 Jacob Harold Gallinger (I837-1918), U. S. senator from New Hampshire.
4 Edwin Doak Mead (I849-1936).




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H. Lincoln prepare a set of resolutions, I subsequently conferred
with him on the form of the resolutions which were afterwards
passed, with an amendment, however, which had I been able to
attend the meeting, I should have vigorously opposed, - my own
conception of the needs of the hour is so widely at variance with
the false view held, mostly by irresponsible persons, that the existing difficulties between our country and Spain need for adjustment violence and bloodshed. As a method of dealing with international differences, wholesale slaughter is out of date, and is surely
abhorrent to all of those higher interests of humanity toward which
our civilization is tending. Future historians will record for the admiration of succeeding generations, the splendid self-control and
exalted courage which have enabled the President to withstand the
clamour of the press and of politicians, a courage of far more
elevated character than any which is needed amid the excitement
of battle. It is fitting that one who has shown himself capable of
the exacting requirements involved in physical encounter, should exhibit the rare statesmanship which President McKinley has brought
to the nation's service in this terrible crisis. He may be quite sure
that he has not only earned the lasting gratitude of unborn millions
of his countrymen, but that he has the confidence and support of
a vast majority of those now living, who, in case the extremists
prevail, will pay the larger proportion of the fearful cost which
would be involved. I gather through my daily intercourse here, in
New York and elsewhere, this great majority, noiseless but potent,
is placing its main reliance upon the President's wisdom, endurance
and fortitude.
That this commonwealth, rightly regarded as a leader in most
elevating movements of our day, should have placed at the President's side one who will use all his efforts in support of this, the
better and stronger side of Massachusetts, as doubtless of the entire
country, is a source of deep gratification. Be assured that the high
service which you are aiding the President to render at this time
is not lightly regarded by those whose good will you most highly
value.
With my best remembrances, I am,
Yours faithfully,
Honorable JOHN D. LONG                        J. R. LEESON
Secretary Navy Department
WASHINGTON, D. C.
1 Joseph Robert Leeson (I844-I930), president of the Boston Chamber of Commerce.




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SECRETARY LONG TO HENRY L. NELSON
Navy Department
WASHINGTON
April 2, I898
SIR:
Replying to your letter of the thirty-first ultimo, requesting to
be permitted to have a correspondent on board one of the warships
in the event of hostilities between this country and Spain, I have
to inform you that the chief of the bureau of navigation, to whom
your letter was referred recommends that your request be not
granted, as it would be seriously detrimental to the service. In view
of this recommendation of the chief of [the] bureau of navigation,
the department would not feel warranted in complying with your
request.
Very respectfully
JOHN D. LONG
Secretary
AMR. H. L. NELSON 1
Harper's Weekly
NEW YORK CITY
LIEUTENANT SOUTHERLAND TO SECRETARY LONG
U. S. S. Eagle
Navy Yard
NEW YORK
April 2, 1898
DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I want to thank you for the proudest day of my naval service.
The Eagle1 was commissioned this afternoon, Yeoman Hall running up the ensign and old man Haines mastheading my first command pennant, as the Dolphin's bugler sounded four ruffles to the
flag. I wish you could have seen it.
The little craft is a beauty and I believe she will really prove of
service. To say that I am thoroughly pleased and very proud is
putting it very mildly. She is not as large nor quite so fast as either
the Sovereign or the Josephine, but she is handy, a good sea boat,
and will get away before either one of them.2
1 Henry Loomis Nelson (i846-90o8).
1 The yacht Eagle's former name was Almy.
2 The yachts Sovereign and Josephine were taken into the navy and renamed
Scorpion and Vixen.




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I am actually at a loss for words to express to you how grateful
I am, but will try to show it by doing my duty while in command.
I was sorry to leave the Dolphin on which I had passed two
happy years, but feel that I am honored by the more responsible
position, and in addition, am sure this little craft will be better protected and almost as well armed.
I see a great deal of Mr. Bowles, whose work is never ending.
To-night he took me on a trip to the dry dock and through his
several shops, an experience which I wish you could have during
night operations. He hopes to have the work on the dock and
caisson completed this coming week. He has done wonderfully
well and deserves great credit. In addition to his dock work he has
made improvements in the shops which can not be appreciated without being seen.
Please give my kindest regards to Mrs. Long and to Misses Margaret and Helen, and tell them that if all turns out well with me in
the future, I will hope to again be afloat with them.
And with all hearty good wishes for you sir, believe me,
Very sincerely,
W. H. H. SOUTHERLAND
WILLIAM    CLAFLIN TO SECRETARY LONG
63 Mount Vernon Street
BOSTON,
April 3, 1898
MY DEAR SECRETARY:
You have no time for ordinary letters and I have no others, except to say that as far as I can see everybody is for the President's
policy, and nobody really wants war. Many are mad about the
loss of the Maine, and express their feeling earnestly, but most are
quite as angry with Congress for trying to force the President.
The country believes in him, will follow him in all his efforts for
peace. All the jingoes will be left high and dry, by and by, and will
have about the same name as the Hartford conventionists, in the
great hereafter.
You have the profound confidence and love of everybody.
Truly yours,
WILLIAM CLAFLIN1
1 William Claflin (1818-1905), former governor of Massachusetts.




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THEODORE      ROOSEVELT TO       SECRETARY      LONG
Navy Department
WASHINGTON
April 4, I898
SIR:
The war board1 has been considering the disposition of the ram
Katahdin, and has decided to place her at Provincetown, where
in less than a day she can be sent to any point in Maine, or any
point on the Massachusetts coast that is menaced, or to the east
pass of Long Island Sound. She has too little coal to justify her in
cruising with the fleet, and she is of course of no use against fortifications.
Yours truly,
THEODORE ROOSEVELT
Assistant Secretary
The Honorable
THE SECRETARY OF THE NAVY
COMMANDER BROWNSON             TO SECRETARY        LONG
Embassy of the United States
ROME
4 April, 1898
DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I regret more than I can tell you that the Garibaldi has gotten
away from us. The consul-general and I myself were told yesterday by Mr. Bombrini, the head of Ansaldos, in the anteroom of the
minister of marine, that at no time during the past seven months
would it have been possible for us to have secured the ship. I do
not think this is entirely true, for I am of the impression that they
would have been glad to have found an excuse for breaking with
S[pain] so that they could sell to us at an advanced price, but the
excuse for breaking never has existed. I have suggested that we
might make another offer but they, the Ansaldos, would not listen
to it. Looking after the Garibaldi delayed my investigation of [the]
Baschio and torpedo boats. At first I did not understand the Baschio,
as I had always heard her spoken of as the " Morocco " boat, and
1 The naval war board, or strategy board, consisted at first of Assistant
Secretary Roosevelt, Captains Crowninshield and Barker, and Commander Clover;
and, as finally made up, of Admiral Sicard and Captains Mahan and Crowninshield.
See Long, The New American Navy, I, I62, and Mayo, America of Yesterday, 184,
I9I, and i94; also Captain Mahan's letter of May Io, 1898.
1 Hector de Castro.




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had really paid little attention to her on account of her small size
and age. As I telegraphed and wrote you I do not advise her purchase.
The two torpedo boats of Odero you can have, but I assume the
question of time, four months, will throw them out. There is another boat, Ansaldo, Genoa, builders, 154 feet long, 136 tons, which
can be had in [the] same time, 3 to 4 months. I am waiting for her
radius of action and your decision regarding the other boats before
reporting. The speed is greater, twenty-six knots, and the price excessive, 750,000 francs gold, $15o,ooo. This includes, however, torpedo tubes (two) and two thirty-seven millimeter guns (Hotchkiss,
I assume), without the guns the price would be 7 10,000 francs gold.
The Baschio you can have -ready in ten days after purchase.
The price is large, but includes everything practically except coal
and provisions. The ammunition is included. Guns are of Armstrong, old type, which I suppose were regarded quite good enough
for the Sultan of Morocco. The builders claim sixteen knots, others
say she can only steam fourteen, under forced draft. Some few
changes would have to be made to give more room to the men.
I do not think you want her. I have been working on the government to get the Carlo Alberto and some torpedo boats ready for
sea. This has to be done very quietly, and mainly through the opposition. The papers representing that party having already advocated
the selling of ships, in order to build others, better ones, and to
keep their yards busy. The minister of marine is in favor [of] selling
but dares to make no move. I saw him again yesterday informally,
and think he is very friendly to us. Should the move to sell come
from the opposition I think the government would accept it, but
they can't make the proposition themselves. The trouble is Parliament does not meet until the fourteenth of April, and before that
nothing can be done except to pave the way. The price of the
ships from the government would probably be reasonable, their
cost, which is not low as they were built in government yards, and
I have promised a commission of one per cent. to the one who will
bring it about, on any large ships we may get, and possibly a larger
one on torpedo boats. This commission goes to an attorney not
connected in any way with the government. I have not much hopes
of success but think it worth working, as it is being done very
quietly. The ambassador2 and consul-general are both doing what
2 William Franklin Draper (1842-1910).




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they can in the matter. I write this to go in the pouch as I would
not trust it to the mails.
While waiting for the result of these plans I may go to Germany,
to Stettin, after hearing regarding the Baschio and torpedo boats.
I am naturally anxious about condition [of] affairs at home, and
trust that you will keep the New York for me if I do not succeed
in getting anything here. I regret that the conditions have permitted
me to do so little. My only satisfaction is, in looking backwards, I
do not see how I could have done more.
Assuring you of my desire to carry out your instructions to your
satisfaction, I am,
Very respectfully,
WILLARD H. BROWNSON3
HORACE N. FISHER TO SECRETARY LONG
Spain's responsibility for war, if it comes to pass
BOSTON
April 5, i898
DEAR LONG:
To-morrow, when you receive this letter, will be the anniversary
of the battle of Shiloh, - the first of those great battles in the West
which cut the southern confederacy in two and settled the fate of
the rebellion.
If we may judge from the news bulletins today, it seems that tomorrow will become to our children what April 6 and 7, i862,
means to us, - a historic anniversary of the expulsion of Spain from
the New World. Whether the beginning or the conclusion of that
expulsion, remains to be seen; if war is declared, the beginning; if
Spain unconditionally surrenders, the end of a dominion founded
in cruelty and crime and perpetuated in open disregard of every
one of the ten commandments.
Knowing what war means, I have hoped that the efforts of the
President and his advisers, to secure the objects of war by diplomatic methods, might be crowned with success; and, as far as lay
in my opportunities, have done what was in my power to do. But
I confess that, at no time, have I been sanguine in the belief that
Spain would abandon Cuba without war with us. My reason for
this belief was that, to my mind, the key of the position, of the controlling causes, was not at Washington nor at Havana, but at
3 Commander Willard Herbert Brownson (1845-1935).




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Madrid; that the internal condition of Spain is such that the loss of
Cuba would probably overthrow the Liberal party and not improbably the present dynasty, leading to civil war.
Indeed the Queen Regent has not overstated the difficulties of
her position. As constitutional queen she has only the " moderator "
power; the executive power is vested in a ministry responsible to the
Cortes and representing the dominant majority. In a thoroughly
consolidated dynasty like that of Queen Victoria, the crown can
safely direct in a measure the course of affairs: but so great is the
difference of temperament and fitness for self-government of the
Spanish from the English, that really the Queen Regent is practically helpless in great emergencies. As trustee for the little King,
she feels a profound personal responsibility in addition to her constitutional obligations, and might well question how far she should
go in consenting to greater freedom for Cuba. By the Constitution
she was prohibited from alienating or ceding any part of the national
territory; yet by international law, as I pointed out in my letter
of April I to you, she was authorized to act in violation of all prohibitions of the Constitution, provided she was brought face to face
with " an imperative necessity which of itself vests in the executive
all powers indispensable for the safety of the state." This doctrine
is distinctly recognized by the standard Spanish authority on international law: and for this reason I expounded it in my letter to
you of April i; " in the interests of peace "; so as to indicate how
Spain could lawfully yield to our demand without bringing on war.
While I have no pity for Spain, now brought to judgment for
deliberate crimes not less infamous than Alva's butcheries and Philip
II's hypocrisy and personal vice, I really do pity the Queen Regent
who is the first Queen of Spain since Isabella of Castile and Leon
to whom can be honestly given unqualified personal respect. No
Queen ever had a more difficult role to play; with her son's throne
tottering, her kingdom bankrupt, her people - the common people
- bigoted, ignorant and conceited though not without sterling manhood, her upper classes and officials corrupt and contemptible, -
still she must struggle to preserve the throne for her son in the approaching political earthquake; though probably horrified at the
condition into which Cuba has been plunged by those acting in her
name, though really her masters.
There has seemed to me but one way of saving the throne, the
Constitutionalist-Liberal party and the country from civil war




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which is bound to follow the overthrow of the present dynasty;
that way was to lose Cuba as the result of a foreign war, to yield
up her West Indies to a power so manifestly superior in force as
to make the loss of territory but still retain Spain's prestige; while
to surrender Cuba to the Cubans might well be held fatal to Spain's
prestige.
Under these circumstances it has seemed to me that our President
could not possibly avert war with Spain, despite his unwearying
patience and Christian forbearance; that the Spanish government,
in their despair, were bound to force the United States into war;
and that the Spanish government was privy to the De Lome letter,1
which failed to excite the indignation expected; nor do I think that
the Maine's destruction took place without the full knowledge
and consent - perhaps even the orders of some high officials of the
government, who calculated upon that to assure war.
Therefore I write thus fully to you my opinion that the President
and his advisers have done everything possible to avert war; but
that Spain has deliberately forced war upon us, all the time seeking
to pose as a victim to our land-hunger. Our conscience is free from
responsibility and God will show the right.
Faithfully yours,
HORACE N. FISHER
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
WASHINGTON, D. C.
SECRETARY LONG TO B. F. LONG
Navy Department
WASHINGTON
April 8, I898
MY DEAR SIR:
I am in receipt of your letter of the sixth instant, and am glad
to know the feeling of patriotism which you say exists in North
Carolina. It is gratifying also to know that the efforts of the administration to maintain peace have the approval of so many of
the citizens of your state.
Please accept my thanks for your kind words in regard to myself,
and believe me,
Very truly yours,
B. F. LONG, Esq.                                 J. D. LONG
STATESVILLE, N. C.
1 See letter of Theodore Roosevelt, February i6, i898, note.




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GOVERNOR WOLCOTT TO SECRETARY LONG
BOSTON
A pril Io O.I898
MY DEAR SIR:
Commander J. Giles Eaton 1 informs me that he expects to go to
Washington tomorrow and will call upon you.
Although I should regret to have him removed from the command of the training ship Enterprise,2 his faithful and most efficient
services to the commonwealth in that command entitle him to my
best wishes in any duty to which he may be assigned.
I have the honor to be,
With much respect,
Very truly yours,
ROGER WOLCOTT
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
HORACE N. FISHER TO SECRETARY LONG
BOSTON
April lo, [898
DEAR LONG:
Thanks for your letters of [the] sixth and eighth instant: though
highly appreciated, you should not take time to write me when under such pressure as you must be at this time.
The points in my published communication in the Transcript
(" Insolence of the Junta ") indicate the drift of my opinion: -
that intervention will devolve on us the responsibility of restoring
order and keeping down lawlessness and cruelty by the strong
hand, whether the offenders claim to be Spanish volunteers or Cuban
patriots. As, by our Monroe Doctrine, we can not allow European
nations to intervene, it devolves upon the United States to stop these
notorious and enormous crimes and restore order in Cuba. Neglect
to do so would make us responsible for their continuance, now that
we have exhausted every peaceful resource to attain that object.
This duty will be inseparable from our intervention in the interest
of humanity. Therefore the only fact which needs to be established
1 Joseph Giles Eaton (I847-1913).
2 A naval vessel loaned by the navy department to the state for the use of the
Massachusetts Nautical Training School.




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to warrant our action is that of lawlessness and cruelty by whomsoever committed.
When the present intolerable disorder is suppressed, a new duty
will devolve upon us: -that of deciding how the island shall be
governed, - to whom and under what supervision the task of government shall be entrusted by us.
This decision will depend upon facts not yet fully established,
such as the following: -
(i) Have the Cuban insurgents in actual operation a responsible
civil government, calculated in our opinion to assure to the
Cubans their lives and property and the varied rights for the
protection of which governments are organized?
(2) Is the so-called Cuban republic such a de facto organized government and are the majority of the inhabitants of Cuba desirous of being governed by it?
(3) Are the purposes of that government fair and honorable in
regard to those who have not taken arms against Spain?
These questions are vital to the full performance of the duties
assumed by the United States in compelling the removal of the
Spanish military and civil power from Cuba; for thereby we shall
make ourselves responsible for the establishment of a peaceable
and orderly government in Cuba.
No greater stain upon our national honor could come than that
the government we may establish in power should proceed to proscribe, confiscate and murder their political opponents, or the
"Spanish tories " left in Cuba.
Therefore the satisfactory answers to the above questions will
constitute the facts upon which we must decide whether to recognize the independence of Cuba - of the Cuban republic - at present.
Hence intervention is based on fact now known to us, to wit:
the intolerable disorder and Spanish cruelties. But recognition depends upon facts yet to be established, as to the character and purposes of the insurgent government and its acceptableness to the
majority of the inhabitants of Cuba. These are therefore distinct
questions and, from their very difference of base, are practically
impossible of being united as a single issue.
The wisdom of treating intervention for the sake of humanity as
a question distinct from the recognition of Cuban independence,
seems quite as clear as treating intervention as distinct issue from
the responsibility for the destruction of the Maine.




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If the course of events should necessitate the consideration of the
reconstruction of the Cuban government, my studies of such question for another part of Spanish America may be useful in Cuba.
Yours truly
HORACE N. FISHER
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
WASHINGTON, D. C.
THEODORE ROOSEVELT TO SECRETARY LONG
Navy Department
WASHINGTON
April I, I898
SIR:
The strategy board has the honor to report as follows:
If it seems unlikely that hostilities will occur for some weeks,
then all the vessels possible, and especially the Texas and Massachusetts, should be docked. The board would much like to have exact
information as to when the New York and Port Royal docks will
be ready to receive battleships. If there is any doubt about the New
York dock being fit, then it would seem to be worth while to do
everything possible to put the Port Royal dock in trim.
The four ships 2 that have just been made auxiliary cruisers will
be armed with ten instead of eight big rapid-fire guns. The board
has come to the conclusion that these vessels should form part of
the deep-sea patrol for the protection of the coast trade, and undefended seaboard at once, from Cape Hatteras to Eastport. With
this end in view they must be given a formidable battery, so as to
enable them to out-fight any privateer or unarmored vessel likely
to be brought against them. As there must be six of these patrols
the board recommends that the Nictheroy, if purchased, be fitted
with one eight-inch and six five-inch modern rifles; and that another cruiser to carry eight, and if possible ten, rapid-fire five-inch
guns be purchased. The St. Louis and St. Paul 4 should be used primarily as dispatch boats and huge colliers, and only need two or
three four-inch guns apiece.
The board has telegraphed to Admiral Sampson to find out what
1 The naval war board.
2 The Prairie, Yankee, Dixie, and Yosemite, formerly ships of the Morgan Line.
3 Auxiliary cruiser, formerly a ship of the Morgan Line, purchased in 1894
by the Brazilian government, and in I898 sold to the United States. Her name
was changed to Buffalo.
4 These large ocean liners had been chartered for the navy.




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vessels are needed for blockaders if the coast of Cuba is to be
blockaded, and also as to what kinds of vessels. For this blockade
service the board is inclined to think that smaller vessels, carrying
but two or three rapid-fire guns apiece, will be sufficient.
Two colliers and a dispatch boat should be sent to the flying
squadron at once, and this squadron, or at any rate the Columbia
and Minneapolis, should be exercised off the coast so as to get into
good trim.
If possible confidential men should be obtained at the Cape Verdes
and Port au Prince, who will telegraph us all possible information.
The bureau of steam engineering already have one such man at
the Cape Verdes.
Very respectfully,
THEODORE ROOSEVELT
The Honorable                           Assistant Secretary
THE SECRETARY OF THE NAVY
GAMALIEL BRADFORD TO SECRETARY LONG
502 Beacon Street
BOSTON
April I I, I1898
MY DEAR MR. LONG:
You can hardly imagine the faint and trembling eagerness with
which I seized the President's message and the infinite relief and
gratitude which followed from reading it. It is all that could
possibly be expected. Of course it leaves in his hands the power
to use force, but the knowledge of what he has done puts away
all doubt that it will be used with wisdom and discretion.
There is one thing more I should like to ask and that is that you
will use your influence to procure the suppression of demonstrations
in the galleries, whether in the House or Senate. It is disgraceful
and dangerous to the last degree and certainly can not be claimed as
a popular right.
Now for the " dogs of war" in Congress but I have great confidence that the Republicans will fall into line. There seems to be no
limit to the folly and wickedness of the Democrats.
With the deepest gratitude to the President and yourself as his
coadjutor,
I remain cordially yours,
GAMALIEL BRADFORD




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THEODORE ROOSEVELT TO SECRETARY                LONG
Navy Department
WASHINGTON
April 12, I898
SIR:
The secretary of war' asked me to present to you the fact that
effort should be made to prevent the Spaniards from getting coal
from the United States. They are getting ammunition and food also.
Of course the delay is all in their favor, but I don't see how the navy
department can act in the matter.
The board recommends that [some of? ] the Mosquito Fleet2 be
stationed at Port Eads in the event of war; and that if possible two
old monitors be spared for the defense of the mouth of the Mississippi, but that the deep-sea patrol of the Gulf Coast must be left
to the commander-in-chief of the North Atlantic Squadron. He
will probably close the passes to the south as well as to the north
of Cuba.
The board earnestly recommends that the Flying Squadron be
sent to sea for two or more days for exercise and drill. It is important that these ships should be drilled together, as the Minneapolis
and Columbia will be of little use unless they are given such sea drill,
three-fourths of their crews being new.
I enclose herewith a list of the vessels we have already purchased,
and a list of those we are meditating purchasing.
Very respectfully,
THEODORE ROOSEVELT
The Honorable                              Assistant Secretary
THE SECRETARY OF THE NAVY
THEODORE ROOSEVELT TO SECRETARY                LONG
Navy Department
WASHINGTON
April 15, 1898
SIR:
On behalf of the war board I have to report as follows:
The five deep-sea patrol vessels for the North Atlantic Coast
1 General R. A. Alger.
2 For coast defense, consisting of old monitors, yachts, etc., eventually fortyone vessels.
1 These were the four ships named in note to Roosevelt's letter of April ii,
and the Badger.




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which have already been purchased have been assigned to the New
York, Massachusetts, Michigan, Maryland and New Jersey naval
militia by the chief of the bureau of navigation. The Nictheroy,
if she comes up in time, or whatever the sixth patrol vessel may
be, will probably be given to the second battalion of New York
militia. The Connecticut and Rhode Island militia are also efficient.
The Pennsylvania naval militia are much less efficient. Disturbances
have broken out in the Georgia militia, with the result that their
best division has disbanded. All of this emphasizes the wisdom of
the department in enlisting the naval militia individually, and in
preventing the recognition by the department of all the different
naval militia organizations as being on the same plane. It is the
purpose of the department to keep the naval militia together in
their battalion and division organizations, and it will be very unwise to act otherwise, but the widest difference obtains between the
different organizations. The five chosen to man the deep-sea patrol
vessels are those for which we have the best reports from the regular
officers during the past year. They are all five thoroughly efficient
organizations. From these we range down to organizations such
as one in the southern states which made its appearance aboard ship
with the officers rowing the men, as they were the only ones who
knew how to row. Of course we can only take tentative steps about
the naval militia, assigning them to their vessels, and giving them the
information that they have thus been assigned. Until they are called
out and we are able to pay them, they can not be brought on.
The Topeka will come instantly to this side of the water. The
Somers2 will then come if she can. The board believes that we
should close with the offer to deliver here for $I2,ooo.
In reference to the letter from Mr. Emery 3 the board has to say
that of course it can not scatter cruisers around South American
ports, and that it will probably be impossible to scatter some of them
around the equator at the point mentioned by Mr. Emery to protect
the trade. We have not a sufficiently large navy.
In the event of war Congress should at once pass a law permitting
our ships to be transferred to foreign flags with power to again
be put back under the American flag at the close of the war if
desired.
2 The Topeka (Diogenes) was purchased in England, the Somers (a torpedo
boat) in Germany. The latter did not arrive in time for the war.
3 Probably Daniel Sullivan Emery (i833?-i9o8), Boston ship broker.




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In connection with the accompanying report of Captain Clover
the board recommends that the small cable vessel therein mentioned
be immediately hired and put under Captain Sampson's control.
The Buccaneer is the vessel recommended.
Commodore Dewey will be directed to operate against Manila.
Probably it will not be advisable for him to blockade, but he should
certainly pick up the Spanish vessels, and probably he should take
the forts defending Manila. The objection[s] to trying ships against
forts until the Spanish vessels are destroyed which obtain on the
North Atlantic Coast do not obtain on the Asiatic Coast.
The board transmits herewith the offer from Mr. Flint 4 about the
three torpedo cruisers now in BraziL If these boats can be delivered
at some naval station north of Hatteras within 3o days, it is our
opinion that any price up to $I,ooo,ooo apiece should be paid for
them. We are paying very large prices for steamships, yachts and
tugs which relatively are not nearly as valuable as these vessels.
The Nictheroy should start at once. For some reason the report
about her seems to hang fire. Minister Bryan 5 should be telegraphed
to that we need an immediate report.
Very respectfully,
THEODORE RoOSEVELT
Assistant Secretary
The Honorable
THE SECRETARY OF THE NAVY
THEODORE ROOSEVELT TO SECRETARY LONG
Navy Department
WASHINGTON
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:                          April s6, i898
I wish you would lay this before the President. I hear from Captain Sampson corroborating what I hear from many other sources,
that the Spaniards are now laying in three months' provisions in
Havana for their army. A considerable quantity has been sent; more
is on the way. Coal is also on the way. I again urge as strongly as
I know how that we declare an embargo. If we had declared the
embargo a fortnight ago, Havana would have been in shape to fall
at once. General Lee informed us that at that time it could not have
4 Charles Ranlett Flint (b. 1850), agent of the U. S. government in negotiating
for the purchase of war vessels.
5 Charles Page Bryan (0856-i9i8), U. S. minister to Brazil.




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held out for two weeks. Now it will hold out a month. If the provisions and coal are allowed to go it may be able to hold out for
three months. Again I wish most respectfully, but most urgently,
to point out the great disadvantage that comes to us from not striking quickly. Every consideration from a military point of view bids
us to strike at once if we are to strike at all. Week by week, as well
as month by month, the situation has steadily changed to our disadvantage since last December, and notably since February. If Havana is to be provisioned, the difficulty of reducing the city will
be immensely increased, and it may mean an appalling death rate
among the troops sent down there to besiege it who will have to
be kept through the sickly season. What would otherwise be done
in days may require weeks. It must be remembered that every week's
delay so far has undoubtedly meant to our army and navy serious
loss of life in the event of war, and this is what delay in the future
will mean. I earnestly beseech you to lay this matter immediately
before the President.
Very respectfully,
THEODORE ROOSEVELT
Assistant Secretary
P.S. I am writing on behalf of the war board.
The Honorable
THE SECRETARY OF THE NAVY
HENRY L. HIGGINSON TO SECRETARY LONG
44 State Street
BOSTON
April i6, 1898
MY DEAR MR. LONG:
At the risk of troubling you once more, I suggest again the
purchase of Cuba for the benefit of the Cubans, they of course to
pay the cost, we to take a mortgage for whatever you choose on
the island. Somebody suggested awhile ago that we should take a
ground lease of the island. There are ways enough to do it, if it is
feasible. Mr. E. A. Kelly,1 a member of the Suffolk bar, asks me
to write you in his name and my own. Mr. C. A. Coffin,2 of the
General Electric Company, also likes this or any other plan which
1 Edward Albert Kelly (1831-1907).
2 Charles Albert Coffin (1844-1926), president of the General Electric Company.




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will avert a two-billion-dollar war and a hundred thousand lives
thrown away for nothing.
We all have sympathized with and greatly admired the course
of the administration, more especially that of the President and
yourself, in this whole matter, and we all feel confident that if the
Senate will do as well as the House has done and leave the matter
in your hands, we shall escape this great scourge, if it can be avoided.
It is remarkable to see the unanimity of feeling among all the
men whom you would know here - your classmates, your friends
all about, whether in trade or in the professions - and also remarkable to see how the laboring men feel in the matter. They fear the
loss of home, of life, of work, and the feeling is intense, but this
escape from war which has been considered may possibly be used
now at the last moment. Nobody within my acquaintance wants
Cuba. It is only to stop the trouble.
If these views are of any use, you will know what to do with
them and, in any case, do not give yourself the trouble to reply.
Mr. Henry Lee3 would sign this letter, as Mr. Kelly does in
effect, and plenty more men of all kinds.
Yours very truly,
HENRY L. HIGGINSON4
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
THEODORE ROOSEVELT TO SECRETARY              LONG
Navy Department
WASHINGTON
April 17, 1898
SIR:
The war board does not wish to needlessly bore you by repeating
advice, and of course it is ignorant of the larger policies and purposes
of the administration; but with the light we have we would again
respectfully state that in our opinion the construction of torpedo
boats and torpedo-boat destroyers should be begun at once, and
that all the battleships, and especially the Kearsarge and Kentucky,
should be hastened to completion, working night and day. Surely
the Kearsarge and Kentucky could be gotten ready by next fall if
necessary. The board has agreed upon the armament for the four
3 Colonel Henry Lee (I817-1898), Harvard College '36.
4 Major Henry Lee Higginson (i834-i919), Harvard College '55.




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American liners,' following in this respect the suggestion of Captain O'Neil. We have also substantially adopted his suggestion with
regard to the armament for the remaining cruisers.
Some of the yachts we have taken have been overloaded with
armor, so that their speed has been greatly reduced. The board
thinks that it would be well to take the Corsair and put very light
guns aboard her, so as to use her merely for a dispatch vessel. She is
the best yacht, barring the Mayflower and possibly the Sovereign,'
that we have had up.
The Newark is already being pushed to completion as rapidly
as possible, and will soon be ready. I think the Chicago and Atlanta'
should be likewise pushed.
Very respectfully,
THEODORE ROOSEVELT
Assistant Secretary
The Honorable
THE SECRETARY OF THE NAVY
REAR-ADMIRAL ERBEN TO THE SENATE COMMITTEE
NEW YORK
April i 8, I 898
SIR:
In February, I 865, at Matagorda, Texas, I broke up a Confederate
torpedo station, capturing one of the boats with all her fittings,
and also a torpedo. A sense of duty dictates to me that I should bring
to the notice of the Senate committee, having in charge the Maine
disaster, this fact, as showing the possible and very probable manner
by which the Maine was blown up. The outfit consisted only of
three boats, one reel, with about three hundred feet of small cotton
line on it, and a cigar-shaped torpedo, to hold about one hundred
and fifty pounds of powder and also an anchor. The torpedo was to
Shave been dropped down, under the bows of my vessel, the Panola,
from the boat with a reel and paying-out line, which boat was to
have been anchored ahead of the Panola. This was a good sized one,
the other two being only small affairs to be used as guide boats, to
see that the floating torpedo came in contact with the ship, at which
instant the torpedo was to have been exploded. Such a torpedo as
1 St. Louis, St. Paul, New York, and Paris.
2 These three yachts were added to the navy. The Corsair and Sovereign were
renamed Gloucester and Scorpion; the name Mayflower was not changed.
3 The Chicago and Atlanta were out of commission, undergoing repairs.




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this would have destroyed any vessel. The capture was considered
of great importance. My report of February I9, I865, to Commodore Emmons,' commanding the division of Farragut's fleet off
Texas, was forwarded to the admiral who wrote a letter, thanking
the crew of the Panola's cutter who made up the cutting-out party,
capturing this torpedo. This broke up the torpedo station. It was
the intention of the torpedo corps to operate along the coast as far
as and including Galveston, in destroying the vessels doing blockade
duty. There were several of these larger boats at the torpedo wharf
in the Matagorda harbor. We did not realize in capturing the large
boat what an important thing we had done, as the object of the
expedition was the capture of the armed schooner Annie Dale.
I enclose herewith a diagram showing the boats, the torpedo
and the Panola.
I will add that such torpedo practice as this could have been
done to great advantage in a harbor like Havana, full of passing
boats, which would have detracted from the boats operating the
torpedo.
I am,
Very respectfully,
HENRY ERBEN2
To THE CHAIRMAN
COMMITTEE OF INVESTIGATION
COMMODORE HOWISON TO SECRETARY LONG
United States Navy Yard
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS
April 8, I898
SIR:
In reply to your letter of the sixteenth instant, relating to Boston
newspapers' representatives applying to the navy department for
access to the navy yard here:
I have the honor to state that while the order excluding visitors except on business is enforced, the correspondents and agents
of newspapers are considered as having business with the authorities
here, and are admitted daily, provided they state to the guard that
they are on business. I have heard no complaints, and have never
known many of them to be too modest to state their business. I see
1 George Foster Emmons (1811-1884).
2 Henry Erben (I832-I909), in charge of the coast defense system, April 28,
1898.




Ioo         PAPERS OF JOHN DAVIS LONG                   [1898
many of them in my office, representing the Boston papers, every
day in the week. If any of these representatives have any difficulty
in passing the guards, I can issue to such a general pass on application to this office.
Very respectfully,
H. L. HowIsoN
Commandant
THE SECRETARY OF THE NAVY
WASHINGTON, D. C.
HORACE N. FISHER TO SECRETARY LONG
BOSTON
April I8, 1898
DEAR LONG:
I am very glad to see that the House to-day has concurred in
the Senate resolution, except as to the recognition of the Cuban
Republic. That part of the resolution was unconstitutional, as well
as contrary to the practice of our government. I trust the Senate
will adopt the resolution as modified.
As to its unconstitutionality, I wrote Senator Hoar1 quite freely
last Saturday (sixteenth) and may now add the following authority in point:
" The question of recognition of foreign revolutionary or reactionary governments is one exclusively for the executive, and can not
be determined internationally by congressional action." (Secretary
Seward to Minister Dayton - I Wharton 55 ).2
Indeed the framers of the Constitution took every precaution to
divest Congress of its former executive functions, especially in our
foreign relations; but while transferring executive power to the
President, a similar case was taken to limit his powers far within
those of a constitutional monarch.
This explains why the royal prerogative to make treaties, appoint
ambassadors, declare war and raise armies was transferred to Congress, as of either original or concurrent jurisdiction. Yet in most
matters of executive power, Congress was rigidly excluded from
interference in our foreign relations.
1 George Frisbie Hoar (I826-1904), Harvard College '46, U. S. senator from
Massachusetts.
2 Digest of the International Law of the United States, Francis Wharton, Editor,
(Washington, I906).




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Thus Congress could neither recognize a foreign government by
receiving its ambassadors nor by any other form of direct communication. All foreign intercourse and negotiation was conducted by
the executive exclusively; hence recognition of the independence
of a revolutionary government is part of the executive prerogative,
which is indivisible and supreme.
One of the established usages of our government, in strict accord
with international law, is that recognition of independence for a
revolutionary colony is not permissible until the contest is won;
another form of this principle is the rule laid down by Mr. Canning 3in the case of the Spanish-American republics: " While a
doubtful and bona fide struggle for supremacy is still maintained
by the sovereign power, the insurgents jam flagrante bello can not
be said to have established a de facto independence."
As to the qualification of a revolutionary civil government for
recognition, Secretary Seward in his instructions to Minister Culver 4 (Venezuela) lays down the correct rule as follows:
" A revolutionary government is not to be recognized, until it
is established by the great body of the population of the state it
claims to govern.... This government has and must insist on,
the right to determine for itself when new authorities, established
in a foreign state, can claim recognition as an established power."
(I Wharton 542)
It is not, as a rule, within the power of other governments to
declare which party is right in a civil war. Hence recognition of
either contestant depends upon the fact of its being the established
government, not upon its right to be such government. This may
be considered an established principle, so long as considerations of
policy affecting the relations of the two countries do not arise. This
latter point is clearly stated by Secretary Evarts in his instructions
to [the] United States minister 5 to Venezuela [in] i870:
"The United States regard their international compacts and
obligations as entered into with nations, rather than with their political governments: it behooves this government to be watchful
lest their course towards the government should affect our relations with the nation " (I Wharton 548).
From these principles we are led to the consideration whether the
3 George Canning (1790-i827).
4 Erastus Dean Culver (1803-1889), University of Vermont '26.
5 James Rudolph Partridge (i823-1884), Harvard College '4I.




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so-called Cuban Republic can properly claim recognition as the de
facto government, at this time, of the island of Cuba. If not, then
the President can not recognize such government as the free and
independent government of Cuba; nor can he shift from his shoulders the responsibility for recognizing the Cuban Republic by any
resolution of Congress ordering him to do so.
There are cases which call for the world's sympathy for the
oppressed - such as the barbarities of the Turks against the Greeks,
which led to the emancipation of Greece; as early as 1822 resolutions in favor of Greek independence were introduced in the United
States Congress. Finally the British, French and Russian governments intervened by force and Greece became a sovereign state.
The grounds for this intervention were
ist the request of the oppressed Greeks,
2nd on the ground of humanity to stop cruelty and bloodshed,
3rd to put a permanent stop to anarchy.
Sir William Vernon Harcourt 6 declares that " the emancipation of
Greece was a high act of policy, above and beyond the domain of
law. As an act of policy it may have been, and it was, justifiable;
but it was not less a hostile act which Turkey might properly have
resented by war."
A parallel case is now presented. We are to intervene in Cuba on
the ground of humanity to stop cruelty and bloodshed; and to put
down anarchy and intolerable disorder. This is, equally with the
case of Greece, a high act of policy above and beyond the domain
of law. It is as unquestionably justifiable as to interfere by all force
necessary to compel a savage to stop scalping defenceless women
and children: we ask no law, but we have the warrant of that
unwritten law of nature, which rises superior to all statutory enactments, to overthrow the savage tyrant who seeks to cruelly and
wrongfully murder our neighbor, - the law of God-given instincts
which raises man from the level of the brute, which makes man
possible of rising above selfish gratification and become a benefactor
of the world.
Yours truly
HORACE N. FISHER
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
WASHINGTON, D. C.
6 Sir William George Granville Venables Vernon Harcourt (1827-1904).




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W. S. BIGELOW     TO SECRETARY      LONG
60 Beacon Street
Personal                               -             [BOSTON]
April 19, 1898
MY DEAR SIR:
May I venture to express the hope that you will use your authority, or if necessary induce the President to use his, to forbid
Mr. Roosevelt to leave his present post for the front.
I have tried my best, as have others of his friends, to dissuade him,
but wholly without success.
The news of his proposed departure is received by the press -
as it was obviously fated to be - very unfavorably, and the worst
motives are of course ascribed to him - truculence - instability of
character and so on. His own notion that he ought to go because
he has talked war, and therefore is now bound to vindicate his personal courage, is much like his saying that he should wear no clothes
in the street to prove that he is not a negro.
I have the honor to remain, with great respect,
Very truly yours
W. STURGIS BIGELOW 1
I need not add that it would be worse than useless to show Mr.
Roosevelt this letter.
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
HENRY L. HIGGINSON TO SECRETARY LONG
44 State Street
BOSTON
April 20, 1898
MY DEAR MR. LONG:
Thank you for your letter.
As regards a means of handling Cuba, - could we take it on a
ground lease of say one hundred years, for the benefit of the Cubans, giving our bonds for it, either at once or in the future, and
securing ourselves by taking a promise from the Cubans, with a
mortgage of the whole island and a mortgage also of its revenues,
duties or taxes in some fashion? This leaves the title in Spain, which
may save her mortification. It transfers to us the responsibility for
the price of the lease and we must collect from the Cubans as well as
1 William Sturgis Bigelow, M. D. (x850-1926), Harvard College '71.




104        PAPERS OF JOHN DAVIS LONG                [1898
we can. As far as we are concerned it is much cheaper than a war
and it may save the Spanish pride, at the same time freeing her from
a very weighty encumbrance. I can not conceive that this expedient
has not occurred to you and send it with much diffidence, but you
know how gladly any of us would do anything decent to avoid this
war or to help you. How we can under any circumstances get
anything but discredit out of a war, no one within my knowledge
can tell.
As a matter not directly your concern, Congress should give Mr.
Gage power to borrow money at a rate not to exceed four per cent.
on such terms as he can. The country can save a great many millions
of dollars by making the loan a gold one, for the whole world wants
such. I am with great respect,
Yours truly,
HENRY L. HIGGINSON
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
GOVERNOR WOLCOTT TO SECRETARY LONG
Commonwealth of Massachusetts
Executive Department
BOSTON
April 22, i898
MY DEAR SIR:
I have not heretofore troubled you with communications relative
to the present disturbed condition of our foreign relations preferring to await information or instructions from yourself or from
the secretary of war. In the absence of such definite information I
venture to call your attention to the following suggestions which
are now under consideration by me.
In Colonel Mansfield's absence I have been informed by Lieutenant Sewell,2 of the United States corps of engineers, now in
charge of the coast defenses of this commonwealth, that while the
port of Boston and perhaps other strategic points on our coast
line are now or will soon be placed in a condition of adequate defense, there are other important and exposed positions which are
not likely to be so protected by the national government. The ports
of Gloucester, Marblehead, Salem, New Bedford, Provincetown,
Plymouth and others fall within the latter description. Lieutenant
1 Samuel Mather Mansfield (1839-1928).
2 John Stephen Sewell (b. 1869).




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Sewell suggests that if the commonwealth should undertake the
throwing up of earthworks at these points, which in his opinion need
not be very elaborate, guns and ammunition could probably be
furnished promptly for their defense and could be put in position
and handled by the militia of this commonwealth.
It seems to me important in order that there may be no duplication of preparation or conflict of orders that I should receive definite
instructions as to what will be expected from the militia of this
state.
I beg to suggest that under existing law the entire militia can be
ordered into state camps on the coast or elsewhere at the expense of
the commonwealth for a period of eight days, the same being regarded as the equivalent of their annual tours of duty in camp, and
that if I should be advised to issue orders to this effect at once, the
organizations could be subsequently called into the United States
service at the expiration of the eight days encampment.
In the absence of definite instructions or advice I am much embarrassed to know what orders to issue. I may add that from the
citizens of these several ports requests for protection are already
being received.
Very truly yours,
Honorable JOHN D. LONG                     ROGER WOLCOTT
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
REAR-ADMIRAL CROSBY TO SECRETARY LONG
Metropolitan Club
WASHINGTON
MR. SECRETARY:                                  April 22, 1898
I was informed by a lady this evening that a Spanish officer who
was recently here as an attache to the Spanish legation and now in
command of one of the Spanish men- [jof]-war on the Havana coast
told her that they the Spaniards would surprise us - where we least
expected it - that they would attack places on our coast, and spoke
of Cape Ann on Massachusetts coast where the telegraph cable is
landed as one of the places they would destroy - she also said that
this officer had been three years in this country as an attache to the
legation and that he had maps and plans of all our coasts -where
forts are located, etc. - that he boasted of the damage the Spaniards
would do on our coast and where they would be the least expected.
The lady I refer to is the wife of a Spanish gentleman and in this




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way her house was visited by the Spaniard but she is an American
and thoroughly loyal to her country the United States - she was
anxious to communicate to you this information-but being a
stranger came to me.
She does not wish to have her name known and all she has told
me is confidential- but if you would like to see her she is perfectly
willing to see you and tell all that she has told me. The husband of
this lady was at one time a minister to this country.
As this information may be of importance I have decided to give
it to you. With great respect I remain your humble servant,
PEIRCE CROSBY1
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
GOVERNOR WOLCOTT TO SECRETARY LONG
Commonwealth of Massachusetts
Executive Department
BOSTON
April 25, I898
My DEAR SIR:
I beg to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of April 23, and
thank you for the information it contains. You are doubtless already informed that I have made application upon the secretary
of war for guns, equipment, and ammunition to be used in earthworks at exposed points by the militia of this state. We are still
in a lamentable condition of ignorance of definite demands that
may be made upon us by the national government. No authority
has yet been received to place the first regiment of heavy artillery
at Fort Warren, which it seems to me should be done instantly. War
exists, and the coast of Massachusetts is exposed and liable to attack.
Definite instructions are hourly expected but do not come. I would
not willingly add anything to the great pressure of responsibility
which must now rest upon you, and which you are bearing with
so much honor to yourself, and with so great advantage to the
nation.
With much respect, I am
Yours very truly,
ROGER WOLCOTT
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
1 Peirce Crosby (I824-899).             1 Secretary Alger.




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CAPTAIN GOODRICH TO SECRETARY LONG
U. S. S. St. Louis
Personal                            TOMPKINSVILLE, STATEN ISLAND
April 27, 1898
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I am here in my ship - quite ready - and only awaiting orders
to go. Where? I have no idea.
I trust I shall give a good account of myself and justify your appointment of me to this magnificent command. She can't fight battleships but she can be useful.
I enclose a letter from the ablest man in the British Army - Colonel Sir George S. Clarke,1 R. E. K. C. M. G. etc. etc. - a very dear
friend of mine - a deep thinker and a warm friend of America. It
is well worth the trouble of deciphering its hasty script - for it
gives an inkling of that better class of feeling which rules or ought
to rule international sentiment.
As I telegraphed you this morning - of course I understood the
situation. I could not leave without assuring you on this point. I
only sought to make your road easier - and if our points of view
as to the manner differed - it was only to be expected from our
different training. That I am always ready to do what you wish and
in the way you wish I am confident you know as well as I.
I am sure I take your good wishes with me, and so good bye. May
your administration have the success it so eminently deserves.
Very sincerely,
C. F. GOODRICH
HENRY L. HIGGINSON TO SECRETARY LONG
44 State Street
BOSTON
April 28, 1898
DEAR MR. LONG:
A petition to the President that "seizures upon the seas of private properties of Spaniards be prohibited" is brought to me for
circulation. I shall not sign it unless you like to have it signed; otherwise, if you like to have it signed, I can get plenty of signatures of
the best kind. You have been kind enough to listen to various things
said by us about this war. I merely want you to understand that
almost everybody whom I see recognizes that, war being declared,
1 George Sydenham Clarke (b. 1848).




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it is our bounden duty and pleasure to help the government in every
possible way. Our only hope is that the government will appoint
only educated and seasoned officers to high commands - for volunteer regiments, ships, etc. Dozens of men whom you know, and
who have been in the service, would like to help as they can, though
they are all too old to go in the field.
This letter needs no reply. If you do not tell me to circulate that
petition, I shall not do it, though it comes from very good people.
Yours truly,
HENRY L. HIGGINSON
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
CAPTAIN CHADWICK TO SECRETARY LONG
U. S. Flagship New York
Personal                                          Off HAVANA
April 30, i898
DEAR MR. LONG:
We have heard of the resignation of Mr. Roosevelt, and our hopes
were raised high by the rumor that Admiral Walker 1 had been appointed assistant secretary, but they have been dampened by, today, hearing it was probable that there was too much opposition. I
hope you will allow me a word on the subject.
There is no possible question from a military point of view (which
is the only view to take at the moment) that the person nearest you
should be a military man of ability and force, and one having the
complete confidence of the service. It is no time to add to the
machinery of our administration untried and unformed men whose
minds must be by the very nature of things (viz. ignorance of the
machine they assist in directing) made up for them by perhaps irresponsible influences. Do not let us court disaster by failure to
employ the best instruments possible. It is no time for political
jealousies of naval influence which instigated the amendment (Mr.
Chandler's) prohibiting the employment of a naval officer on the
active list from being assistant secretary. If naval men are not competent, and supremely competent for such duties, what other class
of men are [sic]?
Only military men can successfully conduct or direct military
operations. We are face to face with a most serious problem, and
nothing should stand in the way of a successful solution. If the law
1 J. G. Walker, rear admiral, U. S. N., retired.




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does this then let us abrogate the law, which I should think it very
possible to do on a representation from the President. It is in any
case, it seems to me, an improper, and in its tenor an unconstitutional
law.
I request that what I say be not construed as against a civil head
to the department. I think it is quite right that this should be so, but
the civilian headship should end there; the second in direction should
by every law of experience elsewhere, of reason and of justice to
the service, be a naval officer of rank and proved capacity for
command.
Walker is one of the ablest military minds in the navy, and the
service has had no abler officer in my opinion in this generation,
and to have him associated with you at this juncture closely, as he
would be, as assistant secretary, would add enormously to the satisfaction and confidence of the service.
From all we read or hear here the country is undergoing a panic
of invasion. Let us strike the enemy instead of fearing he will strike
us. The Minneapolis and Columbia on the coast of Spain would be
a far better defense than where I hear they are; on the coast of
Maine. These two ships with their great coal endurance and great
speed would in themselves keep the greater part of the Spanish
fleet at home. "The best defense is a vigorous attack," and in my
humble opinion we should by this time be in possession of Puerto
Rico, and Spain's base be thus three thousand miles further off.
With the coal and machine shops at San Juan (Puerto Rico) destroyed and the place rendered untenable there would be no fear
of any Spanish fleet on this side; Cuba would then be an easy
question.
Believe me,
Sincerely yours,
F. E. CHADWICK
AMBASSADOR DRAPER TO SECRETARY             LONG
Embassy of the United States
Confidential                                           RoME
May 3, 1898
MY DEAR FRIEND:
As Captain Scriven' is coming home I can safely send you a
note that will not be seen by other parties, and there is a little matter that I wish to write you about.
1 George Percival Scriven (b. 1854), U. S. military attache at Rome.




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First, let me congratulate you on the glorious victory at Manila,
under your administration. Admiral Dewey is a man whom I know
intimately, and his success has justified my former opinion of him.
The particular reason for my letter is that certain matters seem
to reach the press from the various departments in Washington that
it seems to me should not be given to the public.
The example that I have in mind is that Captain Mahan, who was
here in Rome, was ordered home, and came to this embassy asking
that various communications should be made for him in regard to
his passage, etc., in cipher. All this was being conducted with the
greatest secrecy on our part, when suddenly the papers here, having received news from America, published more of Captain Mahan's
mission than either he or I knew. One correspondent at least, of a
New York paper, received instructions to interview Captain Mahan
before he left Rome. Probably no great harm was done by this,
but it might have resulted in Captain Mahan's being intercepted.
The communications of all American diplomats abroad are restricted by the fear that what they write may reach the press, and
that of course limits the efficiency of the service.
Mrs. Draper joins me in kindest regards to yourself and daughter.
Sincerely yours,
WILLIAM F. DRAPER
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
HORACE N. FISHER TO SECRETARY LONG
BOSTON
May 3, 1898
DEAR LONG:
The enclosed letter of yesterday's date explains my wish to have
a hand in the great movement in which we now are involved, -
the new departure which I have, as you know, for the past year
looked upon as an inevitable development of our country's influence.
That letter was more formal than my letters to you usually are,
because you may have occasion to use it with others who do not
know me personally. I think that my rather unusual experience and
training may find a useful field of action; and I therefore ask your
help.
The victory of Admiral Dewey, glorious as it unquestionably




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has proved, opens a new page for our government. It seems inevitable that we must hold the Philippines for a while; that we can
not honorably surrender the inhabitants unreservedly to Spain at
the close of the war, to be again enslaved and plundered. On this
point the country will back the President and Congress in holding
the Spanish East Indies. And the same may be said of other Spanish
colonies which may be occupied by us during this war.
Whether for temporary or permanent necessity it seems inevitable
that we must establish some kind of government in the interest of
humanity, peace and order in such occupied possessions.
Now you see the use of my published paper on colonial systems,
in the Transcript of July 3 I, I 897. For more than a year it has seemed
inevitable that we must meet this problem at an early day; that we
could not escape the responsibility of governing outlying possessions wherein were people of different races from our own; that
we must distinguish between such incongruous elements and our
own homogeneous territories; that we were bound to have foreign
colonies as an inevitable incident of our national development.
For this reason, a colonial system seemed the only practical remedy;
the basis of which was to grant each colony the maximum of self
government which the people could safely use, measuring out autonomy according to the particular status in each case.
As to the Latin American colonies, I have made a very close
study of the character and genius of the race and have a clear idea
of how they can be developed on lines parallel with our own. Those
lines, strange to say, were those under which Spain's colonial glory
was originally acquired, but which Philip II displaced for his centralized system which resulted in Spain's degradation. Those lines
trace back to the same Gothic source as our own New England
system, which permeates this entire country of ours.
Yrarrazaval 1 and I have studied these two lines together: he came
here to study our Anglo-Saxon line with me in 1875-1876 and I went
to Chile in I879-I88o to study the Castilian-Gothic line with him.
Our conclusions were in perfect accord, that by restoring the old
Castilian-Gothic system in Spanish America we could then by regular and natural evolution bring about a harmonious development
of Spanish American countries in accord with our own institutions.
We hoped to initiate this in Chile and for that reason I wished to
go there as United States minister; but my dear friend Yrarraizaval
1 Don Manuel J. Yrarrazaval.




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has gone to his reward and now, perchance, it may remain for me
to apply the result of our years of patient study to Cuba and Porto
Rico; the regeneration of Spanish America, if begun in Cuba as an
incident of this war, would be a blessing and a glory far exceeding
any glory to be won by armies and navies.
My note books, patiently filled from year to year, enable me to
speak with confidence that our regime in Cuba will give results in
the way of beneficent statesmanship second to none in this century.
The paper I sent you on Hawaii -" Some public questions raised
by the proposed annexation of Hawaii" - discussed some of these
questions; it was a natural outgrowth of my last summer's paper in
[the] Transcript on colonial systems. If you or Secretary Day wish
a proof of that published paper, I will send it.
Renewing my congratulations over Dewey's naval triumph and
hoping to soon see it supplemented by as decisive a victory by
Admiral Sampson, I am as ever,
Yours sincerely,
HORACE N. FISHER
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
WASHINGTON, D. C.
CHARLES H. ALLEN TO SECRETARY LONG
Rolfe Street
LOWELL, MASSACHUSETTS
May 5, 1898
DEAR GOVERNOR:
Last Thursday, - a week ago to-day, - an Associated Press report was sent out from Washington, to the effect that the President
had decided to appoint me assistant secretary of the navy, vice
Roosevelt.
The first I knew of it, I was called upon the telephone by a
Boston newspaper and asked if I would " accept." The newspapers
generally assumed the report to be true, and many commented on
it, editorially. The report has gone all over the country, and I began to receive letters and telegrams of congratulation. Of course
the whole thing was a surprise to me and I hardly knew what to
say as I kept thinking I should have some word from you, perhaps,
which would help me in answering enquiries. As none came, I was
obliged to say what was true, that I knew nothing about the matter
other than the information in the newspaper despatches. And I'm




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no better off yet, in the way of information, and I wish you would
wire me if there is anything to it.
It would be purely an affectation on my part, if I were to pretend to be indifferent. I am not. Indeed I do care very much about
it, and hope it is true, for I know I can be a lot of help to you, in
taking detail, and it seems as if my twenty-five or more years of
fairly successful business experience would be useful in such a place.
At the same time I have had the greatest hesitancy in writing even
this letter, for I wouldn't like you to think I wanted to force myself
on you at this time. But it would be a personal relief if I could know
about it.
With kindest regards for both you and Mrs. Long,
Sincerely yours,
CHARLES H. ALLEN1
P.S. Since writing the above I have had two letters returned to me
from Washington, directed there to me as "assistant secretary of
the navy," - so you see how very embarrassing this is, - and how
much I would like to be able to affirm or deny the report.
C. H. A.
HENRY L. HIGGINSON TO SECRETARY LONG
44 State Street
BOSTON
May 5, i898
MY DEAR MR. LONG:
Louis Adams Frothingham,1 a graduate of Harvard College in
I893, and three years later of the law school, has been promised,
as I think, a commission as lieutenant of marines by Mr. Roosevelt.
As that gentleman may be gone, I venture to name the thing to you.
He is an unusually fine chap and will do all that he says - and more
- and is the kind of which excellent junior officers are made. I am
writing without his knowledge. You will find he is vouched for by
Honorable William C. Lovering 2 and perhaps some other gentlemen. Should it meet your views in all ways, will you kindly designate him for a commission, if not in that place, in some other? I
1 Charles Herbert Allen (I848-1934), Amherst '69, was soon appointed assistant
secretary of the navy.
1 Louis Adams Frothingham (1871-1928), lieutenant-governor of Massachusetts
1909-1911, M. C. 1921-1928.
2 William Croad Lovering (I835-1910), M. C. from Massachusetts.




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know the pressure on your time and beg that you will not reply to
this letter. Be sure that I would not name him to you if I did not feel
sure of the lad, and be sure also that if he is not appointed, he and
I will both be content.
Yours truly,
H. L. HIGGINSON
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
PAUL L. FORD TO       SECRETARY LONG
97 Clark Street
BROOKLYN
May 5, I898
DEAR SIR:
I feel apologetic, after your letter of May 2, in troubling you
further in reference to my application for permission to sail on the
Flying Squadron; the more that I fully realize the difficulties you
mention. If I were merely a correspondent, I should not urge further,
but my interest is historical, and if it will simplify the matter, I
will agree not to represent any paper, or will represent a syndicate,
whichever will be preferable. I know that rules are necessary, but
if an exception was made for Mr. Davis,' I think I am entitled to
equal favor.
But if you still think no exception in my favor can be made, may
not the matter be arranged by my being appointed pay clerk to
the paymaster, or to some such civilian position? I know Paymaster
Livingston Hunt,2 of the New Orleans, and think he would be
willing to give me any help, if it were permitted.
I am sorry to seem so insistent, but I know that in these matters
there is always a certain amount of elasticity, and naturally one
always thinks that if there is favor to be shown, it should always
extend to one's self. I am sure that if the department would give
its consent, that I could arrange matters with the officers of the
ship I might be assigned to, so that there should be no objection to
my sailing on her.
Yours very truly,
PAUL LEICESTER FORD
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
1 Richard Harding Davis (1864-i916). See below, Davis's letter of May I4.
2 Livingston Hunt (b. 1859), Harvard College '8i, paymaster, U. S. N.




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THEODORE ROOSEVELT TO SECRETARY LONG
Navy Department
WASHINGTON
May 6, 1898
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I enclose herewith my letter to the President.
Let me add one word personally. I don't suppose I shall ever
again have a chief under whom I shall enjoy serving as I have enjoyed serving under you, nor one toward whom I shall feel the
same affectionate regard. It is a good thing for a man to have, as
I have had in you, a chief whose whole conduct in office, as seen
by those most intimately connected with him, has been guided
solely by resolute disinterestedness and single-minded devotion to
the public interest. I hate to leave you more than I can say. I deeply
appreciate, and am deeply touched by, the confidence you have
put in me, and the more than generous and kindly spirit you
have always shown toward me. I have grown not merely to respect
you as my superior officer, but to value your friendship very highly;
and I trust I have profited by association with one of the most highminded and upright public servants it has ever been my good fortune
to meet.
Permit me to sign myself, with great affection and respect,
Always faithfully yours,
THEODORE ROOSEVELT
The Honorable
THE SECRETARY OF THE NAVY
CAPTAIN COOPER TO SECRETARY LONG
United States Naval Academy
Personal                                 ANNAPOLIS, MARYLAND
May 7, 1898
MY DEAR SIR:
As the academic year is drawing to an end it may not be out
of place for me to call myself to your attention in the most unobtrusive manner, which is by note and not in person.
You may recall a conversation we had some weeks ago regarding
my future, and at the time the Chicago was mentioned as the ship
apparently most available for me to command. From a reliable source
I now understand that she will be ready about July  5 and I hope
you will assign me to her.




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Our academic year closes June 4; the cadets will be embarked
June 6 and all plans for the summer arranged.
On July I the appropriation for reconstruction of the buildings
becomes available; you are authorized to contract to the extent of
one million dollars, and your agent here, the superintendent, should
be associated with the work from the initiative and I will be ready
to step aside for him.
I trust you will be disposed to give favorable consideration to
my request.
Very sincerely,
P. H. COOPER
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
HORACE N. FISHER TO SECRETARY LONG
Forecast of Possible Results from Dewey's Victory
at Manila, May i, 1 898
BOSTON
May 9, i898
DEAR LONG:
In my last letter (May 3) I congratulated you briefly upon
Dewey's naval victory and said " The victory of Admiral Dewey,
glorious as it unquestionably is, opens a new page for our government. It seems inevitable that we must hold the Philippines for a
while; that we can not honorably surrender the inhabitants unreservedly to Spain at the close of the war, to be again enslaved and
plundered. On this point the country will back the President and
Congress in holding the Spanish East Indies."
In view of the fact that we then had no details of the battle, that
we did not know how seriously our fleet had suffered nor what
its effective capacity then was, it seemed " too previous " to discuss
any policy to be adopted for the Philippines beyond the general
thesis that it seemed an unavoidable necessity that we must hold
them for a while and to establish some adequate government there
" in the interest of humanity, peace and order in such occupied
possessions."
Now, however, we do know enough of the details to warrant
active measures; according to the published news, the President has
decided to send a strong land force to hold the islands (at least,
Manila), as well as fleet-supplies. That is wise and unavoidable; the




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President could not do otherwise. As to the force to be sent, it
seems that five thousand men is too small a force in view of the
facts, unless to be bottled up there; twenty-five to thirty thousand
would not be too many, I think. We must remember that the
Philippines and dependencies have an area about equal to that of
either the Japanese Empire (excluding Formosa), or Great Britain
and Ireland, - say one hundred and thirty thousand square miles -
with a population of some ten millions. Fortunately the climate is
one of the most healthy in the tropics; yellow fever, cholera, plague
and famine are alike unknown. In productiveness, the Philippines
may be accounted the garden of the East Indies and under a strong
and just government may become a second Japan within a single
generation of good government. In i888, the exports and imports of
the Philippines aggregated $47,566,000; against $130,307,000 for
Japan's foreign trade in i888. But thirty years ago, when Japan
commenced its career as a civilized government, it may well be
questioned whether it had anything like fifty million dollars of
foreign trade; in fact, in 1884 Japan's foreign trade amounted to
only $6,837,ooo00! But so vast were the gains in peace and order
and civilization that, in four years from that time Japan's foreign
trade doubled. May we not expect a similar change in the Philippines
when, in the stead of Spanish oppression and licenced plunder of
Spanish officials, those fertile regions may enjoy peace and order
and just government under the strong hand of the United States!
These problems are great, but by the providence of God we
seem the nation chosen to perform this work. Then let us accept
the duty and boldly and bravely push forward to the end. Above
all, let us not make two bites of a cherry, - but send forces to
Cuba and the Philippines large enough to ensure prompt and complete victory, whether the number be fifty thousand and twentyfive thousand, respectively.
Whether I am right or wrong, these are my views in regard to
the Philippines and I think that the results indicated will be warranted in the end.
I. Dewey's victory marks an event of the first magnitude in the
history of the Far East. Indeed it seems likely to prove of a far-reaching importance hardly inferior to Clive's victory at Plassy, from
which dates the British Indian Empire.
II. At first sight, this extraordinary victory will be likely to
arouse the greatest interest on the part of the great powers who are




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intent upon the partition of China; yet, upon more serious reflection,
I think they will realize that their respective interests will be better
subserved by the United States in possession of the Philippines,
than to have them fall to either one of the great European powers
or to Japan; that they will recognize that Spain's power is hopelessly broken and that unless we take the control, Japan will be
very likely to annex this " Cuba of the Orient " to her empire, which
will thus form a long archipelago extending from the Arctic Circle
almost to the equator, facing Asia's east coast only two days' steaming from the Chinese ports. Such an expansion of Japan's power
would more seriously disturb the " balance of power " in the Far
East than to have the United States hold the Philippines and take
the responsibility for the maintenance there of peace and order and
the observance of the international duties of civilized governments.
Hence the apprehensions of the European concert's jealousy at our
occupation of the Philippines seems uncalled for.
III. As to the United States: -a great foreign market for our
surplus manufactures is a necessity, constantly increasing in pressure.
The constantly gaining increase of our manufacturing productions
over our agricultural productions has been enormous by each succeeding census for forty years: at present we produce four times
as much manufactured products as agricultural. Even now, our
domestic consumption can not take more than seventy-five per
cent. of our manufactured products, based upon capacity of the
latter's annual output at full time. Hence the necessity of great
foreign markets for such surplus, with the alternative of curtailment of production or of wages. This latter has already produced
labor agitation and strikes, the tendency being to array labor against
capital, the logical effect of which would be more dangerous to our
system of government than would be involved in any colonial expansion.
IV. This victory of Dewey is a Godsend, for opening a great
foreign market for us and under our strong and just oversight we
may reasonably expect to bring the Philippines in a single generation to be fitly compared with Japan.  I
V. We have indeed come to the parting of the ways and must
abandon our international isolation; that we have no foreign interests and responsibilities outside of the American continent can
no longer be seriously maintained; we must extend our influence
to other countries " for their benefit and our own and for the




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future generations of our posterity," as John Quincy Adams said of
the " Monroe Doctrine."
Yours truly,
HORACE N. FISHER
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
WASHINGTON, D. C.
WILLIAM     C. WHITNEY     TO SECRETARY LONG
871 Fifth Avenue
NEW YORK
May o, 1898
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
You will doubtless know officially and without personal recommendation Captain Paget," the naval attache accredited to this
country by Great Britain.
What I want to do is to ask for Captain Paget your friendly offices
to enable him to execute his mission as intelligently as consistent
with his position among us. You can give him facilities for doing
so - and I bespeak for Captain Paget your friendly offices in every
way. Captain Paget's brother married my daughter, and I am therefore personally interested, but he is a most distinguished officer of
the English Navy and it would I think be in line with the grateful
courtesies being exchanged by the two governments and which we
so highly appreciate at this time, if you should give to Captain
Paget your favor and friendship.
Yours most truly,
To the Honorable                           W. C. WHITNEY
SECRETARY OF THE NAVY
CAPTAIN MAHAN TO SECRETARY LONG
Navy Department
Office of Naval War Board
WASHINGTON, D. C.
May io, I898
SIR:
I respectfully recommend that the "board of war"  be abolished, and that in place of it, to perform the functions with which
it is now entrusted, there be appointed a single officer, to be known
by such title as may seem convenient to designate his duties.
1 Alfred Wyndham Paget (b. I852).
1 For the naval war board, see Roosevelt's letter of April 4, 1898, note.




120          PAPERS OF JOHN DAVIS LONG                     [1898
2. To this officer there would be appointed such assistants as
shall be expedient, with whom he can consult at his pleasure, individually or collectively, directing their special study of the general
situation, or of particular features, and inviting suggestions; but, in
the end, the opinions officially submitted will be his own, for which
he alone will be responsible, and for whose success he alone would
receive credit.
3. The change suggested is from a council of war, which the
board virtually is, with corporate responsibility and without individual responsibility, to the single, individual responsibility, which
alone achieves results in war.
4. I do not forget that the secretary himself exercises such single
responsibility. But, with the varied and onerous duties resting upon
him, it is inevitable that, in such highly technical matters as the
conduct of war, he must depend largely upon the technical familiarity with the subject that only seamen, and military seamen,
can possess. Professional opinion should come to him, not as the
result of a majority vote, but with the far weightier sanction of
a single competent man, acting under the high sense of high personal responsibility.
5. I offer the suggestion at once, before any difference with my
colleagues has arisen, or could arise. Resting, as my opinion does,
upon a wide study of military history, it is not liable to change, and
at present it has the advantage of absolute impersonality.
I have the honor to be,
Your obedient servant,
To the Honorable                                   A. T. MAHAN
THE SECRETARY OF THE NAVY
[Endorsed]
Navy department, naval war board, May io, 1898. Respectfully forwarded,
M. SICARD, Rear Admiral, President of Board
HENRY LEE TO SECRETARY LONG
BROOKLINE
May o1, I898
MY DEAR OVERWORKED SECRETARY:
I am begged to forward to you the record of - Ensign W. A.
Moffett1 - written by an officer commanding one of the United
1 William Adger Moffett (I869-1933), rear-admiral and chief of the bureau of
aeronautics (1931). Admiral Moffett lost his life in the wreck of the U. S. naval
airship Akron, April 4, 1933.




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States ships, and with it the young ensign's supplication for immediate active service, as he feels that as he is on board the United
States Ship Mohican, Honolulu, he is shut off from perhaps the one
chance of his life to do something in his profession, and he implores to be ordered to some ship that is to be given real work to
do against the Spaniards.
This record is creditable and so is his aspiration, so I feel forced
to do what little I possibly can by presenting his petition to you,
sure that it will be duly considered.
Nothing but the fear of adding one more minute's task has
stopped me from expressing to you frequently my full appreciation
of your labors and responsibilities, you have my hearty sympathy.
Yours with respect,
HENRY LEE
[Enclosure]
Ensign W. A. Moffett: Appointed to Naval Academy from South
Carolina on September 6, i886, and commissioned an ensign on
July I, I 892.
Served with zeal, credit and distinction on board the flagship
Chicago under command of Captain Mahan. Upon the return of this
vessel to the United States, early in i 895, Mr. Moffett was ordered
to the monitor Amphitrite where he did most creditable service and
from which vessel in acknowledgment of his satisfactory work he
was ordered to the Enterprise and intrusted with the important
duties of instructor of mathematics to the cadets of that vessel.
Ensign Moffett has been almost constantly afloat since being
graduated and has had about six years and a half sea service.
RICHARD H. DAVIS TO SECRETARY LONG
United States Army Headquarters
Tampa Bay Hotel, FLORIDA
May 14, 1898
DEAR SIR:
Mr. Neilson 1 of Harper's Weekly has at your suggestion forwarded me your letter to him. It states your views of my case and
your reasons for putting me off the flagship. They are several; in
the first place I was represented to you as the correspondent of an
English paper, the Times, it is a daily paper the most important
paper in England. It is not an illustrated paper, as you suggest by
1 Probably H. L. Nelson. See Secretary Long's letter of April 2, I898.




122        PAPERS OF JOHN DAVIS LONG                 [1898
referring to me as "the artist of a foreign newspaper, the London
Times." I am not an artist but a correspondent, and novelist and a
writer of books of travel. In accrediting me to a foreign paper Mr.
Neilson was correct, but he did not go quite far enough. I also represent the New York Herald, in which paper my letters from the
flagship appeared daily, and through the Herald, I also represent a
syndicate of fourteen American papers among them the Boston
Herald one of those you mentioned as complaining about my presence on the New York. These papers are the first papers in the
first fourteen cities of this country. I also represent Scribner's Magazine, and am writing a series of articles for them on the war and a
book which is to be a history of the war. On the whole - I represent
more papers, more important papers, in more important cities than
any other correspondent, with the exception of the Associated Press,
now following this war. And I also am in a modest way an historian
of the war through my connection with one of the three greatest
magazines. When you put me off the ship, a young man came over
the side representing an unknown western syndicate of papers of
no value. He himself was a Cuban doctor. For him you sent me
ashore, or as you say in your letter because " if you showed favor
to one paper you would expire in hot water."
I beg to suggest that you are taking a wrong and an extremely
personal view of this matter. Some men are trained to fight and some
to write. I have been ten years learning to write, and it is possible
that I can describe events more correctly than others or that I have
learned how to place them on paper. I claim that trained writers
are just as important to this war as trained fighters. I do not call
all of the two hundred accredited correspondents trained or trustworthy writers but there are some that can be trusted and who
should be trusted and who should, other things being equal, be
allowed on the fleet, no matter whether the yellow journals get you
in " hot water " or not. From the letters I have received from strangers and the comments in the newspapers I judge that in putting me
off the flagship you succeeded in pleasing a few where you antagonized many. There is still ample time for you to recognize
reputable journalism and journalists, not as a favor to them in any
way, but because their value is deserving of recognition. Mr. Zogbaum, Mr. Remington, Mr. Bonsai, Mr. Stephen Crane 2 all of whom
2 Rufus Fairchild Zogbaum (1849-1925), Frederick Remington (1861-1909),
Stephen Bonsai (b. I865), Stephen Crane (1871-1900).




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you ordered off the fleet are writers of as much consequence as
this country can produce. I, myself, am of consequence only because I represent fourteen decent papers and a great magazine and
the one English paper that is pledged to the Anglo-American alliance.
I beg you to consider these things and to reverse your order
concerning myself and allow me to return to the flagship, or to any
vessel of the fleet where her commander will receive me.
When you do this you can answer any question that may be
raised by other papers, that I represent not one but fifteen papers,
that besides furnishing news I am acting as a historian of the war and
that if they get up a syndicate as strong and as reputable as the one
I represent they can have a representative also. I feel sure that you
will see the justice of this and furnish me with an order giving me
the opportunity to relate the victories of our fleet at first hand.
I am, Sir, yours,
RICHARD HARDING DAVIS
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
JESSE H. JONES TO SECRETARY LONG
HALIFAX, MASSACHUSETTS
May 14, 1898
MY DEAR SIR:
If you can find time to read my editorials enclosed they will be
better than any letter. Please account them a personal letter to
yourself.
Because I was opposed to making war, it does not follow that I
would not make the war effective. The way of war having been
chosen, it is our duty to make it as effective as we can, and get out
of it all that we can. Hence not a Spanish flag must be allowed to
get back across the ocean.
Hence under no conditions may the Philippines be given up. We
have taken them by our might; we can not give them up except in
utter weakness and we will not recover from the despite of it in
a century. And besides we will be false to our duty to that people
and to the whole human race to lead the way of freedom and progress, hope and prosperity.
Spain must get off this hemisphere. She would not consent to be
outgrown; she would have violence. Now she must go. That is the
only recompense for the Maine.




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As to the government of the Philippine Islands, if I supposed the
President would read it, I would prepare a thoroughly thought-out
plan: but my time is worth too much to expend it on uncertainties.
I have three fundamentals.
I. No peace with Spain that lets her have a foot of land that we
have taken or can take.
1I. No interference by any European power.
III. Line right up with England into an Anglo-Saxon league, to be
for ever.
These three set forth our imperial destiny, just now set before us.
I doubt if I ever did any work better than my editorial "The
Signs of the Times."
Cordially yours,
JESSE H. JONES'
NOTE. The editorials referred to in this letter appeared in the
Standard, of Rockland, Massachusetts, and the Public, of North
Abington, Massachusetts, both of May I3, i898. The battle of
Manila Bay is rated, as to its decisive results, among the great events
of history. The Philippines must not be given up.
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
HENRY LEE TO SECRETARY LONG
BROOKLINE
May I 6, I 898
MY DEAR GOVERNOR:
To-day I have received a second letter from you informing me
that young Ensign Moffett has had his longing gratified, and since
you can find time to attend to petitions and to write pleasant friendly
notes calling up the past you must have time to listen to our grateful
thanks only withheld lest they should intrude, for no other reason.
Some of us, quaking with anxiety, did approach the President more
than once through you to beseech him to resist the jingo clamors
of Congress and preserve us from the present anxieties and the dire
future responsibilities and entanglements of war, and now we are
sick at heart over these calamities wantonly piled upon us and the
threatening future. Rightly or wrongly we have trusted to you and
to the President to accept Sagasta's cessation of hostilities and refer1 Reverend Jesse Henry Jones (0836-i904), Harvard College '56.




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ence of the Maine to an impartial tribunal, and how our two senators can reconcile to their consciences; one, his unceasing endeavors,
open and hidden, to stir up war and imperialism, the other his false
conclusions from fair premises, most of us, especially those who can
still turn pale over the anxieties, the losses, the haggard years of one
great war, can not conceive. If I were to begin to ask you how are
we to solve this or that problem in view, it would take time not to
be spared, but I must assure you of the pride and gratitude of us all
over your fulfilment of one of the beatitudes.
You allude to that ground dear to all of us, the college, and no
one, I fancy, has partaken of the pleasures of our festivals more
often and more heartily than I, - but - for two years I have been
broken down by bronchitis and heart trouble, am now in care of
nurse and doctor, have been unable to go to commencement, save
for an hour or so, can not get up to Hollis I I to see John Ropes 1 and
the rest, give up Phi Betas, have resigned the presidencies of Tavern
and Union clubs, am just trying to quit the presidency of the Provident Institution for Savings, have quitted Lee Higginson and Company and am "only waiting" like my old crony and classmate
S. G. Ward2 of Washington. It is hard and sometimes sad, now I
resign [sic] my place on the board of overseers where I have sat
(with one year ineligible) from 1867. I can not go, this last attack
was brought on by fatigue and excitement going in to a meeting in
the easiest way.
I have the privilege of pleasant country life and driving all the
year, and family and a good many friends and friendly acquaintances. Foresight and hindsight are wonderfully different, my life
is like a watch in the night. Good-bye, governor, let me ask you
one question, have you anything to do but to listen to the yarns of
an old fellow.
Yours gratefully,
HENRY LEE
I think Sowdon3 will eventually become an archbishop.
1 John Codman Ropes (I836-1899), Harvard College '57.
2 Samuel Gray Ward (I817-1907), Harvard College '36.
3 Apparently refers to Arthur John Clark Sowdon (1835-1911), Harvard College '57, a Boston lawyer, and very prominent in the Episcopal church.




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SENATOR CHANDLER TO SECRETARY LONG
United States Senate
Personal                                   WASHINGTON, D. C.
May 19, 1898
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I am anxious about the Manila situation. I know the influences
which are at work to prevent a military landing there. Concerning
those I will not worry you; and doubtless you will not have to bear
any of the President's responsibility which will be heavy enough
for not occupying the Philippines.
But you will be blamed for any naval mishap; like the defeat of
Dewey or his enforced withdrawal. I have not criticized the naval
management in any way and am proud of the record of the secretary and his officers and men. I have only suggested one specific
thing; long ago the sending of the Oregon to Dewey. I wish she
was with him now. If there is a big battle in Cuban waters and the
Oregon participates perhaps I shall be rejoiced that she didn't go
to Manila!
But still Dewey may be imperilled. He has no armored ship.
Send him the Monterey; and your duty is done whether soldiers
go or not. The Monterey in Manila's harbor mouth can stand off
the Spanish fleet.
Twenty days have gone by and no ship has been sent to him; no
supplies, no ammunition, no men, nothing. You know whether he
has asked for anything. If he has, do send.
The Charleston has not yet gone. Please don't wait for the army,
but reenforce the navy.
Truly yours,
WILLIAM E. CHANDLER
SECRETARY LONG
CAPTAIN GOODRICH TO SECRETARY LONG
U. S. S. St. Louis
Personal                                   WINDWARD PASSAGE
May 19, 1898
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
My friends, in congratulating me upon the command of so beautiful a ship as this, invariably added that "she can run away from




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anything." How much comfort this assurance is likely to give a
person of my mental temperament you can better imagine than I
describe.
Within the past twenty-four hours, as I write, the St. Louis has
been twice in serious action!
Yesterday I grappled one of the two cables between Jamaica and
Cuba right under the forts of Santiago - and in this ship - and I was
actively engaged for forty-one minutes. That the ship and her little
consort, the Wompatuck, were untouched is due to a kind Providence rather than the good will of the Spaniards. Lieutenant Jungen'l with his one three pounder and I with my broadside of two
six pounders silenced the gun in the Morro and one, a very small
one in a new battery to westward of the harbor, but we could not
reach a mortar battery inside that put shot after shot close alongside - some not one hundred feet outside the ship. It was very nasty!
But I held on to the cable and gradually worked out of range.
If you like - I can send you a sample of the wire that might
very easily have cost us dearly. As I probably ruined the other
cable at the same time, I shan't go back for it until I know the
necessity.
To-day, thanks to our having such tiny guns, I had to abandon an
attempt to cut the French cable in Guantanamo. A very plucky
little Spanish gunboat with two bigger pieces (four or five-inch
probably) came out and drove us off. I argued that, Admiral Sampson having sent me to cut cables, fighting was secondary. We had a
very pretty scrimmage for half an hour or more - but the Spaniard
wouldn't scare a bit so I - ran. Very humiliating, but I had too
much to lose and too little to gain - for this cable can be cut elsewhere - not so the Jamaica cable.
I mention these things to you because when the time comes to
serve out the rewards, I think my conduct off Santiago de Cuba
entitles me to at least this - that no man should be promoted over
my head. More I do not ask. Am I not reasonable? If one of my
juniors merits advancement which would put him above me, then I
ought to go up enough to keep him astern. Had you been with me on
the bridge of the St. Louis yesterday and heard the shells whistling
over and around us, I am sure you would agree with me. It's one
thing to meet your enemy in full panoply yourself, but to have
1 Carl William Jungen, commanding the naval tug Wompatuck.




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neither armor nor good weapons and yet to stand fast till your
work is done is not unworthy of remembrance in old age and of
telling to your children.
We are having "a beautiful time" as the girls say. Everything
on board is smooth and harmonious and we are indeed a happy
family in every way. I expect to go north shortly for coal and
stores - but I shall not, I fear, have the pleasure of seeing you then.
Very sincerely yours,
C. F. GOODRICH
SAMUEL HOAR TO SECRETARY LONG
CONCORD
May 30, I898
[DEAR SIR:]
I am surprised and mortified that a fugitive remark of mine, intended to be rather of a playful nature, should have been deemed
by any hearer [to be] worthy of the dignity of repetition, where it
might either wound or offend. And this the more when a social
club was the place where the saying and the hearing took place.
The fact of the remark itself had gone so completely from my mind
that I was at a loss on the receipt of your letter of the twenty-sixth
instant to know or recall the occasion. But it has come back to me
that the whole thing was based on a talk about the newspaper jibes
or criticisms on the direction given by the so-called strategy board
to affairs which should much better be left to the high officers in
charge on the spot. I then said in a spirit of banter that I had for
some time thought of getting up a petition for its abolition. That
this has caused you, with your engrossing and important duties,
to be at the trouble of writing me is distressing because it has turned
from what it was intended to be to something apparently serious.
I feel now as if your informant was a person always to be avoided
and also as if the club might be full of such. My own constant and
untiring support of the government, my admiring recognition of
the superiority of the navy department in this crisis, which has already made us able to command the high respect of mankind, ought
to have been enough to have given this auditor pause before he repeated me in so unfriendly a spirit and of all others to you.
As it is, I never will speak disrespectfully even of the equator




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(to use the figure of Sidney Smith) except in the strictest privacy
and to those listeners alone who are sworn to secrecy.
After saying what I have it perhaps is unnecessary for me to
categorically answer your six questions, but yet to be precise, I
will say
First. I knew who composed the board.
Second. I understood generally that it was the staff of the secretary
of the navy.
Third. My information or misinformation as to its specific action
was derived from the daily press, and I can not now recall what, at
any time, it was.
Fourth. The only amendment I would humbly suggest to its order
sent to Commodore Dewey is that he should sail for home as soon
as he has destroyed the Spanish fleet and fortifications.
Fifth. I applaud all I know of its action respecting the Oregon.
Sixth. I am gratified to learn the facts stated by you in your sixth
question.
In conclusion I beg to assure you of my great anxiety about this
war and its administration, of my high faith in the President and
in the conscientious and able work of his secretary of the navy,
which so far as in me lies, I am upholding and shall continue to
uphold.
Respectfully yours,
SAMUEL HOAR1
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
WILLIAM ENDICOTT, JR., TO SECRETARY LONG
BOSTON
May 30, 1898
MY DEAR GOVERNOR LONG:
Mr. Henry MacFarland 1 in a recent letter to the Boston Herald
says that the President is " desirous to know the opinion of the soberminded men of the country upon the subject of colonial expansion."
I can give him the opinion of one at the present time very soberSamuel Hoar (1845-1904), Harvard College '67.
1 Henry Brown Floyd MacFarland (0861-1921), president of the board of
commissioners of the District of Columbia, i900-i9i0.




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minded person and it is not alone my opinion but that of every
one with whom my business associations bring me in contact. We
have jingo newspapers trying to emulate the New York Journal,
and jingo politicians always ready to whoop up any thing that
they think will take with the ignorant and unthinking, but the
sober sense of this state is all in opposition to any such departure
from the traditional policy of the country as is involved in colonial
extension.
National honor forbids. The President, in the most solemn manner, called the world to witness that the sole purpose of this government in making war upon Spain was to relieve Cuba from misgovernment and to establish self-government there, and that under no
circumstances would annexation be thought of. The congressional
resolution echoed this sentiment. To say that this referred to Cuba
only and left us at liberty to grab any other Spanish territory that we
might conquer is to say that President and Congress were guilty
of a piece of hypocrisy too base to be conceived. The purpose evidently was to place our action upon the high moral plane of undertaking the enormous sacrifices of war with no selfish purpose of
territorial aggrandizement, but solely from motives of humanity.
This purpose was to make it, as Senator Hoar declared, "the most
holy war in all history." I can see nothing especially holy in passing
over Cuba, for the annexation of which propinquity offers strong
temptation, asking the world to admire such an act of self-abnegation, and prowling the world over to annex the Philippine Islands,
the Carolina Islands, the Canary Islands, or anything else that the
fortune of war may enable us to wrest from Spain. Our holy mission will be accomplished when we have set up in Cuba a wellordered and successful government of the Cuban people and retired
without having our pockets filled with swag. The whole world
thought when these declarations were made, and doubtless still
thinks, that we were lying. Let us take heed that we do not prove
that they were correct.
Colonial expansion will involve an entire change in our form of
government. This government of ours, of which we are accustomed
to claim that it is the best in the world, is founded upon the declaration that all "government derives its just powers from the consent
of the governed" and is organized upon the theory of equal rights
to all its citizens who exercise their rights of sovereignty through
co-equal states. To annex a territory, ten thousand miles away,




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with a population of eight to fifteen millions of savages to be ruled
as subjects having no rights other than it may please the conqueror
to accord, will announce to the world that this is no longer a republic, but an oligarchy, and an oligarchy without the redeeming
feature of a highly intelligent and educated class to give direction
to public interests.
To govern this mass of ignorant subjects, who can not possibly
become citizens, would require an army of civil servants, many of
whom would be out there " on the make," and would surely breed
corruption in the public service. To protect such distant dependencies would require an enormous increase of the navy and army, withdrawing hundreds of thousands from the peaceful pursuits of industry and imposing a burden upon the nation such as is crushing
the industrial classes of so many of the nations of Europe.
These large armaments will inevitably lead us to be taking a hand
in international squabbles from which, by our isolated position, we
are now happily exempt. The Constitution requires that all taxes,
duties and imports shall be uniform throughout the country.
The introduction of our tariff system into the Philippines would
be so great a departure from ordinary trade conditions there as
would be likely to invite unfriendly interference from other powers.
And for what purpose are we asked to incur all these dangers? It is
not necessary for purposes of trade for we can buy their hemp
and sugar without governing them, and we can sell anything which
we can offer in competition with other nations. The purpose is
clearly to cultivate the spirit of jingoism that a nation to be great
must be a big, swaggering bully, chip on shoulder, ready to fight
all creation, and constantly wasting life and treasure in unnecessary
war. It is not in this way that we have hitherto prospered. We
have shown that a nation may become great and prosperous by
cultivating peaceful ways. We are in no danger from any quarter if we keep out of European squabbles and attend to our own
affairs.
There is great danger to republican institutions in great military
and naval armaments as is shown by the dominance of the army in
France at the present time, to say nothing of the teachings of history. If we become a great military power, ambitious spirits, always ready to pander to the prejudices of the ignorant, will be
likely to be attracted to military life to serve their selfish ends.
The president of one of the three largest financial institutions of




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New York City said to me in conversation a short time since, "I
do not dare to look forward fifty years and think what may be
the future of this country. It makes me tremble."
It makes me tremble also. In my humble opinion the perils now
confronting the republic are greater than at any time in its history,
save only during the Civil War. It will be the part of a wise statesmanship to escape these dangers by returning to the traditions of the
fathers. It may be old fogyism but I think George Washington a
safer counsellor to tie to than Senators Mason, Foraker 2 and Lodge.
With sincere regard, I remain,
Yours very truly,
WILLIAM ENDICOTT, JR.
COMMODORE CROWNINSHIELD            TO
SECRETARY LONG
Department of the Navy
Bureau of Navigation
WASHINGTON, D. C.
June i, I898
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I was very sorry to learn from Mr. Allen of your suffering from
a sudden attack of lameness. I sincerely hope it is only temporary
and that you will soon be able to return to office.
The reports that there has been some fighting at Santiago seem
to be confirmed by press reports from Port au Prince, which Mr.
Hood1 has just shown me. The squadron under Schley made an
attack upon the fortifications and also fired on one or two of the
Spanish vessels that were in sight. We have received, so far, nothing
official in regard to it. Admiral Sampson must have arrived there
before this, and is now in charge, as a telegram from him, sent into
the mole, probably while he was passing through the Windward
Passage and dated one A.M., was received this morning.
I am quite desirous of being in New York on Friday, if you
think I can be spared for one day, as there will be an important
meeting of the Nicaragua Canal Company on Friday, which I wish
to attend unless there is some important news or operation which
requires me to be here on that day. I should like to leave by the four
2 Joseph Benson Foraker (1846-1917), U. S. senator from Ohio.
1 Edwin M. Hood, representative of the Associated Press.




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o'clock train tomorrow afternoon. Incidentally I could visit one
or two of the ships fitting out there, and in which I am interested;
at the same time have a change of scene.
Very respectfully,
A. S. CROWNINSHIELD 2
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
WASHINGTON, D. C.
BRIGADIER-GENERAL GREELY TO
SECRETARY LONG
War Department
Confidential                                         Signal Office
12.45 P.M.                                          WASHINGTON
June 4, I898
SIR:
I have pleasure in confirming my verbal report to your confidential secretary, that press dispatches just received from off Santiagode-Cuba bring information that all the cables on the south coast
of Cuba have been severed, and that the island is completely isolated
except through the Key West cables under our control. While
this information is unofficial, yet it is confirmed by prior dispatches
already sent you stating that the French line from Hayti to South
America was interrupted at 6.30 P.M. Friday afternoon.
Very respectfully,
To the Honorable                               A. W. GREELY
SECRETARY OF THE NAVY
REAR-ADMIRAL SAMPSON TO SECRETARY LONG
U. S. Flagship New York
Off SANTIAGO DE CUBA
June 6, 1898
DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I have received, of course, your order regarding Mr. Scovel,1 the
World correspondent; I would say, however, that there are circumstances of great mitigation, and in fact I do not think it is too
much to say, so far as I understand the matter, the circumstances
redound to Mr. Scovel's credit.
I can not enter into a full explanation of what has come to me
wholly privately, but Mr. Scovel has been so daring, and has done
2 Chief of the bureau of navigation, with the rank of commodore.
1 Sylvester Scovel (1869-1i905).




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such exceedingly good work amongst the insurgents, and given us
so much valuable information at very great risk to himself, that I
should feel obliged if you would enable me to act at my discretion
in the matter of his being allowed to visit the ships. Some time later
I hope I shall be able to make known to you personally the grounds
of this request, but I believe they are amply sufficient to warrant my
making it.
Yours very truly,
W. T. SAMPSON2
CAPTAIN    CHADWICK TO SECRETARY LONG
U. S. Flagship New York, First Rate
Personal                                    Off SANTIAGO DE CUBA
June io, I898
DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I do not know how many private letters you may have from people down our way, but I shall write this in the hope that you will
not object to having a personal opinion of how things look from
this point of view.
We are now anxiously and not patiently-mindedly awaiting the
army.' We have done a great deal here; we have silenced the batteries, have established a vigorous blockade, our ships lying in at
two miles distance and illuminating at night the harbor entrance,
and a good landing force would complete the rest in a very short
time. Were the entrance to Santiago of a different character: i.e.
with low-lying land, we could easily force our way in, but it is
extraordinarily narrow commanded by bluffs two hundred feet in
height, and these bluffs occupied by an active enemy would render
our action in this narrow inlet, but three hundred and fifty feet
broad, planted with mines, very difficult and disaster there would be
irretrievable. If we were sure to be left alone, we should of course
try it at whatever risk; with the hope of the arrival of an army
we of course wait.
Our blockade thus far has undoubtedly been effective; nothing
has gone in or out since our arrival. The batteries looked formidable,
2 Captain Sampson was in command of the North Atlantic Squadron, with the
rank of rear-admiral.
1 The army sailed from Tampa on June 14 and landed under cover of the navy,
a part at Daiquiri, June 22, the rest at Siboney, June 23 -respectively x6 and o1
miles from Santiago. See Captain Clover's letter of October 17, I898.




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but we silenced them most effectually the other day, lying off
finally at our leisure and firing at short range until we thought it
wise not to expend any more ammunition.
We were ranged round the entrance thus:
67 e...     f~                 ^1  D";
"         '.6.,
j'^ '-                          -C
I see much stress is laid upon the convoy of troops. The Spanish
naval force on the north side is of the most trivial character. It is
wholly, except two torpedo destroyers at Havana, of little gunboats
used in the shallow waters of the keys extending some two hundred
miles eastward of Cardenas. We have been in the habit of paying
them no attention whatever, and that our army movements should
be made to depend on any regard being shown them, shows an
entirely false appreciation of circumstances.
This leads to another thing! the somewhat - or I should say the
wholly real - absurdity of scaring ourselves with idle fears of what
will never happen. We have expended too much of our energies
and thought in fighting spectral enemies. Our people north seem to
have seen in every wave crest or cloud shadow a swift destroyer
of some sort pointed at our doorsteps. Instead of wielding what
bludgeons we have with all our vigor at the really visible heads,
we have been looking for the invisible. The country, or at least the
press, and some of our officials, have gone into spasms over torpedo
boats running up and down the New England coast in the rough
weather of early spring. Any one with the slightest experience of
these craft would know the absolute impossibility of this, the ordinary torpedo boat must be nursed like a baby, and the torpedoboat destroyer is not much better. They have not thought of the
coal she must have and her very limited radius. The only result of




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all our anxious patrolling north has been to knock a hole in the
Columbia.2
The way to keep the enemy from your door is to go for him
so actively that he can not afford to do anything but defend himself.
Napoleon complained that his marshals would always make too
many pictures to themselves of what might happen. This habit has
worried our whole coast into semi-hysterics, prevented vigorous
action where vigor was most needed, and has been most detrimental
to the successful conduct of the war. To-day as I write comes a
report from the Eagle that she saw a Spanish armored cruiser, a
protected cruiser and two torpedo boats on the north side - and
the effect is a suspension of a movement of paramount importance.
Even were the report true, it should not to my mind for a moment
change our plans. But I have no faith in it whatever. How did
Lieutenant Southerland 3 know the vessels were Spanish? I don't
believe he could tell their number even.
To my mind it is one of those groundless, or at the best semigroundless fears of which we seem to be so much the victim, and
which surely are not to our credit as a bold, vigorous and fearless
people. In fact these panics are most discreditable. To show how
easily people may err in such things I will instance an occurrence
of last night. The Yankee left Mole St. Nicholas about eight; on
arrival here at five-thirty this morning they reported having seen
and been in the midst of a squadron of eight or ten ships, one of
which was thought a battleship, which used a search-light; the
battleship looked somewhat like the Indiana; they could not tell
what they were, and hastened on to inform us. Later came in the
Panther, Yosemite, Armeria, Scorpion and Supply, five instead of
eight or ten, and on inquiry it turned out that the Scorpion, which
has one mast (a la battleship) was the user of the search-light;
that they had sighted the Yankee, had taken her for a torpedo boat
and the Scorpion had opened fire upon her, though the Yankee
was so far away she did not hear the shots and took them for the
working of the search-light as a signal. It is an excellent instance
of how even an experienced officer may be mistaken. The fact is
that there is no sense of perspective at night; a torpedo boat may
look as big as a battleship or vice versa.
2 On the night of May 28, the Columbia, cruising in a dense fog, collided with
a British ship and was rather badly injured; the other ship was sunk.
3 W. H. H. Southerland, commanding the Eagle, a converted yacht.




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I have regretted more than I can say this dreadful tendency to
panic, which seems so unworthy of us in every way; which makes
us ridiculous abroad and should make us ashamed at home. If I
can be allowed to say anything, it is that we should go on and
do our work without paying any attention whatever to rumors
and loose talk - let us strike energetically, decisively, quickly and
we need fear nothing in the way of possible raids or phantom squadrons. The one absolutely fatal thing in war is over-caution.
I can not understand why the Columbia, Minneapolis and St.
Paul should not be sent to show themselves on the Spanish coast.
If they did nothing more than make themselves known at one or
two points and then disappear below the horizon for the United
States or elsewhere, we should hear nothing more of Spanish ships
crossing the Atlantic. It is certainly true strategy to scare the other
fellow rather than to let him scare us, and I repeat that our failure
to do this is beyond my comprehension.
The navy has done its work well. As I look back I can see that
beyond any reasonable doubt we could have demolished the batteries at Havana the morning we left Key West the twenty-second
of April. But I do not say it was not perfectly sound judgment
from the point of view of the time not to attempt it - though we
were all prepared for it, and as far as I know, all anxious for it.
We could have taken Puerto Rico easily enough, but the doubt
as to what to do with it with no landing force to hold it, an exasperatingly slow squadron (on account of the monitors), a Spanish
squadron to look after and the Flying Squadron at Hampton Roads,
weighed heavily on the admiral's mind, and he thought best not
to hamper his movements. As it turned out, in the light of later
events, we could have spared the time both to take and to hold with
our own ships, but so far as we could see we were left to hold
alone a line the important points of which were a thousand miles
apart. Had we had the Flying Squadron with us it would have been
plain sailing. I have held from the beginning that our very first
objective was San Juan, and no better use for the Flying Squadron
could have been found than to use it April 22 for the occupancy
of that place, but our own action did not go for nought, as it is
clear (and it is also shown in the light of Lieutenant Carranza's4
4 Ram6n de Carranza, late naval attache of the Spanish legation at Washington.
He wrote a letter to Don Jose Inay, Spanish minister of marine, dated May 26, 1898,
at Montreal, where he had been organizing a spy service. It was intercepted by
United States secret agents and published in the papers of June 6.




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letter) that the operations of this squadron on the coast of Puerto
Rico forced Cervera into Santiago, where I think he is surely ours.
Yours very truly,
F. E. CHADWICK
P. S.                                              June I
It occurred to us last evening that the vessels seen by the Eagle
were the same which arrived here yesterday. This morning we
brought the Scorpion up from the westward and examined her log.
The result is that there can be no doubt that what she saw were
Eour own ships.
REAR-ADMIRAL SICARD TO SECRETARY LONG
Navy Department
Office of Naval War Board
WASHINGTON, D. C.
June i6, 1898
SIR:
From telegrams received from the United States consul1 at Kingston, Jamaica, and laid before this board, it appears that the island
of Jamaica begins to bear the relation to the present war in Cuba,
that the port of Nassau did to the Confederate States, during our
Civil War - that is, it tends to become a half-way depot for stores
needed by the Spanish army, where such stores can be easily, because innocently, accumulated, and whence the voyage to Cuba is
a short run.
The wants of the Spanish army fall under two great heads -
munitions of war and food. The former, being distinctly contraband, are more easily arrested en route, and coming as much from
Europe as from the United States, are out of our power for particular action.
The case is different as regards food supplies. Those will come
principally from the United States, as the nearest source of supply,
as has ever been the case for the West Indies; and with the tendency
of the business world to enter into speculations of this character,
we may expect to see this traffic increase apace.
Three methods of prevention are open to the United States:
I. To prohibit exports of food from our ports to Jamaica, beyond
the annual amount heretofore customary.
2. To declare food supplies going to Cuba contraband of war -
1 Louis Addison Dent (b. I863).




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a step frequently taken by nations in the past, when the question
of supporting an enemy's armed force was involved, as is notoriously the case now in Cuba.
3. To extend the blockade of the south coast of Cuba, to include
-besides Cienfuegos- the ports of Batabano, Trinidad, Manzanillo, and others, to be specified by name.
The first course will strike most efficiently at the root of the
evil, but might be considered unfriendly by the British government.
A similar action, however, has already been taken as regards coal
shipments.
The second possesses the advantage of allowing a vessel carrying
food to be stopped, without reference to her port of destination being blockaded.
The third alternative would be less objectionable to foreign
states than the other two; but it will seriously tax the resources
of the navy, already strained by the necessity of convoying the
army at the same time that it has to maintain the blockades already
proclaimed.
Very respectfully,
M. SICARD
President
THE SECRETARY OF THE NAVY
HORACE N. FISHER TO SECRETARY LONG
BOSTON
Thursday morning,
June i6, i898
MY DEAR LONG:
My enclosed letter of [the] fourteenth instant has been delayed
by my being unexpectedly called away Tuesday noon, not returning to [my] office until this morning. In the meantime Gamaliel
Bradford, Moorfield Storeyl and I think a brace of lesser mugwumps have held their threatened meeting at Faneuil Hall and
tooted on their pharisaical rams-horns, hoping to control Congress
to do their bidding, to wit: not to annex Hawaii, not to acquire Spanish pos[ses]sions beyond the sea, not to ask territorial or money indemnity from Spain, et cetera similia.
But at that very hour yesterday, without even hearing the wailing
jeremiads from Faneuil Hall, the House of Representatives passed
1 Moorfield Storey (i845-I929), Harvard College '66.




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the Hawaiian annexation resolution by more than a two-thirds vote.
The inspired mugwump papers have teemed with lamentation-editorials and letters over the backsliding of Massachusetts Representatives Gillet2 and Barrows,3 who have actually come to the conclusion that the dead hand of past generations can not for ever
stay the development of nations.
Under these circumstances Carlyle's words (quoted in my letter)
have a more pungent force: -" If the laws and judgements are
verily those of God, there can be no clearer merit than that of
pushing them forward - regardless of the barkings of gaze [t]teers
and wayside dogs."
But Carlyle is not alone in believing that God governs in the
affairs of nations; that His judgments against chronic misgovernment and cruelty of nations are inevitable and must be executed
by other nations, "with written law or without."
When our second Continental Congress met, Franklin offered
a resolution that the daily sessions should be opened by a prayer
for divine guidance and said, "I have lived a long time; and the
longer I have lived the more convinced am I that God governs in
the affairs of men; and, if a sparrow can not fall to the ground without our Father's knowledge, how shall a nation rise unless God
blesses its labors? "4
Apparently our pharisee friends belong to some antediluvian race
and can not rise to the emergencies of the present. Because, forsooth, their grandfathers of sacred memory used smooth-bore flintlock muskets and swore by the Westminster catechism and drove to
church in a one-horse shay, - it does not seem to the American
nation of to-day a sufficient reason to ignore the progress of the past
century and repudiate rifle guns, a more liberal Christianity, and
steam and electric cars.
It undoubtedly was wise (to use Washington's words, inserted
by Hamilton in the " Farewell Address "), " [in extending our commercial relations],5 to have with them [foreign nations] as little
political connection as possible." But, as stated in my letter of [the]
fourteenth enclosed: "Political relations have an entirely distinct
character (i.e. from commercial relations and the customary law
2 Frederick Huntington Gillet (I85I-1935), Amherst '74, M. C., later United
States senator from Massachusetts, 1925-I931.
3 Samuel June Barrows (I845-1909), M. C.
4 This resolution was offered in the convention of 1787.
5 These brackets appear in the original address.




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of nations): The policy - domestic or foreign - of a nation depends on the particular condition of the country at different times;
and consequently is not based upon precedent. Hence it is above
and beyond the domain of law." - And, it may be added, above and
beyond the sophisms and non-sequiturs like those proclaimed yesterday at Faneuil Hall- e.g. " We have solemnly disclaimed any intention to annex Cuba. What right therefore have we to annex Porto
Rico or the Philippines? "
Yours truly,
HORACE N. FISHER
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
CAPTAIN    BARKER TO SECRETARY LONG
U. S. S. Newark
Personal                                      HAMPTON ROADS
June 17, I898
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I am delighted that you sent a letter of commendation to Commander Symonds 1 of the Marietta who is one of the most intelligent
and best " all-round " officers we have in the service. I know that he
will appreciate your letter very much - as will every one on board.
Symonds told me once that long before the nomination of Mr.
McKinley-his brother who is a leading Republican in one of
the cities in New York - introduced Mr. McKinley to his audience - as " the next President of the United States " - and that it
was the first introduction of that kind. Of course he was pleased
that it should prove true.
Symonds gave me a very interesting account of his trip from the
Pacific to the Atlantic. He said that as the Marietta was so much
slower than the Oregon - he suggested to Captain Clark2 that he
be left to make the best of his way to the United States.
I expect the Newark will be off in a short time. We are now
awaiting orders, but I never realized before as I do now how much
more efficient a ship is after she has been in commission six months
than when newly commissioned with a green crew. For this reason
I do not believe we have much to fear from the "Cadiz" fleet.
Those vessels would not dare meet those of our squadrons in the
West Indies.
1 Frederick Martin Symonds (1846-I926).
2 Charles Edgar Clark (I843-1922), commanding the battleship Oregon.




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I note with pleasure that the Vesuvius has vindicated your judgment in keeping her as she was originally intended to be used. It
requires nerve to work her battery, but Pillsbury3 who is a cousin
of Cushing4 has got it-and a good lot of brains to direct it. I
am glad he has had a chance to test his guns in action.
One thing more - I am impressed every day with the truth of
Colonel Wagner's5 remarks about an army of invasion, etc. It
seems to me that everything he said is coming true, but I suppose
we needed the experience. Let us hope that the yellow fever will
not break out among the troops. Hoping that you have fully recovered from your lameness and with kindest regards to the ladies
-I am
Yours sincerely,
A. S. BARKER6
P. S. Please tell Mr. Snyder 7 that I have not heard from him since
I sent him a letter a week or so ago.
A. S. B.
HORACE B. SARGENT TO SECRETARY              LONG
SANTA MONICA, CALIFORNIA
21 June, I898
DEAR GOVERNOR:
Your considerate kindness in giving my dear daughter's husband,
Commander B. H. McCalla,1 command of the cruiser Marblehead,
with which, and with his splendid officers and crew, he is delighted,
has never been forgotten by me. I am very glad that he has justified your confidence, and proved the value of services which - but
for you-might have been sacrificed to a mistake of trop de zele
in discipline on one occasion for which he has patiently, for years,
suffered a bitter degradation.
Now, in war, should we not remember the facts on which peace
passed judgment? Tempora mutantur-nos mutamur- i illis (?)
3 Commander John Elliott Pillsbury (I846-I919), commanding the dynamite
cruiser Vesuvius.
4 Lieutenant-Commander William Barker Cushing (I843-1874). He destroyed
the Confederate ram Albemarle in the Civil War.
5 Arthur Lockwood Wagner (I853-1905), on General Miles's staff.
6 Captain Albert Smith Barker (1843-1916).
7 Harold C. Snyder, Secretary Long's confidential clerk.
1 Bowman Hendry McCalla (1844-19I0).




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First. With evidence of a conspiring purpose, he was insulted
by the most opprobrious term in the English tongue; and, after
repeated warning to the offender (an iron mutineer) gave him
a cut, "two inches long," on the scalp, which, by some strange
concert among hostile illustrated newspapers, was depicted with a
headline, "THE DECKS DELUGED WITH BLOOD "!
Secondly. A distinguished member of the court martial that sentenced McCalla, was unchallenged by him, in spite of the advice
of counsel to challenge him for a previous bitter denunciation and
expressed opinion of his guilt; and all, but one, of the court recommended McCalla to the clemency of President Harrison. One opposed.
Thirdly. The highest officers in the United States Navy supported this saving recommendation on the ground of B. H. McCalla's
general ability, high character, and previous exemplary national
service under delicate and difficult conditions.
Fourthly. President Harrison did ultimately remit "all the unexpired portion of the sentence "; and the extent of the effect of
this remission, as to lost numbers during suspension, turns on the
delicate question - whether, in the statute of 1878 touching change
of rank, without the consent of the Senate (as an appointing, rather
than as an ordinarily legislating, power) the word " and " should
be construed " or "; while, in spite of the general rule of construction, " and " can not be construed " or " in the constitutional prohibitions in regard to "gold and silver" as legal tender. " Inter
arma " res adjudicata may be silent?
Fifthly. The recognition of McCalla's equitable claim to restoration to normal rank, and of his ability to serve in his normal grade
is evidenced by the gallant consent of juniors, whom his loss of
numbers has advanced above him, to waive their privilege of
"number."
Now, dear Governor, I would ask you, under all these circumstances, if his unflinching, untiring, brave, exemplary, daily service,
as a commander of men, in labors that expose him to death every
hour with the badge of degradation and "penalty " still shoulderstrapped to him, in spite of " remission," does not justify my own
old-soldier prayer - that now - NOW - before he dies a hero's death
in a lower grade than belongs to his yeoman-service in this war




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where we feel the need of naval discipline, he may be totally relieved from dishonor under a penalty " remitted "?
Very truly and respectfully,
HORACE BINNEY SARGENT2
To Honorable
JOHN D. LONG, LL.D.
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
SECRETARY      LONG    TO   FRANCIS D. MILLET
Navy Department
WASHINGTON
June 25, 1898
MY DEAR MR. MILLET:
I am in receipt of your letter of the twenty-third, advising me
that you have accepted the position of special correspondent of
the London Times and are on your way to Manila. Your kind
offer to place your services at the disposal of the government is
much appreciated, but there does not occur to me at this time any
way in which you can be of use. I will be glad to bear your offer
in mind, however, and should an opportunity arise where the department can make use of your services, I will be glad to call upon
you.
Thanking you for your courtesy, and trusting that you may
have a very interesting and successful trip, I am,
Very truly yours, with pleasant memories of old days,
JOHN D. LONG
MR. F. D. MILLET
Correspondent London Times
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA
CAPTAIN     WEEKS TO      GOVERNOR      WOLCOTT
Headquarters, Massachusetts Naval Brigade
Massachusetts Volunteer Militia
U. S. S. Minnesota1
BOSTON
June 25, 1898
SIR:
I am informed that Lieutenant Robert G. Peck, United States
Navy,2 at present commanding the U. S. S. Lehigh,3 has been
2 Horace Binney Sargent (182I-I908), Harvard College '43.
1 An old steam frigate loaned to the state for the use of the naval militia.
2 Robert Grosvenor Peck (b. i849).
3 A Civil War monitor stationed in Massachusetts Bay for harbor defence.




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ordered to Washington to take his examination for promotion. The
Lehigh is officered and manned by members of the Massachusetts
naval brigade and Lieutenant Peck's success as a commander of
these men has been so marked, that I believe it due him that the
attention of the navy department be called to it. Lieutenant Peck
was ordered to this command early in April, at which time the
Lehigh was entirely without equipment and in a state of unpreparedness which would usually indicate a summer's work to overcome. The officers and men detailed to her, while of most excellent
material and of more than ordinary intelligence, had had very little
sea service or continued service on a man-of-war. In two months'
time the monitor has been thoroughly equipped and put in condition
for service and the officers and men so systematically shaken into
their places, that I believe the ship and crew will compare favorably
with ships of the navy manned by experienced men-of-warsmen.
This could not have been accomplished without great industry, tact
and judgment on the part of her commanding officer and it is of
special interest to Massachusetts, as the excellent work done by
Lieutenant Peck, who is a Massachusetts man himself, enables the
founders and builders-up of the Massachusetts naval brigade to
realize their ideal of the possibility of making a body of citizen
sailors into trained men of great service to our navy in time of war
within a reasonably short time. With less tact and judgment, this
result might have been entirely different and I therefore feel that
Lieutenant Peck has done the state and navy a distinct service,
most creditable to himself, adding to his already high reputation as
a versatile and accomplished officer.
Very respectfully,
Your obedient servant,
JOHN W. WEEKS 4
Captain Commanding
To His Excellency ROGER WOLCOTT
Governor of Massachusetts
4 John Wingate Weeks (0860-i926), later U. S. senator from Massachusetts,
and secretary of war in the administrations of Presidents Harding and Coolidge.




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GOVERNOR WOLCOTT TO SECRETARY LONG
Commonwealth of Massachusetts
Executive Department
BOSTON
June 27, 1898
MY DEAR SIR:
I beg to hand you enclosed and to commend to your favorable
consideration a letter addressed to me by John W. Weeks,' captain
commanding Massachusetts naval brigade, regarding the faithful
and valuable service rendered to the commonwealth and to the
United States government by Lieutenant Robert G. Peck, at present
commanding the U. S. S. Lehigh. I am assured that in the difficult
duty assigned him Lieutenant Peck has shown in a remarkable degree the qualities of devoted service and intelligence and tact, which
would appear to qualify him for the promotion he seeks.
I have the honor to be with much respect,
Very truly yours,
ROGER WOLCOTT
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
SECRETARY LONG TO B. J. KING
Navy Department
WASHINGTON
June 27, I898
MY DEAR SIR:
I am in receipt of your letter of the twenty-fourth instant, calling
my attention to Mr. A. Perry Bliven, of Brooklyn, New York, who
you state is a marine architect of unusual ability, and suggesting that
the department might find his services of great value in connection
with the designs for the battleships and torpedo boats recently authorized by Congress.
I have with pleasure forwarded your letter to the chief constructor
of the navy for his consideration.
Thanking you for bringing the matter to my attention, I am,
Very truly yours,
JOHN D. LONG
MR. B. J. KING
NEW YORK CITY
1 See preceding letter.




1898]       PAPERS OF JOHN DAVIS LONG                    I47
GOVERNOR WOLCOTT TO SECRETARY LONG
Commonwealth of Massachusetts
Executive Department
BOSTON
July I, 1898
MY DEAR SIR:
I beg to acknowledge receipt of your letter of June 29, which
will receive my careful consideration.
I wish that you might have been connected by telephone with
Memorial Hall at about 4 P.M. on commencement day and have
heard the great shout of hearty approval that went up from the
great body of the alumni at the mention of the name of our present
secretary of the navy. The sound, I am sure, would have been a
cheering and bracing one.
With much respect, I am,
Very truly yours,
ROGER WOLCOTT
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
SENATOR HALE TO SECRETARY LONG
United States Senate
WASHINGTON, D. C.
July 4, 1898
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I have talked the matter of Hobson's promotion over with Senator
Morgan,' and he agrees with me that your suggestion of putting
him through the grade of ensign and through the grade of lieutenant
junior grade, and fifty numbers in the lieutenant grade will be a very
handsome recognition of his services.2
Mr. Morgan is very reasonable about it and suggests that if the
thing should be over-done it would render Hobson's position uncomfortable in the line. He thinks also that Hobson has more of the
1 John Tyler Morgan (1824-1907), U. S. senator from Alabama.
2 Hobson was eventually made a captain in the construction corps, his commission being dated back to June 23, I898. On the morning of June 3, Hobson had
sunk the collier Merrimac in the entrance of Santiago Harbor with the purpose
of blocking the channel.




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constructive ability than any thing else, and that it is unfortunate
that he must be taken from his peculiar field.
I think that if the President sends in the promotion to the extent
you have indicated there will be no trouble about it except that
some may take it as too much.
Yours very truly,
EUGENE HALE
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
COLONEL HEYWOOD         TO SECRETARY       LONG
Headquarters United States Marine Corps
WASHINGTON, D. C.
July 5, 1898
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
Referring to your letter of the second instant, and our conversation of this morning, I respectfully request that, owing to the present
demand upon the marine corps, ten more second lieutenants be appointed for service during the war, exclusive of those to be appointed from worthy noncommissioned officers of the corps. The
following is a list of the six applicants who have passed the required
examination, and I beg to call particular attention to Messrs. Faunt
Le Roy and McGill as well qualified to perform the duties which
will be required of them:
R. P. Faunt Le Roy'
Beverly C. Mosby2
J. F. McGill3
F. H. Delano4
C. A. Taussig
J. C. Breckinridge6
With respect to the appointments to be made from noncommissioned officers, I have requested the commander-in-chief of the
North Atlantic station to convene a board for the examination of
the men who have applied. As soon as the report of the board is
1Robert P. Faunt Le Roy (d. 1904).
2 Honorably discharged in 1898.
3 John Fauntleroy McGill (1874-I929).
4 Frederic Henry Delano (b. 1876).
5 Charles A. Taussig, honorably discharged in I899.
6 James Carson Breckinridge (b. 1877).




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received, I will forward the names of the men found qualified to
the department, with the recommendation that they be appointed.
Very truly yours,
CHARLES HEYWOOD7
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
Navy Department
WASHINGTON, D. C.
THOMAS W. HIGGINSON TO SECRETARY LONG
No importance (except to the writer)               Glimpsewood
No naval business                         DUBLIN, NEW HAMPSHIRE
No reply needed!                                    July 5, 1898
MY DEAR GOVERNOR:
It was an act of friendliness beyond my deserts that you should
turn from your vast cares to remember me and my academical degree! 1 Better than the degree itself have been the congratulations
it has called forth, beginning with the roar of applause among the
students.
In my speech at the dinner I did not say (as reported) that you
could not manage a cat-boat, but that the nation called you to administer the navy without knowing whether you could do that thing.
I cited it as an illustration of what the Tory Bodley2 has just admitted in his book about France, that under a republic we see men
called on to administer affairs for which they had no special antecedent training, and yet doing it well.
I also quoted what Sydney Smith said of Earl Russell that he
would at any moment take charge of the channel fleet if called
upon; but I added that you had taken charge of one which would
need only half an hour to dispose of the whole channel fleet of
those days.
Most cordially,
T. W. HIGGINSON
7 Charles Heywood (1839-1915), colonel commandant, United States Marine
Corps.
1 LL.D., Western Reserve University.
2 John Edward Courtney Bodley (b. 1853).




I50         PAPERS OF JOHN        DAVIS LONG             [1898
CAPTAIN COOPER TO SECRETARY LONG
United States Naval Academy
Personal                                             July 6, i898
MY DEAR SIR:
The order detaching me from duty at the academy has been received. I thank you very much for the kindly note in your hand
writing on the face of the order. It will be possible for me to leave
on the fifteenth [of] July and earlier if you desire.
If it will be agreeable to you I should like to be ordered to report
for duty in connection with the Chicago upon leaving here. I could
at least feel in touch with active duty, in some remote manner connected with the war from which the navy is gleaning a harvest of
glory.
I hope McNairl will be in sympathy with the reconstruction
plan, which is the result of several years' careful study, so that
there may be no material changes.
Yours very sincerely,
P. H. COOPER
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
BRIGADIER-GENERAL GREELY            TO
SECRETARY LONG
War Department
Confidential                           Office of Chief Signal Officer
WASHINGTON
July 6, 1898
SIR:
A dispatch from Captain Sawyer,1 signal officer at Key West, received this morning contains the information that yesterday the
Spanish steamer Alfonso XII was totally destroyed while attempting to run the blockade near Mariel. Also that the Iroquois2 has
arrived at Key West with three hundred wounded from the first
day's fight.
Very respectfully,
A. W. GREELY
The Honorable
THE SECRETARY OF THE NAVY
1 Rear-Admiral Frederick Vallette McNair (1839-1900), Captain Cooper's
successor as superintendent of the Naval Academy.
1 Not identified.         2 Chartered army transport.




1898]       PAPERS OF JOHN DAVIS LONG                     151
JUDGE BARKER TO SECRETARY LONG
BOSTON
July 6, 1898
MY DEAR FRIEND:
I write to ask you to use your influence to ensure the appointment, if there shall be a call for more men, of Morris Schaff ' to a
brigadier-generalship. He is eating his heart out with the desire to
be back in his old profession, and reflection, thought, reading, and
study have made him a stronger man than when he came back to
civil life. He has conquered the respect of the men who meet him
in his present official work and altogether he is a man to whom the
President and the country can safely entrust the leadership and
management of men as well as the honor of us all.
I write earnestly because I believe that true policy will require
the putting under arms of vastly more of our men, before our relations with the rest of the world are again stable, and the placing
over those men of our best officers.
Yours very sincerely,
JAMES M. BARKER2
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
NATHAN     APPLETON     TO SECRETARY LONG
66 Beacon Street
Personal                                                BOSTON
July 7, 1898
DEAR SECRETARY LONG:
I can not tell you how greatly I rejoice at the good news of the
vote for Hawaii, for I was much afraid that it would be postponed
until next session. Now we have our good little Yankee colony in
the Pacific, and the splendid harbor that is there. Hurrah, I say,
for the stars and stripes soon to be floating there! The enclosed
article written a fortnight ago comes in now quite a propos.
Yours very truly,
NATHAN APPLETON
1 Morris Schaff (I840-1929), retired officer of the regular army.
2 James Madison Barker (I83-1I905), Williams '62, associate justice of the
Massachusetts Supreme Court.




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I -


JAMES DE NORMANDIE TO SECRETARY LONG
First Church, Roxbury
BOSTON
July 8, 1898
DEAR SECRETARY LONG:
With a word of heartfelt congratulations to you for the splendid
successes crowning your plans and your associates, let me add a
word about peace. I know how you strove to preserve it and I know
how you must desire to establish it - but I earnestly trust that for
an enduring peace, and for the cause of humanity, the continued
power of Spain to rule so cruelly her colonies, will be all taken
away. It is the old struggle of Israel against the cruel tribes around
- and if we are to be a peculiar people, let us do well the work,
from which we shrank - but which we seem providentially forced
to undertake. " The goodness and the severity of God."
I know what questions of tremendous importance must be thrust
upon us afterwards - but I have confidence we shall have wisdom
to meet them.
Mrs. Stedman tells me as an old acquaintance she has written
you about sending her son to the Naval Academy - but I think you
can not look after this-and I will do what I can for her. May
strength and health, and guidance be yours.
Ever most truly yours,
JAMES DE NORMANDIE
CAPTAIN GOODRICH TO SECRETARY LONG
U. S. S. St. Louis
Personal                            PORTSMOUTH, NEW HAMPSHIRE
July I, 1898
MY DEAR MR. LONG:
By careful husbanding of our fuel I have been able to make a
cruise of six weeks from the day of leaving New York until my
arrival here. During that time the ship has been very useful, as
Admiral Sampson was good enough to say to me. What with cutting cables, blockading off Cape Cruz, taking prizes, landing the
army and bringing home the captives, she has certainly not been
idle. It is pleasant to think that she has been able to cut no less
than three foreign cables leading to Cuba - while the army boat
Adria,' a steamer completely equipped for the purpose, only cut
1 A Danish cable-vessel chartered by the army.




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15 3


the one which I had already cut three weeks before. The newspapers give the credit to General Greely 2 and his " able assistants
in Cuban waters " but as a matter of fact the St. Louis did the work.
For instance, in one night she found and cut a second Jamaica
cable which the Adria had grappled for in vain for days.
I am a bit apprehensive that totally unnecessary changes are contemplated in this ship which will be costly in the first instance and
much more costly when she comes to be refitted for the transatlantic trade. As things are, the St. Louis could be handed back to
her owners on a Monday - be coaled and provisioned Tuesday and
sail on her regular trip Wednesday. A few hundred dollars would
pay for the damage done to the upper rail where it was removed to
make way for her battery; and a few hundred more for overhauling and repairing her boats which suffered somewhat in landing the army - a couple of hundred more for miscellaneous items
and there you have practically the whole bill. Yet no one can say
that the St. Louis has not done well.
With a couple of larger guns and no more men I am ready to
join the fleet going abroad - or return to Sampson. I can do the
work on board. For this there is no necessity of sending the St.
Louis to Cramp's or indeed any navy yard. The war is drawing to
a close, and I am anxious to see the end from the deck of my
ship while cruising - and not at a dockyard undergoing alterations.
If it must be, give me at most, four six-inch guns: one forward,
one aft and one on each side, with twenty more marines to man
them and please send me not another soul. We are all as happy as
clams on board and we only ask to be let alone. I have never commanded a more harmonious ship. I hear we are to have a paymaster.
Please countermand his orders; I have no need of him at all. The
officers' accounts are taken up at some office or other on shore and
those of the marines can be similarly dealt with. The business of
the ship and her crew is done by the American Line purser in a
business way. A paymaster is superfluous; were one sent to replace
the purser dire confusion would result.
It is but right to commission the officers (yet unexamined by the
way), but it would be a great mistake, in my judgment, to enlist
the crew. They are content with their present status and compensation. Why alter an arrangement which has served its purpose well?
I have diligently sought these four things, harmony, efficiency,
2 A. W. Greely, chief signal officer, U. S. A.




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usefulness, and economy. I am happy to be able to think I have
succeeded in all. When the St. Louis goes back to the American
Line, her crew and her staff will be justly proud of the part she
played in the war.
Admiral Sampson told me that, in recognition of my services, he
had purposed giving me command of the Cristobal Colon - the least
injured of the vessels of Cervera's fleet - but she proved to be too
badly aground to get off speedily. I can't express my disappointment.
I hope you will see your way clear to giving me an armored ship
now- one that is to go to Spain. The heroes of the third of July
can well afford to give others a chance. Some of them need a
change of air although they won't say so-Evans4 among the
number; he would flay me alive if he heard me say so, but it's true.
But any fighting ship that is to take part in the last act of the drama
will do. I have worked faithfully and well - as Sampson will tell
you - with the tools at hand - now put a weapon into them, I pray
you.
I wish the army appreciated the excellent work done for it by
the navy, but our sister branch of the service is a spoiled child and
takes every exertion on our part as a matter of course. From its
point of view the navy is but a handmaid to the army. Some of the
things done lately have not been calculated to soothe the nautical
temper. Especially is it hard for us to put up with an irritating assumption of superiority. Of its only maritime enterprise - the moving of the troops from Tampa to Daiquiri - it is well not to speak.
Some day a grave scandal will probably be unearthed. After getting the troops there the army was as helpless as a babe until the
navy stepped in and landed them. Had the army frankly said, " This
is a matter appertaining to ships - let the navy manage it" the case
would have been different-but it assumed the task gaily. The
coming accountability will be heavy. Then too, with lots of heavy
transports lying idle off Siboney and Daiquiri - it must needs call
on the navy for its big liners to bring more troops from home. I
hear that even this noble vessel was to have had its share of this
disagreeable, dirty, and thankless task. I can't tell you how glad
I am to have escaped it. Had it been a real national exigency no
3 Admiral Pascual de Cervera y Topeto (1833-1909), whose fleet was defeated and driven ashore in the naval battle of Santiago, July 3, I898.
4 Captain R. D. Evans, of the Iowa.
5 See Captain Chadwick's letter of June io, note.




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one would have responded to the call more promptly or cheerfully
than I, but knowing, as I did, the army's wealth in transports that
are doing nothing but burn up their coal in port it was impossible
to take interest or pleasure in the prospect. Every such employment
will entail a large expenditure in refitting these vessels at the end of
the war-something I have up to the present time been able to
avoid.
It will be just like the army to want the St. Louis and her sister
ships to bring north any prisoners whom General Shafter 6 may have
taken. Of course this would not be an emergency and therefore
would not be permitted. I found in my intercourse with army officers that a most courteous "no " always worked well. It achieved
its immediate purpose and was of educational value as well. They
need lots of the same kind.
We have no news from our prize the Twickenham.7 If the court
should decide to acquit the ship - a very dangerous precedent will
be established under shadow of which neutrals can serve a belligerent
- practically with impunity. Should such an unfortunate decision
be reached, I know Admiral Sampson will be glad to have the
government appeal the case. A very important principle is at stake.
Recurring to the personal matter of giving me a fighting ship, I
hear that Captain Philip who is on the eve of promotion is quite
ready to give up the Texas now that he has had his fight and done
so well.
Was I not right about Sampson? and is not his fight the most
complete victory on record?
Pardon the length of this letter and believe me
Very sincerely and respectfully,
C. F. GOODRICH
SECRETARY LONG TO SENATOR LODGE
Navy Department
WASHINGTON
July I, 1898
DEAR LODGE:
Of course Weeks can't be made a lieutenant-commander, and
the Massachusetts people ought to understand that. Any commission in the navy makes it possible that an officer may be ordered
6 Major-General William Rufus Shafter (1835-1906), commanding the army
investing Santiago, which surrendered on July 17.
7 A British collier with coal for the Spanish squadron.




PAPERS OF JOHN DAVIS LONG


[ 898


anywhere. Just think for a moment of sending Weeks, who I think
served only a year or two as a midshipman and then resigned and
went into civil life, as a lieutenant-commander on a ship, superior
in rank to his classmates and men who have been serving for years
and years.
There have been only three lieutenant-commanders appointed,
and their classmates are commanders or captains.
The best I can do for Weeks, and he has been so informed, is
to date his commission back to the breaking out of the war, April 25,
so that he will take precedence over other naval reserve men.l
Very truly yours,
JOHN D. LONG
Honorable H. C. Lodge                          Secretary
United States Senate
WASHINGTON, D. C.
CAPTAIN GOODRICH TO SECRETARY LONG
Personal                                     U. S. S. St. Louis
July  13, I898
MY DEAR MR. LONG:
Is it not possible to attach me to the squadron going to Spain? I
would rather go in this ship there than have a battleship elsewhere.
As to that Herald man whose presence seems to have raised such
a fuss. I forbade his speaking with Admiral Cervera, and I have every
reason to believe that he never exchanged a word with a single
Spaniard during the trip. I foresaw the difficulty and provided
against it. On board the St. Louis he ceased to be a newspaper man
according to my best knowledge and belief.
Sincerely yours,
C. F. GOODRICH
HORACE N. FISHER TO SECRETARY LONG
60 Congress Street
BOSTON
July 15, I898
DEAR LONG:
Events follow each other now so rapidly, developing gravely
momentous questions, that it may be useful to indicate to you at
1 The commission of Lieutenant John W. Weeks was dated April 23, I898.




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15 7


once some of the points discussed in the paper I am preparing for
the September Atlantic.
I. That " commercial relations," the ordinary relations of intercourse between nations, are based upon mutual concessions deemed
necessary and therefore adopted by custom. Hence the names " necessary law of nations," " customary law of nations," are given to
this unwritten code of rules and principles called international law,
- the basis of which is precedent.
II. That "political relations" are based upon the "policy"
adopted from time to time by the national government to promote
or protect the great permanent interests of the nation. This fixing
of a " policy " is an act of sovereignty, with which other nations
can not meddle without becoming "unfriendly"; and it depends
upon circumstances what principles should be adopted, of whose
importance the nation itself is the sole judge; and as circumstances
change, the policy may be changed in principle or in its application.
Hence the political relations and the political policy of a nation
are not controlled by precedent, nor by the policy or customs of
other nations, and consequently rest upon an entirely different
foundation than that of the " commercial relations." Whence it follows that the political relations and policy of a nation are not subject to the fixed rules of international law.
Examples
A. European intervention to emancipate Greece from Turkish
tyranny is aptly called by Sir William Vernon Harcourt " An act
of high policy above and beyond the domain of law."
B. In like manner, United States intervention in Cuba to put an
end to Spanish tyranny is " An act of high policy above and beyond
the domain of law."
Corollary - Hence also the results of the present war are the results of an act of high policy, which - as an act of sovereignty on
our part -can not be submitted to foreign judgment or dictation;
and any attempt to force us to do so, is unwarrantable insolence,
to be promptly and sternly answered by our government. The reported German interference at Manila (Irene incident) 1 seems to be
1 " Aguinaldo was prevented from completing his conquest of Subig Bay by
the German cruiser Irene [one of Rear-Admiral von Diederich's squadron], which
took Isla Grande under her protection. The Raleigh and Concord were at once




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an act of insolence which needs prompt correction by us and apology
from Germany; if refused, it may well be represented to the German
government as intolerable, warranting us in proclaiming non-intercourse and taking such other steps as may be called for as the incident develops, - even by the sinking of any German warships
found in our sphere of naval operations, after being warned to
leave. Really it is the act of a bully, who seeks by blackmail and
bluster to attain ends he dares not yet to demand openly. The bully,
foot-pad and blackmailer usually back down before a man who
knows his rights and promptly defends them.
III. The foreign policy of the United States, as formulated in
the "Farewell Address," the Monroe message and subsequent applications of the same, - is limited exclusively to our intervention
in European politics and European intervention in American
politics.
It was based upon our determination not to be drawn into the
questions raised by the balance of power in Europe, nor to allow
Europe to introduce questions of European balance of power into
America. Its prime object of attack was the Holy Alliance, which
has been succeeded by the doctrines of the primacy of the great
powers and the concert of Europe.
Therefore, whether the dominant factor of European politics be
the balance of power or the succeeding schemes for European dynastic control, it is as utterly apart from the interest and policy of
the United States, as are the structure and conditions of life on the
planet Mars.
Hence our foreign policy outside of America and Europewhether in the Pacific, eastern Asia or southern Africa-has no
connection with, nor can it in any way affect, our Monroe Doctrine
for good or for evil.
IV. Our policy towards the East Indian or West Indian Colonies
of Spain, like our policy towards Hawaii, is utterly distinct from
our Monroe policy and, therefore, apprehensions as to the effect
of such expansion upon our Monroe Doctrine are groundless.
V. In war, victory means an increase of responsibilities. If we
destroy an army or conquer a province, we not only break down
the enemy's prestige and power, but we assume the former resent to that point. The Irene hastily retired and the Spaniards surrendered to the
American ships." Long, The New American Navy, ii, III-I 3. Emilio Aguinaldo
(b. 1870), Filipino insurgent.




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sponsibility of the expelled government for the protection of peace
and order.
Corollary: If, instead of assuming the government of the conquered
district or dependency, we should merely content ourselves with
taking a coaling station, leaving the district without orderly government, we should become responsible to God and man for the
anarchy that ensues. If we should, after taking what we wanted,
sell or otherwise divide the rest of the conquered dependency, we
would act the part of a highway robber dividing the spoils with
other robbers.
VI. The disposition of the conquered territory is as much an
act of sovereignty as the act of making war: consequently no foreign power, or group of powers, can justly step in between the
victor and the vanquished in fixing terms of peace. But if, instead
of their seeking easy terms of peace for the victor, such intervention
is for the purpose of sharing the spoils of war, their intervention is
an insolence justifying summary and extreme measures of repression. A nation like ours, thus insulted, would become a solid unit
to avenge the insult and punish the highway bully to the utmost
extent.
I expect to finish my paper for the Atlantic before the middle of
next week and will send you an advance copy. This brief outline will
be supplemented,- I think tomorrow, so that you can have it for
Sunday reading, - by a more complete paper; and I hope you will
send me criticisms and suggestions with a view to perfecting the
paper as published. Meanwhile you can rely on my assurance that
these six points will be thoroughly established by my paper.
Yours truly,
HORACE N. FISHER
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
WASHINGTON, D. C.
SECRETARY LONG TO HENRY T. SCOTT
Navy Department
WASHINGTON
July 2, I898
SIR:
It becomes my pleasant duty to extend to the shipbuilding firm
of which you are president the congratulations of the navy department upon the admirable qualities which have been displayed by




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the United States battleship Oregon. Without going into details
with which, it may be safely assumed, you are as well acquainted
as the department, it is sufficient to say that the performance of this
vessel in making, under circumstances of grave exigence, the voyage from San Francisco, California, to Key West, Florida, without
delay or accident of any kind, is of itself highly creditable to her
builders; but the fact that after having successfully accomplished
such a voyage the vessel was found to be ready at once, without
repairs or attention, to enter into the activities of an important naval
campaign, renders her achievement most memorable, as one which
challenges the admiration of naval experts throughout the world
and becomes a subject of especial gratitude and pride on the part
of our own people. The Oregon is, in all of her complicated parts,
of American design, materials, and workmanship, and she has
shown herself to possess the highest qualities sought to be attained
in a great battleship, -a wide practical radius of efficient action
and splendid fighting capabilities. Since these results are not achieved
by accident, but reveal high technical ability as well as thoroughness and honest fidelity in the countless details of construction, I
have considered it proper to address to you this expression of the
appreciation of the department of the manner in which you fulfilled
your contract in building the United States battleship Oregon.
Very respectfully,
JOHN D. LONG
MR.' ENRY T. Scorr1                            Secretary
Presi t of the Union Iron Works
SAN FRAcTISCO, CALIFORNIA
REAR-ADMIRAL SICARD TO SECRETARY LONG
Navy Department
Office of Naval War Board
WASHINGTON, D. C.
SIR:                                             July 21, I 898
In pursuance of the terms of your memorandum of the twentieth
instant, the board begs leave to make the following reply:
Ceuta
The board considers it inexpedient to attack Ceuta. It is believed
to have been reinforced lately, and heavy modern guns mounted on
1 Henry Tiffany Scott (i846-1927).




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the defences. Furthermore, its possession would not entail any advantage at all adequate to the expense of its reduction and maintenance. By reason of Gibraltar, and of its fleet, England dominates
the Straits of Gibraltar, which, in any case, would be controlled
by the most powerful navy, and in that sense we control it now as
regards Spain.
Canary Islands
The Canary Islands occupy towards our possessions the same
relative position as did the Cape Verdes lately-that is, a hostile
fleet at the Canaries menaces in about an equal degree, our ports,
from Boston to the southward, and our new possessions in the West
Indies to a somewhat greater degree. Nevertheless, as long as these islands remain in the possession of Spain, they do not seriously threaten
us; they are reported to have been lately considerably reinforced,
both by troops and heavy modern sea-coast guns, and therefore their
reduction would require a considerable fleet and army, and would
probably consume a considerable time, without apparent compensating advantage. The islands are understood to be about self-supporting, as regards food, and therefore their reduction by blockade
alone would consume much time, and probably many ships, which
we could now very illy spare.
It is therefore suggested that as long as they are in Spain's possession, we do not attack them. The board deprecates the further dispersal of our efforts, as we are already engaged at Cuba, Porto Rico
and the Philippines.
American Liners
The board would much prefer to retain all four of the American
liners for regular naval use, as they have been very useful already
and would be especially so in case of any movement that would
take our fleet across the ocean; nevertheless it is thought that two
of them might be spared temporarily as troop ships, under the following conditions: The ships to belong to the navy department
and to retain their organization as men-of-war, being lent to the
war department for the express purpose of transporting troops, but
to be subject to withdrawal, for naval use, on one week's notice.
The above arrangement would of course be subject to the conditions of the ships' charters, which, it is thought, provide for
strictly naval use only. In view of this, it is doubtful whether they




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could be turned over to the absolute control of the war department;
neither is it certain that they could be used as transports without infraction of the spirit of the charters.
Respectfully,
M. SICARD
President
The Honorable
THE SECRETARY OF THE NAVY
SECRETARY LONG TO HENRY J. WRIGHT
Navy Department
WASHINGTON
July 28, 1898
DEAR SIR:
You are in error in your supposition that any discrimination was
intended against the evening papers in the publication of Admiral
Sampson's report of the battle of July 3. Instead of being withheld
from the evening papers it was given out for publication in both the
morning and evening papers of Wednesday.
When news comes of a battle, or of any other event, it is given
out immediately, as was the case with the news of the victory of
July 3. But the formal reports, which afterwards follow, and which
are of great length, are more like other reports: for instance, the
annual report of the navy department. When, therefore, Admiral
Sampson's report came in, accompanied by that of Commodore
Schley, and of the captains of vessels engaged, it made a great
amount of matter. The only object of the department was to be
entirely fair to the public and to give it this information at the
earliest moment and to the widest extent, in the usual way. As you
can well understand, every newspaper was after it. A time was fixed
at which it might be published. This was fixed for the morning and
afternoon of Wednesday, or two days ahead, in order that the remoter papers of the country might, as far as practicable, and without too much delay, publish it in full at the same time with the
East. Had these voluminous reports been given out as soon as received, nothing but a mere telegraphic synopsis could have been
published in the afternoon papers. The result would have been that
the public would not have had that clear, full, comprehensive knowledge of the matter which they desire and which, under the circumstances, it is very important they should have. By "under the cir



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cumstances" I refer to the great interest which, in some cases, has
developed into discussion, with reference to the merits of the naval
officers connected with the battle.
The department has from the first felt assured that no friction
existed and that when the facts were fully made known by official
report the public would be satisfied that every officer had done his
duty fully, and all were entitled to the credit due to them for the
full discharge of the duties attaching to their several official positions.
The department was, therefore, very desirous that when these reports were published they should be published in full, and that the
newspapers of both Wednesday morning and afternoon should have
ample time to get not only the reports, but the orders under which
the battle was fought.
Very truly yours,
JOHN D. LONG
MR. H. J. WRIGHT'
Editor of the Commercial Advertiser
29 Park Row
NEW YORK CITY
MOORFIELD STOREY TO SECRETARY LONG
735 Exchange Building
BOSTON
July 28, I 898
MY DEAR SIR:
I see in the newspapers that the President is inclined to make the
surrender of Porto Rico to us a condition of peace, and that he thinks
this is desired by the country. I do not assume that this report is
correct, and if it is not, my letter need not trouble you.
If however there is any truth in this report, and if it means that
by treaty between our country and Spain, Porto Rico is to be surrendered to us without consulting its inhabitants, I feel that this
is a thing so absolutely inconsistent with the principles on which
our government rests that I can not refrain from stating my reasons
for your consideration.
I think the precedents between European or Asiatic nations are
not to be considered. Their systems of government rest on the
divine right of kings and other political theories which we repudiated in I776 and which we have been denouncing ever since.
1 Henry John Wright (b. i866).




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Our government is a government " of the people by the people
and for the people." It rests on the two propositions that "governments derive their just powers from the consent of the governed,"
and that "taxation without representation is tyranny." These are
constitutional principles which limit the powers of every officer of
the government, executive or legislative. They all take their authority on trust not to disregard them, and while war and its attendant excitement may create a clamor among the unthinking,
it is the duty of those in power to remember these terms of their
trust and withstand the public pressure.
Applying these principles to Porto Rico, we have there an island
whose people seem always to have been contented with their government. Upon our theory they are oppressed, but if so they do
not seem to have discovered it. It is a well established, ancient,
civilized community whose population is larger than that of some
of our states and more intelligent than the majority of mankind.
If now we go with fire and sword, attack their cities, and subvert
their government and then by right of conquest impose our government upon them without their consent, how can such a proceeding be reconciled with the fundamental principles of our government! How can it be distinguished from any ordinary conquest
by king or emperor applying the good old rule that " might makes
right "? The power of the United States was never confided to the
government for purposes of foreign conquest, and I am sure that
only disaster can follow if they are so used. I do not know how
we can longer read the Declaration of Independence or assert the
great principles of free government, when we show that at the
least temptation we disregard them.
Again, at the outbreak of the war the President informed the
assembled ambassadors of Europe that we proposed only "an unselfish endeavor to fulfil a duty to humanity by ending " the situation in Cuba.
Congress reasserting the principles, and even the words of the
Declaration of Independence, asserted that Cuba "is and of right
ought to be free and independent." In the same resolutions any
intention to exercise sovereignty, jurisdiction or control over Cuba
was expressly disclaimed. Do these words, these solemn promises,
mean nothing? To say that we meant only Cuba and no other territory of Spain is to construe a great public declaration as if it were




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a criminal indictment. It is to put this country in the position of
deliberately trying to deceive. It is impossible in fore conscientie.
To say that circumstances have changed is absurd. Nothing has
occurred that was not clearly to be expected, when war was declared. Resistance was certainly probable, victory we felt was sure.
Porto Rico was plain on the map and nothing in its condition or
circumstances has changed since.
The lawyer does not live who can explain why Cuba ought to
be free and independent and Porto Rico deprived of independence.
If we meant to take Porto Rico then, and purposely limited our
disclaimer to Cuba, we were not proposing " an unselfish endeavor
to fulfil a duty to humanity," but a selfish war of conquest, and
our declarations will not stand the sober verdict of history.
Lastly, to say that we take Porto Rico in lieu of indemnity is the
least defensible position of all.
Porto Rico means a large body of men, who have never attacked
us or injured us in any way. According to our professions they are
oppressed, and it is to relieve them and their neighbors from oppression that we are fighting. We say that Spain is wrongfully there,
has no right to govern or control them and therefore is to be expelled. Grant that we in a case like this can afford to exact indemnity, which I deny, who owes it to us? Clearly Spain, our enemy,
whom we are fighting to drive away. Clearly not her oppressed
subjects whom we are fighting to free. If now we take Porto Rico
as our own, not by the will of its citizens but by grant from Spain,
we are taking title from Spain that has no right to govern, and
a fortiori no right to sell Porto Rico, and we are taking the liberties
of the unhappy citizens of that island in payment of a debt which
they do not owe and from a country which has no right to dispose
of them. One oppressor succeeds another, and the people whose
liberties we rise to defend are not consulted by either. Can this
country stand in such a position?
In conclusion, if we take a plebiscite and bring Porto Rico in
by the consent of its people, they have a right to representation.
Porto Rico is not an Alaska, but such a community as I have described. The island must come in as a state, and to the load which
we now carry will be added the danger which must come from
such additions as they will send to our Congress. They will help
to govern us, and against such government I pray to be delivered.




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I believe I express the opinions of most thinking men in New
England. Certainly those whom I meet of all classes share these
views. My strong interest in the subject must be my excuse for
troubling you.
Yours very truly,
MOORFIELD STOREY
To the
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
WASHINGTON, D. C.
CAPTAIN MAHAN TO SECRETARY LONG
July 28, [1898]
DEAR MR. LONG:
I venture to put my oar in again, because I think I have an idea
which will scarcely occur to any one else. I assume that the published news of Spain asking our terms of peace is true. It is not
improbable that she will ask an armistice, which I trust will not be
granted; but whether she asks or not, the agitation of the question
of peace puts a new view upon our proposed expedition to the
Straits of Gibraltar, etc. It is said that the expected approach of
Watson's 1 squadron stirred up the war spirit; and a recent confidential despatch of our secret service at Madrid, through our attache 2 at Paris, said (I quote from memory) that the postponement
of Watson's sailing strengthened Sagasta's hands - i.e. for peace.
Now what I have to suggest is this: While a general armistice could
work us nothing but injury and expense, local armistices are not
uncommon. Whether Spain ask an armistice or not, it would be
open to us to say that we had a large expedition just ready to start
for the coast of Spain, but, understanding that the effect of such
a step upon the susceptibilities of the Spanish people would be unfavorable to the attainment of peace (which we most heartily
desire), we will consent to postpone the sailing of the fleet for a
reasonable space to permit the conclusion of negotiations, and will
accept an armistice for the European possessions of Spain, including
her European trade and the Canaries; provided, that Spain on her
part engages not to molest our two battleships and our cruiser and
colliers, which were to have gone to the East under cover of the
operations, nor to object to their coaling (from their own colliers?)
1 Rear-Admiral John Crittenden Watson (1842-1923).
2 Lieutenant William Sowden Sims (1858-I936). In the World War he commanded the U. S. naval forces in European waters, with the rank of admiral.




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in neutral Mediterranean ports. I should insist that those ships must
go forward without delay, because we must increase our force in
the Pacific; and that unless they accept this condition the fleet will
sail as first proposed.
It is evident this step would relieve us from an onerous undertaking, and it seems to me also evident that it will tend to facilitate
peace. We should undertake that the two ships would not appear
in sight of the coast of Spain except as unavoidable in passing through
the straits.
Very respectfully,
A. T. MAHAN
[Endorsement]
Dear Mr. Long: There are some good suggestions in the foregoing. Think of
them. W. McK.
July 28, 1898
CAPTAIN    MAHAN TO SECRETARY LONG
Navy Department, Office of the Secretary
WASHINGTON
July 29, [ 898]
DEAR MR. LONG:
Not to trouble you with an interview, may I add to yesterday's
letter, that if any such advance come from our side, it should not
be till as nearly as possible when our expedition is ready to start;
and if from theirs, that the reply from us should be delayed as far
as propriety admits for a similar time; and that they should not be
allowed over forty-eight hours for a reply, yes or no; in the latter
event we to start at once.
What I mean is, that the risk of our move, which against a valid
enemy would be appreciable, should be minimized by giving the
enemy the least possible time to prepare his mind what to do against
our coming.
Very respectfully,
A. T. MAHAN
BENJAMIN F. STEVENS TO SECRETARY LONG
Post Office Square
BOSTON
July 29, I898
DEAR SIR:
It is now more than half a century since I returned to the United
States from a cruise around the world in the United States frigate




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Constitution ("Old Ironsides"), which was begun in I844 and
completed in I846, during which period the ship sailed fifty-four
thousand miles and visited, besides China and Cochin China, the
most important islands of the Indian Archipelago, with which our
government was on terms of amity, such as Sumatra, Java, etc.
At that time Honorable David Henshaw1 was secretary of the
navy, and Captain John Percival2 was appointed to command the
Constitution, which sailed under a roving commission, that is to
say, she was not attached to any squadron, the understanding being that there should be no interference with her sailing orders
unless in case of actual necessity. I was clerk to the captain and
messed with him in the cabin. My duties were to write all his correspondence, keep his daily journal, write his orders and perform
all the ordinary duties he required of me.
The ship sailed under sealed orders. In addition to other matters
we were required in the course of the cruise to proceed to the
island of Borneo and examine into the resources of the island of
Labuan, which lies a few miles from the coast of Borneo, and if
satisfied of its coal-bearing quality, purchase it of the Sultan of
Borneo.
A reference to the sailing orders of the Constitution will show
the exact language of this purchasing order.
The British government at that time had through Rajah Sir James
Brooke 3 possession of a portion of the coast of Borneo and was
engaged in checking or endeavoring to put a stop to piracy upon
that coast. Rajah Brooke's occupation of the coast was the means
of doing away with this dreadful evil.
In the entire cruise of twenty-seven months or more, we saw
only two steamers from the time we left the United States until we
returned. If steamers were to take the place of sailing ships, there
must be coaling stations. Both England and the United States happened to strike upon the same island - Labuan - for that purpose.
I wish to prove to you that more than half a century ago, our government sent out to the Indian Archipelago one of its ships for
the purpose of buying an island to be used for a coaling station.
Labuan is now one of England's coaling stations.
I refer you to The Indian Archipelago, a book published in Lon1 David Henshaw (1791-1852).
2 John Percival (1779-I862).
3 Sir James Brooke, Raja of Sarawak (I803-1868).




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don in 1853, which gives a history of Rajah Brooke's government
of that portion of the coast of Borneo, ceded to him by the Sultan
of that country for the purpose of putting a stop to piracy and
which he placed under the protectorate of Great Britain, where it
has ever since been.
Speaking of the operations of Rajah Brooke, The Indian Archipelago says: " meanwhile the American frigate Constitution came
into the river, offering a treaty to the Sultan, engaging to protect
the Borneo government on condition of a monopoly of coal and
permission to trade. A short time would probably have lost the
opportunity of securing an influence."
So that one object of the United States government in sending
the Constitution to the Indian Archipelago was to secure a coaling
station.
I have called your attention to the fact because if a half century
ago it was the policy of the government to obtain a coaling station
in the vicinity of the Philippines, how much more necessary it is
that one should be provided at the present day. Many are unaware
that the Constitution sailed in I 844 under a Democratic administration (John Tyler, who changed his political faith) to secure an
island of coal. I think few politicians remember the fact. I think I
recall it in good time; it may be useful for you in dealing with political foes who declare that it is against the policy of the United
States to hold foreign territory, forgetting how much of our country is the result of purchase.
Very respectfully yours,
BENJAMIN F. STEVENS 4
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
GEORGE W. STONE TO SECRETARY LONG
25 Beacon Street
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS
July 29, I898
MY DEAR GOVERNOR:
It looks as if this was the time for those who desired to say anything about terms for peace to speak. I do want to say a few words,
4 Benjamin Franklin Stevens (1824-1908), president of the New England Mutual Life Insurance Company.




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if you will bear with me. I presume most men speak from their
own point of view, and consciously or unconsciously from the interests they represent. I will not deny that this [is] my own case. I
will not argue, but state my points.
First. The Spanish colonies are now in our hands. Our flag consecrates and dedicates the land over which it floats, to civil and
religious liberty for ever. Whatever may be our wishes, we can not
haul down that flag until civil and religious liberty is [sic] secure for
all time in those islands, without being false to our trust.
Second. The work to be done in these colonies is chiefly one of
civilization and religion.
Third. We can govern these colonies - as colonies. We inherit
the genius for government from our English ancestors. We are not
handicapped as our English friends are by an established church.
The dominant religion of this people is to-day so interwoven and
intermixed with daily life - so much a part of our civilization that
it is impossible to spread either without the other.
We are rich and prosperous, we are graduating thousands of
splendid young fellows each year who are able to go into this work
with every advantage and every prospect of success. Your recent
experiences in receiving applications for service from this class must
have been a revelation to you. With this splendid force we can raise
the standard of manhood and intelligence in those islands quicker
than any other nation on the face of the globe. Everything good
grows in the soil of liberty.
Fourth. We need to do the work, for our own sake. We need
to lose some of our national self-consciousness. We need the experiences it will give us.
Capital needs employment as well as labor, and here is its opportunity: if it is being profitably employed in these islands, there
is no danger that it will oppress us in our own homes. It will go
very far towards solving the tough problem we call "labor and
capital."
This is a great nation and it can only be healthy and happy when
it is loaded heavily with great undertakings.
Fifth. It is our missionary opportunity. I am so deeply impressed
with this that I firmly believe that a power greater than human has
chosen us to do this work. I believe we have no right to consult
our wishes in this matter. If we do, why should we not bum our
Bibles and close our churches? If our religion is not equal to this




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emergency, if our Christianity is represented by the priest and the
Levite, who passed by on the other side, then it is not worth even
professing.
Sixth. I believe it will result in great benefit to our civil service.
It will mingle that service so thoroughly with the highest human
interests that all the moral and religious forces in the nation will
be enlisted to support and sustain the executive in his determination to do exactly right. It will mix politics and religion in the only
way they can ever be safely mixed, by making it impossible for
any party to sustain itself that did not furnish good men to do its
work.
This is all I will trouble you with. I feel it to be my duty to
say this much. I hope we will keep every inch of territory our
gallant sailors and soldiers have taken for us. When the peoples
and tribes inhabiting these islands shall become fit for self government, and are able to furnish sure guarantees they can and will perpetuate civil and religious liberty throughout their borders, then
I think we should set them up in business and give them our blessing.
I hope you will see your way clear to use your great influence to
this end.
I am saying this first, because I am an American citizen-a
partner in the concern - and again because I am your friend and
admirer.
GEORGE W. STONE
A nation is bound to do good when it has the opportunity as
much as an individual. Henry Winter Davis2 once said on the
floor of the United States Senate, and I hope somebody will repeat
it when the Senate discusses this treaty of peace, " God never forgives wasted opportunities."
THOMAS H. TALBOT TO SECRETARY LONG
BROOKLINE, MASSACHUSETTS
July 31, 1898
DEAR GOVERNOR AND SECRETARY:
It is a tough problem that you rulers are trying to solve: the
question of extending our sovereignty half-way round the globe,
into the alien seas of farther Asia.
The logic of events, however, has guidance for you:
1 Reverend George Whitfield Stone (1840-1923).
2 Henry Winter Davis (I817-i865), M. C. - not senator - from Maryland.




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True it is, that before the outbreak of this war Spanish misgovernment of the Philippines was no concern of ours: gave us no
right to interpose in the affairs of those islands; and the blow which
we have struck at them, and by means of which we now hold them,
- if at all, -had its justification, purely in reasons of war.
But that is not the influential fact to-day. The heavy blow we
struck has connected the Philippines with ourselves. We have taken
hold of them: the Lord has delivered them into our hands; and
with the aid of their insurgent people, with whom we have entered
into common action and practical military alliance. If those islands
now go back under the misgovernment of Spain, they will go by
our consent and our action. And our action does concern us: raises
responsibility in us.
Such restoration of those islands with their millions of inhabitants
to the misgovernment of Spain, it seems to me, will be little more
consistent with our duty in the premises, than would have been,
in the war of the Rebellion, the sending back into slavery of the
negroes who came into our lines, and even those who fought as
soldiers under our flag.
But, most likely, there is little that is new to you in this view,
and I write it mainly for the purpose of expressing my concurrence
with others who may have urged it upon you. There comes a consideration, however, not so much worn.
Really and substantially, can there be any such thing as a restoration of those islands to Spain; that is, " for keeps," as children say?
Why not, you ask. And I answer: because of Spain's inability
to hold them. That inability disclosed by the war as an inability
against us, is equally an inability against several continental powers
of Europe, certainly, France, Russia and Germany; and if our country does not hold them by her own strong right hand, you have a
good chance of seeing them seized by the rapacity of one or more
of those powers.
And it is not in the interest of humanity: it is not for the cause of
righteousness, or the advance of civilization, that those islands should
pass entire [ly] into the control of either of those powers: still less
that they should be partitioned between the three or between either
pair of them.
The newspapers, so far as I know, have not undertaken to state
the position of any member of the Cabinet upon the momentous
questions in which the President has been taking their counsel in
these last few days. But it rejoices me to hope that you are one of




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his advisers who understand the bigness of the time, and who have
done much towards holding him back from a surrender which would
breed in us, with the passage of years, endless regret and mortification.
I make no display of the advantages that can come to us from
the good government of those islands as a part of the United States,
because I have no time to treat that matter. I urge the duty of the
hour only: a duty not wholly agreeable in all its future aspects:
not ministering to our love of ease: not indulgent to our inclination
to shirk responsibility. Nevertheless a duty: one which we can
perform better than any other nation of the globe, and which has
fallen upon us in the twinkling of an eye.
Heartily exulting in all the glory which the department under
you has achieved since I last wrote you,
I am yours truly,
Honorable JOHN D. LONG                 THOMAS H. TALBOT
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
FREDERICK C. SHATTUCK TO SECRETARY LONG
BOSTON
August i, [1898]
DEAR GOVERNOR:
Thank you very much for your kind and prompt answer to my
letter in behalf of Mrs. Lewis's desire to get her boy into the Naval
Academy. I did not mean to give you the trouble of an answer- for
I can imagine the demands upon your time and thought. I venture
again to write you - this time in reference to my own views in regard to the Philippines and my estimate of the trend of opinion
among those whom I meet.
I read that Mr. McKinley wishes to know the sentiment of the
citizens. I am an " imperialist" if the feeling that we must accept
the consequences of our own acts and fall in line with world evolution is imperialism.
We have interfered in the Philippines. Can we give them back
to Spain and her medieval rule? Can we trust any promises of
reform which she should make as a condition of retention of power?
Even if we did turn them back could Spain, without a fleet and
bankrupt as she is, hold them? To my mind " no " is the only answer
which can be given to these questions. If we take a part, say Luzon
or a portion of it, what will be the result? The rest will revolt from
Spain and we shall either have to take it later or see it pass into the




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hands of continental powers, with or without the full consent of
Spain. Then there would be opportunities for friction and the
seeds of future trouble will be sown - almost sure to bear bitter
fruit sooner or later. I should have preferred that the question of
the Philippines were not forced on us. But it is, and I can see no
way but to manfully meet our responsibilities and, with a broad
view into the future, take the whole thing and do our best. So much
for my personal position.
It is my belief that people in this section are coming round to this
view. In the abstract they say, " We don't want and mustn't take the
Philippines." But when you ask, "What are you going to do with
them then? " and push them home, they are at a loss what to say.
These are the conservative, highly educated people. I believe that
the " plain people " as Mr. Lincoln called them, are less timid, less
analytical, and more heartily in favor of the retention of the whole
group of islands. The difficulties ahead of us are patent - the new
problems. But is there anything which we set out to do that we
can't do, especially when duty drives?
If we take the islands, we follow what seems to me the lead of
Providence. If we adopt half measures, our descendants will have
trouble. With the United States, England, and Japan united in the
East peace and civilization will advance in rapid strides.
Moorfield Storey has small following, and his " fire and sword"
is not illustrated by the reception of the Porto Ricans. Excuse my
length. But I have intense conviction in this matter and can not be
satisfied to sit still at this time. We really seem to be instruments
in the hands of God and I believe this people here see it.
Believe me, dear Governor,
Yours sincerely,
FREDERICK C. SHATTUCK'
SENATOR ALLISON TO SECRETARY LONG
DUBTUQUJE, IOWA
August 2, i898
DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
On behalf of the naval cadets of the class of I 897 I wish to suggest
to you the propriety of commissioning these cadets as ensigns as,
if they are not commissioned soon, they will stand below officers
who have previously been dropped from the Naval Academy, or
1 Frederick Cheever Shattuck, M. D. (0847-I929), Harvard College '68.




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who have been appointed from civil life. These young men, I believe, are all in the service now, and I have no doubt have all performed excellent service. I write this letter at the request of the
father of one of these cadets who in conversation with me expressed
the ideas that I have endeavored to convey.
If this can be done, I think it will be a wise thing to do, and a
just thing.
I wish to congratulate you upon the probable close of the war
with Spain. I think we should have a pretty permanent foothold
in Manila, and therefore am glad to see that the adjustment of this
part of the contest with Spain is to be postponed for a commission
and that in the meantime we are to hold Manila and its harbor.
With high esteem, I am,
Yours truly,
Honorable JOHN D. LONG                      W. B. ALLISON
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
CAPTAIN    MAHAN TO SECRETARY          LONG
August 5, 1898
DEAR MR. LONG:
Every one in general and Mr. Day 1 in particular knows the procrastination and prevarication of the Spaniard. Of this, therefore,
I say nothing; but from the point of view of Sampson's and Watson's
sailing, one thing must be clearly remembered. It has been expected
that the ships must coal somewhere near [the] Straits of Gibraltar,
whether within or without [the] Mediterranean. This is a step vital
to their existence; and in its recommendations to the department, the
board have counted upon the probability of weather, good enough
for coaling outside, to the end of August. There is an old saying,
June, July, August, and Port Mahon2 are the only good harbors in
the Mediterranean. It is needless to observe that by the time the fleet
reaches the other side, now, the last of the three good months will
be declining. In this respect, and in the advance of the hurricane
season, Spanish delays, however convenient to their mental habits,
are most embarrassing, and may be most injurious, even fatal, to
our naval efficiency.
1 William Boyd Allison (1829-1908), U. S. senator from Iowa.
1 Day served as secretary of state, in succession to John Sherman, from April to
September i, 1898.
2 Port Mahon, Island of Minorca, often the headquarters of the U. S. Mediterranean Squadron.




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May I remind you again, what each day increasingly shows,
that upon the armored fleet depends entirely the present imposing
position of the United States. The demoralization of the army in
Cuba seems to be complete. Miles's3 line of operations in Porto
Rico, I have viewed from the first with great distrust, and the news
is not calculated to justify his course in choosing the farthest point,
almost, we could find from San Juan to land.4
Respectfully,
A. T. MAHAN
HORACE N. FISHER        TO SECRETARY      LONG
60 Congress Street
BOSTON
August 5, 1898
MY DEAR LONG:
Thanks for your thoughtfulness in sending me, with your yesterday's letter, the acknowledgment from the President of a letter sent
to you July 29.
I may add that the advance copy of my paper for the Atlantic
Monthly should be ready inside of a fortnight and I will send you
such number as you may inform me you can use advantageously.
In Professor Bernard's' Oxford Lectures on Diplomacy there
is an a propos note on Spanish diplomacy to this effect: "When a
certain Spanish ambassador arrived in Paris to relieve the old ambassador, the latter warned him that the French ministers were awful
liars; to this warning the new Spanish ambassador replied, -'Tut!
tut! for every lie they tell me, I will tell them a hundred."' This faculty of "finesse," as they politely style it, is abnormally developed
throughout the Spanish race and makes them tricky fellows to deal
with: no matter how far negotiations may have gone, the Spaniard
is ever ready to take advantage of every incident, as it arises, which
may enable him to gain any advantage in negotiation, irrespective
of what we consider honor. I think that their maiana system of procrastination is largely due to the hope of something turning up for
their benefit during the delay.
I remember commenting on this peculiar system of finesse to a
3 Major-General Nelson Appleton Miles (I839-I925).
4 The landing was at or near Ponce, on the southern coast of Puerto Rico.
1 Montague Bernard (I820-I882), Professor of International Law at Oxford; as
high commissioner signed the treaty of Washington May 8, 187I, and was one
of the counsel of the British government at Geneva in 1872.




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well-known South American diplomat and his reply, " You must
remember that the Spanish-American states are comparatively weak
and therefore we have to make up our weakness by finesse in negotiations."
With this principle in mind we can understand the full significance of Philip II's policy, " Time and I are a match for any two."
It rather looks to me that the course which Spain is now following
is exactly on this line, - waiting for something to turn up, whereby
she can make better terms of peace.
You may rest assured that the reported sickness in our camps at
Santiago is accounted in Spain a dispensation in her behalf; and
that every day's delay betters her chances, also that friction between
Aguinaldo and our commanders at Manila is another delectable
morsel, not improbably (as I wrote you) of Spanish origin.
Under these circumstances the sterner we push on the war, the
better the prospect of a speedy settlement. When Spain distinctly
understands that she must answer within a specified time or our
terms will be absolutely withdrawn, once and for all, you will
find that their flimsy technical objections will be smothered in
face of the consequences bound to follow this dilly-dallying-fencing for time.
So my suggestion is to push Porto Rico to a finish with unrelenting energy and have our offensive European squadron got
ready for carrying the war into Africa -or rather the Spanish
coast and islands thereabouts. It however seems imperatively necessary to give General Merritt2 reinforcements to whatever extent
he may require; it is better to have an excess of forces available
than to lack the number essential to an overwhelming victory.
An object lesson of this kind would marvellously assist Spain to
decide whether or not to act honestly and expeditiously for peace.
Even after the basis of negotiation is agreed to by Spain, we must
allow several weeks - perhaps months - to formulate a treaty,
which will then have to run the gauntlet of [the] Cortes and Congress. I think you will be quite expeditious if the treaty is finished for
submission to the Senate when it convenes next December. The
only way to expedite is to present the alternative -" Answer yes or
fight away." Sharp and decisive action, compelling Spanish negotiators to answer yes or no within a given time, is the best goad to
make Spanish bulls pull from the shoulder.
They know that Shafter's army is badly crippled with fever;
2 Wesley Merritt (0836-i9io), commanding the army in the Philippines.




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they know that a general howl is being raised by the several states,
which seem to forget that every volunteer is a United States soldier
and no longer a state militiaman, about keeping their state troops
exposed to fever in Cuba; they know that General Shafter and his
lieutenants are protesting energetically. These are the choice elements of a grand game at finesse, which these Spaniards are now
(I think) playing very skilfully. But the Gordian knot is easily
cut by manly courage, while impossible to untie. Cut it then boldly
and without questioning the right to do so.
With kind regards,
Yours truly,
HORACE N. FISHER
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
WASHINGTON, D. C.
SECRETARY LONG TO WILLIAM            R. HEARST
Navy Department
WASHINGTON
August 6, 1898
MY DEAR SIR:
Upon my return this afternoon, I have received from the President the accompanying letter from Mr. Impson,' enclosing your
telegram to him of August 4. I have received a similar request directly from Mr. Impson and, being obliged to be away this forenoon,
requested the assistant secretary, Mr. Allen,2 to confer with him,
and to arrange with the bureau of navigation to permit you to go
with the Buccaneer on her mission to Porto Rico. Mr. Allen understood that this authorized your appointment as an ensign. This is
a mistake on his part, as no person can be appointed an ensign without passing the physical and professional examination, which has
not been done in your case.
We all appreciate very much your generosity with reference
to the Buccaneer, and it is with great pleasure that I enclose an
authorization for you to go upon her.
With regard to the Buccaneer's being ordered to run up the
American flag on one of the small islands adjacent to Porto Rico,
this is a matter which is necessarily under the direction of the commanding officer of the fleet there. I shall be happy to authorize
I Not identified.
2 Charles H. Allen, Roosevelt's successor in the navy department.




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you to show him this letter and if in any way he can aid the Buccaneer to such an opportunity, he is authorized to do so.
Very truly yours,
[JOHN D. LONG]
MR. WILLIAM R. HEARST                          [Secretary]
NEW YORK CITY
SECRETARY LONG TO LIEUTENANT MAYER
Navy Department
WASHINGTON
August 6, I898
SIR:
This letter will be presented to you by Mr. William R. Hearst,
of New York, whose generosity in placing the Buccaneer at the
service of the government is much appreciated. You will permit
him to go with you on the Buccaneer from Key West to Porto
Rico, and to remain on board. The department will be glad if you
will extend him such courtesies as you can and avail yourself of
any services which he may be able to render.
Very truly yours,
[JOHN D. LONG]
To the COMMANDING OFFICER1                     [Secretary]
U. S. S. Buccaneer
KEY WEST, FLORIDA
CAPTAIN    MAHAN TO SECRETARY LONG
August 7, 1898
DEAR MR. LONG:
Sampson's telegram, which you showed me yesterday, shows
evidently the unrest and relaxation of temper which naturally follows upon a prolonged tension, when that is succeeded by a period
of inactivity. He reflects, doubtless, the feelings of officers and men;
many of the former not improbably have been urging the claims
of the crews to some indulgence. Yesterday also Captain Bartlett 1
told me that the governor of Michigan2 had telegraphed that, now
the war was over, he would like the Michigan reserves, on board the
Yosemite, let go; and Bartlett was replacing them with Rhode
1 Lieutenant Augustus N. Mayer (d. 1901).
1 John Russell Bartlett (I843-1904), chief of the U. S. auxiliary naval force.
2 Hazen S. Pingree (I84o-Io90).




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Island reserves. As the Yosemite is detailed to convoy the colliers
for Sampson, I begged him to see no delay was thus caused.
All these incidents show incipient demoralization, which will
increase in geometrical progression as unemployed days go by;
and, coupled with the expiring of enlistments, of which I spoke to
you yesterday, may seriously cripple the fleet for an appreciable
time.
The cause is the absurd delay of Spain. Why should not the
President send for M. Cambon,3 and civilly tell him the brute truth,
viz: that we thoroughly understand that Spain is powerless before
us owing to our relative naval supremacy; that she would still be
so, did every man in our armies die to-morrow; that she is unable
to replace her navy; that delay is for many reasons inconvenient to
us; that our terms are a minimum, and therefore an ultimatum; and
for these reasons the offer of them, if not accepted, will be withdrawn at noon of next Wednesday (Washington time).
I believe this peremptory dealing would strengthen the Spanish
ministry in accepting the terms. I know, that a prolongation of this
uncertainty will produce restlessness, discontent, and disorganization which is the worst thing that can befall us. Settled peace, or
renewed war, will avoid this. Let it be known that war is again on,
and start Sampson's armored ships, whether towards Europe as
proposed, or north, (not for relaxation but for refit) and officers
and men will all be contented - even happy.
Respectfully,
A. T. MAHAN
I can not exaggerate my sense of the importance of this matter.
GEORGE S. BOUTWELL TO SECRETARY LONG
GROTON, MASSACHUSETrS
August 7, i898
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
The coming of peace is a great event. I did not believe in the
war, but we engaged in it in a constitutional way which bound us
all, and its conduct has been admirable.
I shall not trouble the President with a letter of congratulation,
3 Jules Martin Cambon (b. 1845), French ambassador at Washington, in charge
of Spanish affairs during the war.




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but I may say to you that the terms of peace which he has imposed
upon Spain are altogether reasonable and they will receive general
approval at home and abroad.
Very truly,
GEORGE S. BOUTWELL
To the Honorable JOHN D. LONG
WASHINGTON, D. C.
SENATOR LODGE TO SECRETARY LONG
Private and confidential                     NAHANT, MASSACHUSETTS
August 8, 1898
MY DEAR GOVERNOR LONG:
I have been away and have only just received your letter of
the twenty-eighth. I do not see how it is possible under the present
circumstances to do anything more for Mr. Simes,' although he is
a most excellent man and I should have been very glad if he could
have had an appointment, but the war seems to be drawing to a
close, and although I do not expect an honest acceptance from
Spain of our terms and look for every effort to trick us, still I think
the end is not far off. Under these circumstances of course it is
impossible to appoint additional acting officers.
I want to take this opportunity, as I am writing to you, to say
a word- in entire confidence - in regard to myself. The newspapers here the last few days have been saying that the President
is considering my name, among others, for one of the peace commissioners. If any of the commissioners are to be taken from the
Senate, as Cullom,2 Morgan   and Gray4 are now all on commissions, I am the ranking member of the committee on foreign relations after Davis 5 and Frye.6 I have no desire to press or push
myself in any way for such an appointment. It would be manifestly
improper for me to do so, and I should not mention the subject
to any one except yourself, but as you are one of the President's
advisers and also an old and good friend of mine I am going to
say to you with perfect frankness that if the President's choice
1 Robert Fields Simes (I864-190o), Harvard College '85, passed the examination
for ensign just before peace.
2 Shelby Moore Cullom (1829-1914), U. S. senator from Illinois.
3 U. S. senator from Alabama.
4 George Gray (I840-I925), U. S. senator from Delaware.
5Cushman Kellogg Davis (i838-1900), U. S. senator from Minnesota.
6 William Pierce Frye (1831-1911), U. S. senator from Maine.




I82          PAPERS OF JOHN DAVIS LONG                       [1898
should fall upon me for this post I should consider it one of the
greatest honors of my public life, and I believe that I am fit for
the work, both by study and training. Very likely there is nothing
whatever in the newspaper accounts and very probably the President had not thought of my name at all, but if by any chance he
should do so, I want you, and you alone, as he will of course consult you, to know my personal feeling in regard to it."
The feeling here in regard to the war department 8 is intense.
One hears it on every side, and I fear that a storm is brewing which
will do great damage if something is not done. I know of course
in your position how utterly impossible it is for you to say anything, but to give you an idea of what the feeling is here I enclose
a letter which comes this morning which I will ask you to return.
I confess the matter troubles me more than a little, and it is assuming very serious proportions. It gives me a new cause for thankfulness to think of the complete success of your administration of the
navy department, in which not only the state but the country feels
the greatest pride. One hears also on every side nothing but praise
for the navy and the administration of the department.
Sincerely yours,
H. C. LODGE
E. BENJAMIN ANDREWS TO SECRETARY LONG
PROVIDENCE, RHODE ISLAND
August 9, 1898
MY DEAR SIR:
I can not refrain from thanking you for your published letter1
rebuking Sampson's critics. You say, with authority and perfect
knowledge, what I have been declaring ever since the battle, only,
of course, without the means of verifying my statements. You have
done the public, as well as Sampson, a noble service. That grand
7 The peace commissioners selected were William R. Day, ex-secretary of
state; Senators Davis, Frye, and Gray; and Whitelaw Reid (1837-1912), editor of
the New York Tribune.
8 The war department was severely criticized for its conduct of the war, especially in relation to the quality of the supplies furnished to the army. For defense of
Secretary Alger, see Long, The New American Navy, nI, I44.
1 Secretary Long's letter of August 8, I898, published throughout the country
in the papers of August 9- a strong defense of Admiral Sampson- seemed to
have little effect in checking the abuse heaped upon the admiral and the department.




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commander, to whom this nation owes so much, need not fear for
his laurels. Schley and the rest of course did each his duty; and
Sampson gloriously did his.
May I add, my dear Sir, that I think you and all New Englanders have reason to feel proud of the conduct of your department
of the government during this war. While you give all the praise
to the brave officers and men of the navy, the country will never
forget the land origin of the orders under which they were victorious.
Very respectfully yours,
E. BENJAMIN ANDREWS2
President
Let no one take time to answer this. E. B. A.
Honorable JoHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
SHERMAN HOAR TO SECRETARY LONG
Hotel Gordon
WASHINGTON, D. C.
August 9, 1898
DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
What I want to get is stated herewith, first, I want a general
hospital equipped at once at both Santiago and Ponce. At Santiago
immune doctors and nurses must be; at Ponce competent doctors
and nurses, out of whom our Massachusetts Aid Association will
send and furnish a goodly number. In regard to the Ponce hospital,
I am practically informed that the men from Camp Thomas and
Camp Alger are breaking down with typhoid carried with them,
or given them by infection on the transports, because of hemorrhages, etc. These typhoids ought not to be moved north until
fairly well along the road to recovery. There is no yellow fever at
Ponce; the climate is good. [The] surgeon-general 1 believes in this,
and if the President would only direct or even suggest to the secretary of war, that this thing ought to be attended to at once, and the
proper transportation should be given to the supply needed, I have
no doubt it will be done.
Dr. Greenleaf 2 at Ponce has telegraphed to Sternberg for tents
2 Elisha Benjamin Andrews (I844-I9I7), Brown '70, president of Brown University.
1 George Miller Sternberg (i838-I9I5), surgeon-general of the army.
2 Charles Ravenscroft Greenleaf (I838-191i), assistant surgeon-general.




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and supplies. Sternberg has asked me to get from Massachusetts
competent doctors and nurses; the difficulty is in transportation.
If you do not wish the army at Porto Rico affected with typhoid,
as the army at Santiago is with malaria, something should be done
at once. Second, whatever is felt about female nurses in field, there
ought to be female nurses on every transport bringing sick north.
On the Lampasas,3 the almost accidental presence of twenty-six
Red Cross nurses, sent home by the army, saved numbers of human
lives, only two out of one hundred and four patients dying on the
voyage. All of the doctors on the boat agree that the death rate
would have been appalling, but for these valuable women. Just a
suggestion from the President, that no transport should start back
with sick without trained nurses, would be sufficient. There are
plenty of trained nurses offering their services; the doctors want
them; their presence means the saving of life; they ought to be sent
both to the physical hospital at Ponce, and to Ponce and Santiago
to come home on every transport bearing sick or wounded. This
is not a difficult thing to arrange, and the President's word would
make the thing a certainty.
Pardon me for saying, as a gold Democrat, that twenty-five thousand men are impressed with the idea that their physical welfare
is not being looked after by this government. Even if that idea
is erroneous, it makes a dangerous number of enemies in the community for the administration and for the things which it represents,
and which I feel are essential to good government in this country.
I believe that not only humanitarian reasons, but strong political
reasons, can be given why the administration ought to stir things
up in regard to transportation and care of the sick and wounded
soldiers.
I remain,
Yours faithfully,
SHERMAN HOAR4
P. S. The secretary of war has agreed to attend to this.
To the SECRETARY OF THE NAVY
WASHINGTON, D. C.
3 Chartered army transport.
4 Sherman Hoar (x86o-I898), Harvard College '82, member of the executive
committee of the Massachusetts Volunteer Aid Association, contracted typhoid
fever while visiting camps and hospitals and died on October 7.




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REAR-ADMIRAL SAMPSON TO SECRETARY LONG
U. S. Flagship New York
GUANTANAMO BAY, CUBA
August io, 1898
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I received, by the last mail, your most welcome letter of the
twenty-fifth [of] July. It is no idle statement to say that it was welcome, for that but faintly expresses the gratification I felt in reading
your kind and appreciative words. To have met your expectations
and those of the President of the United States is the highest award
an officer can expect or wish for. It will give me great pleasure to
convey to the commanding officers of the fighting ships how appreciatively you have spoken of the result of their labors.
No commander-in-chief could possibly have received such active,
intelligent support as was given by the commanding officers of the
squadron. Although the work was difficult and almost ceaseless, not
one ever complained, -except in a jocular way after the enemy
was destroyed. The dash and determination shown by each one
of them, in the fight, was perfectly overwhelming; had the enemy's
force been doubled, they could not have successfully resisted the
terrible attack of our ships. Your kind assurance that their merits
shall be recognized as they deserve will be the highest incentive
toward a future performance of duty.
Believe me, Secretary,
With respectful sincerity,
W. T. SAMPSON
THE SECRETARY OF THE NAVY
Navy Department
WASHINGTON, D. C.
COMMODORE CROWNINSHIELD            TO
SECRETARY LONG
Bureau of Navigation, Navy Department
WASHINGTON, D. C.
August 19, 1898
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
Commodore Philip, recently promoted, writes me that he has
no desire to command the Mare Island Navy Yard; that he has a
son at school in Boston, and that he has already passed fifteen years
on the Pacific Coast, and for other reasons he dislikes very much to




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go there. I suggest Commodore Remey   as a successor to Admiral
Kirkland,2 who died, as you may know, a week ago.
Owing to the outbreak of yellow fever among the marines stationed at Key West, all the vessels that were there, including all
that have been on the blockade of Cuba, have been ordered to
Hampton Roads. This was strongly recommended by the surgeongeneral,3 in order to avoid the very great risk of getting yellow
fever into some of our ships, which would, undoubtedly, have occurred if they had remained. Admiral Howell4 and Commodore
Remey are now both on their way in these vessels to Hampton
Roads. I think Howell could be left in command of them for the
present, and then Remey should be consulted in regard to his
taking command of the Mare Island yard.
Owing to the selection of Admirals Sampson and Schley for the
commissions to Cuba and Porto Rico, Philip will be given temporary command of the battleships which are about to arrive at
Tompkinsville, as some officer of flag rank should be present with
the ships to attend to the routine business of the squadron. These
vessels will go to the navy yard in turn to be docked and put in
order without delay.
It is the opinion of the war board that the ships originally intended to go to Manila should be put in order first, so as to be ready
to move whenever the President decides that they are to go.
I beg leave to enclose for your consideration a memorandum I
have just received, by Captain Dickins,6 on the subject of advancement of officers over others. I quite agree with Dickins, and have
already decided to incorporate similar suggestions in my annual report, and I sincerely hope you can see your way clear to take a
similar view, namely that the government should find some other
way of rewarding officers for gallant conduct than at the expense
of those who have not been fortunate enough to be present at a
naval battle. Captain Dickins might have included my name with
that of Captains Miller and Chester,8 as the promotion of Captain
1 George Collier Remey (I84I-1928), commanding naval base at Key West.
2 William Alexander Kirkland (I836-1898).
3 William Knickerbocker Van Reypen (1840-924).
4 John Adams Howell (I84o-x198).
5 Commissions appointed to superintend the Spanish evacuation of Cuba and
Puerto Rico.
6 Francis William Dickins (I844-1911).
7 Merrill Miller (1842-1914).
8 Colby Mitchell Chester (I844-I932).




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Wildes 9 will probably prevent me from ever reaching the grade
of admiral. In my opinion, if the government desires to reward
officers for gallant conduct, it should also be willing to do it itself
and, if necessary, to pay for it. A medal or other decoration will
cost the government very little, but I know no officer who would
not prefer to have it, many times over, to his advancement of a few
numbers over the heads of others. This, together with a slight increase in his salary, as suggested by Captain Dickins, will be a real
and substantial reward.
With kind regards, and hoping you will enjoy your outing, I
remain,
Yours very respectfully,
A. S. CROWNINSHIELD
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
REAR-ADMIRAL SICARD TO SECRETARY LONG
Navy Department
Unofficial                            Office of Naval War Board
WASHINGTON, D. C.
August 23, I898
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I received this morning with very great gratification your most
kind and flattering letter regarding the manner in which this board
has carried on its duty during the late war. I furnished a copy of
the letter to Captain Mahan and also to Captain Crowninshield, and
doubtless they will value it most highly.
If I may be allowed to say so, the board always felt that it had
your confidence and support, and I am sure that it was always
anxious to despatch the business you confided to it, and to consider
carefully with unprejudiced minds, the many points that arose
whereon a correct judgment was of the first importance.
Again thanking you, both personally and in the name of the
board for your very kind letter, I am,
Very sincerely yours,
MONTGOMERY SICARD
The Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy


9 Frank Wildes (1843-1902).




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[ 1898




REAR-ADMIRAL DEWEY TO SECRETARY LONG
Flagship Baltimore
MANILA, PHILIPPINE ISLANDS
August 29, I898
SIR:
I. Referring to the department's telegram of the twenty-eighth
instant, I have the honor to transmit by the hand of Brigadier-General F. V. Greene, U. S. V.,1 the following views and information
upon the subject of the Philippines. A copy of this communication
is also given to Major-General Merritt.
2. The most important islands of the Philippines are Luzon,
Panay, Cebu, Negros, Leyte, and Mindanao. The others, owing
either to the character of the inhabitants, the limited amount of
civilization or the almost entire absence of cultivated land, may be
neglected in any consideration of the relative importance or desirability of these islands, especially those of the southern group, which
are almost wholly given over to savages.
3. Luzon is in almost all respects the most desirable of these
islands, and therefore the one to retain. In it is situated Manila, the
most important commercial, as well as the most populous port, of
all the islands - a port that in our hands would soon become one
of the first ports of the world. Not only is tobacco produced in
large quantities, but all the tobacco of fine quality grown in the
Philippines comes from the northern provinces of this island. The
interior has as yet not been developed.
There is but one short railroad from Manila to Dagupan and no
highways, so that almost all the commerce is carried on by water.
Were railroads and highways built-and labor is very cheapthere is little doubt that this island would rapidly increase in productiveness and wealth. The population of Luzon is reported to
be something over three million, mostly natives. These are gentle,
docile, and under just laws, and with the benefits of popular education, would soon make good citizens. In a telegram sent to the department on June 23, I expressed the opinion that " these people are
far superior in their intelligence, and more capable of self-government than the natives of Cuba, and I am familiar with both races."
Further intercourse with them has confirmed me in this opinion.
4. As Luzon is the farthest north of the large islands its climate
1 Francis Vinton Greene (1850-1921).




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is naturally the most temperate. In this connection it may be mentioned that out of a force of over two thousand on the ships of my
squadron, the number of men on the sick list at any time has not
exceeded forty, nor has there been any considerable sickness among
our troops on shore, though they were much exposed for three
weeks in the trenches during the rainy season. As a matter of fact
Manila is far from being an unhealthy city, and the climate is as
fine as that of any place in the tropics.
5. About sixty miles from Manila, and to the northward and
westward is Subig Bay, decidedly the best harbor in the Philippines,
having no equal as a coaling station or naval and military base.
The entrances are narrow, the shores bold, the water deep, the
bay land-locked, easily defended from attack by sea or land, and
the fresh water supply ample. As it is just off the trade route between Manila and China and Japan, it strategically commands Manila. It is there that the Spanish government had planned to place
its principal naval arsenal in the East. Already a great deal of money
has been expended, many buildings erected, and much work done.
A contract has been made with an English company to construct
a floating dock of twelve thousand tons capacity, some of the material has been delivered and payments made. The arsenal is on
the south side of the harbor at the village of Olangapo. It is expected that a connection will be made with the railroad from
Manila to Dagupan, thus putting Subig in easy reach of Manila.
6. The principal naval station in the Philippines is now at Cavite
in Manila Bay. It has very fair work shops for light work, and ways
for vessels of less than one thousand tons. But it is capable of little
expansion, and the small depth of water precludes the building
of dry docks for large ships or even the use of floating docks of
much capacity.
7. Luzon has other decided advantages, both in a commercial and
military sense. It is nearest the great centres of trade in the Far East
- such as Hong Kong, Canton, Shanghai, Pekin, Nagasaki, and Yokohama - and nearest the trade routes from the United States and
Honolulu to those centres; consequently its influence would be
greater if held by us. It also commands San Bernardino Strait, the
principal water route through the Philippines from east to west.
8. From all the above facts it seems patent that Luzon is by far
the most valuable island in the group, whether considered from a
commercial or military standpoint.




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9. Panay, Cebu, Negros, and Leyte are very thickly populated
and well cultivated. In these islands the natives are conceded to be
the best educated and furthest advanced in civilization.
io. In Panay is situated Iloilo, the second commercial port of
the Philippines, and the centre of the sugar trade. It has a good
harbor, with two entrances, and one that has great strategic importance.
I. Cebu, the third commercial port, in the island of the same
name, has a harbor much like that of Iloilo.
I 2. From the best information obtainable it appears that the Philippines contain varied and valuable mineral resources, as well as
admirable timber.
I have the honor to be,
Very respectfully,
GEORGE DEWEY
THE SECRETARY OF THE NAVY
WASHINGTON, D. C.
REAR-ADMIRAL SAMPSON TO SECRETARY LONG
GLEN RIDGE, NEW JERSEY
[September, 1898]
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
Permit me to thank you with all my heart for the splendid letter'
which you caused to be published August 8.
It was more - much more than I hoped for, because it so completely met and neutralized the many mean things which had been
published. I did not see or know of its existence until after my arrival here. It had been sent me, but the mail did not reach us, for
this reason my attention was not called to it even when I first
reached home. It has lost nothing of its importance to me by the
delay.
I am sure it completely revolutionized the character of my home
coming, and made it one of great happiness to me. My faith in
you[r] justice was always undoubted, and I now see that you
knew better than I what to do under the circumstances. I will not
trouble you at this time by a long recital of my thanks but will leave
them till I am so fortunate as to see you. You know that I return to
Cuba shortly as a member of the evacuation commission. I had
hoped to escape any more service there at the present time, but
1 See President Andrews's letter of August 9, note.




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finding the President had decided the matter before I saw him, I
could not ask him to excuse me.
When in Washington I found the department was undecided
in what ship to send the commission and I have not yet learned how
we are to go. This is not, however, a matter of importance, but I
would like, Mr. Secretary, to know whether I am permanently to
be detached from command of the squadron. I was in command
but five months and I would like to continue if it meets with your
views.
Allow me, Mr. Secretary, to ask your attention to one of the
recommendations for advancement made with the others. I would
be much pleased if Lieutenant S. A. Staunton 2 could be advanced as
recommended. He worked hard and well earned his reward, not by
the simple performance of his duty but by an energy and zeal
which went entirely beyond such limits. He has learned that for
some reason his name was omitted, which now places him in a
very embarrassing position, especially when it is know[ n] he was
recommended. I understand how difficult it was for you to decide
in so many cases.
Yours most sincerely,
W. T. SAMPSON
SENATOR HAWLEY TO SECRETARY LONG
WOODMONT, CONNECTICUT
September 2, i898
DEAR SIR:
A novel suggestion comes to me which I pass on to the navy department. It is that able officers who have distinguished themselves
would prefer a suitable medal to the ordinary brevet or promotion
even. By promotions many worthy men are likely to be jumped,
which creates a great deal of dissatisfaction and mortification.
Yours truly,
J. R. HAWLEY'
To the Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
2 Sidney Augustus Staunton (b. i850).
1 Joseph Roswell Hawley (1826-I905), U. S. senator from Connecticut.




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REAR-ADMIRAL SAMPSON TO SECRETARY LONG
GLEN RIDGE, NEW JERSEY
September 4, 1898
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
Mr. Scovel 1 about whom we have before corresponded, and who
proposes to call upon you at Washington has asked me to give
him this note.
I have known Mr. Scovel for some months and believe him implicitly. You will recall that you found it necessary to issue a general order forbidding him to visit any man-of-war or naval station,
because he had been reported to you for stowing himself away in
one of our vessels bound for Havana. I think that report was in
error. I trust you will kindly listen to his story and if there is an
error your keen sense of justice will lead you to rectify any injury
unintentionally done him.
With much respect,
W. T. SAMPSON
REPRESENTATIVE MOODY TO SECRETARY LONG
HAVERHILL, MASSACHUSETTS
September o1, I898
MY DEAR GOVERNOR:
I have been talking with Mr. T. Jefferson Coolidge,l as you
know, one of the members of the joint high commission, for the
settlement of Canadian questions.
We find the Canadians at their old tricks, trying to ruin the
American fisheries by seeking a free entry for Canadian fish to
the American market, which is now enlarged by the important addition of Porto Rico. This in spite of the assurance that the Canadian agent,2 at Washington, repeatedly gave Senator Hoar and
myself, that Canada would not attempt to obtain free entry for
their fish.
As you know, the protective duty on fish is small. Our competitors, the Canadians and French, are sustained by a government
bounty. Fishing industry has but a precarious existence under pres1Sylvester Scovel. See Admiral Sampson's letter of June 6, I898.
1 Thomas Jefferson Coolidge (1831-1920), Harvard College '50, minister to
France in President Iarrison's administration.
2 Not identified.




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ent circumstances and would utterly perish, if it lost the protection
of the Dingley Act.3 I should not trouble you about a merely local
interest, as the fisheries are considered as so much traffic, but I believe that now, of all times, is the moment when we should nourish
the fisheries and not destroy them.
The port of Gloucester has, roughly speaking, six thousand finished seamen, from which from time to time the maritime marine
and the navy profit.
I fear that Senator Fairbanks 4 does not appreciate the importance
of the fisheries as a nursery for seamen and is inclined to consider
it a local industry of comparatively little importance. In my judgment, no concessions which we can possibly obtain from Canada
would repay us in the long run for the ruin of our fisheries. I can
not help feeling that the time is coming again when New England's
seaboard must play a large share in her fortunes.
I believe that before returning to Quebec, the United States commissioners will consult with the President. As the New England
member of the Cabinet, and above all as the head of our navy, may
I not invoke your interest in the subject and ask you to lay it before the President in the light which you think it deserves?
Permit me to thank you for the very kind letter you sent me, as
well as the service you rendered in obtaining the return of the body
of Private Sanders of Salem.
Yours very truly,
W. H. MOODY
P. S. Since completing the dictation of the foregoing, an incident
has occurred which marks in a very special degree to my mind the
bearing of this question on the future of Massachusetts.
My constituents engaged in shoe manufacturing are starting a
movement to secure entry in the markets of Cuba and Porto Rico.
We can compete with the world on equal terms in the manufacture of shoes, but New England has much to fear in the home
market from Western competition. Our leading manufacturers understand that, and are reaching out for a foreign market. We have
Australia. We are putting our shoes in Great Britain, France, and
3 Nelson Dingley, Jr. (i832-I899), Dartmouth '55, M. C. from Maine, chairman
of the committee of ways and means, and author of the tariff of I897.
4 Charles Warren Fairbanks (i852-1918), U. S. senator from Indiana; a member
of the joint high commission; Vice-President of the United States, 1905-1909.




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Germany in competition with theirs. In foreign trade the West
can not compete with us owing to our proximity to the sea.
What is true of the shoe industry will be true in the future of
others, if it is not so now. To do anything which would diminish
the aptitude of our people for the sea is, in my opinion, the most
insensate folly. As the Boston Herald has advocated giving up of
the fisheries for a temporary traffic with Canada, I have written
earnestly because I feel deeply on this matter and believe it to be
of the most vital importance.
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
CAPTAIN MAHAN TO SECRETARY LONG
Slumberside
Confidential                                QUOGUE, LONG ISLAND
September 14, 1898
DEAR MR. LONG:
I learn that Captain Taylor,' doubtless after due consideration,
and I am led to infer after having satisfied himself as to the attitude
of the bureau of navigation towards the War College, has decided
finally that he would not be willing to accept again the headship
of that institution. He might justly anticipate, and I myself presume,
that it would be given him by the department, if he so wished, as
its friends have wished.
As my chief anxiety with reference to the navy is that my nominal
retirement may become actual and complete - final, it is with regret I yield to the conviction that I ought to write you on this
matter. Briefly, what I have to say is this, with all the weight that
can be attached to my opinion, that the college stands for, and tends
to supply, that in which the navy is beyond all things deficient
(in my judgment): a knowledge, ingrained, of the principles and
methods involved in the correct conduct of war; a thing quite distinct from all questions of seamanship, of technology, and of administration, though doubtless affected by each of these. My observation of officers in general, and of the board as well, satisfied me
how much this is needed.
To correct this is needed: (i) the introduction into the course
of the Naval Academy of an elementary course of naval history
(not confined to American) with an analysis of great naval opera1 Henry Clay Taylor (1845-1904).




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tions, in which, until recently (Farragut), our navy had little
share; (2) the fostering of the War College on its general lines
heretofore observed - i.e. since 1886.
I do not undertake to criticize the steady, quiet, opposition to
the college of the bureau of navigation since Admiral Walker's day;
it doubtless has had reasons that seemed to it adequate; nor do I
know Crowninshield's position. There is one plausible argument
against which I would guard you, viz: that the work of the college,
mainly intellectual and studious, can be supplanted by problems
worked practically by the North Atlantic squadron. This can not
be done, for experience has shown it; and moreover strategy, as
Jomini2 says, is an affair of the closet, and as Napoleon said, it is
the fruit of study, preeminently of history.
Wishing to be drawn into no controversy, nor further action of
any kind on this subject-wishing, in fact, that this letter may
prove my last will and testament in relation to the active affairs of
the navy, I have marked it confidential. Its intention is simply to
put you in possession of my views on a subject matter, to which
I owe all the acquirements that have underlain the reputation I
have gained. Granting any natural capacity you may attribute, the
fact remains that all my usefulness this summer depended upon my
studies at the college, which illuminated to me every step I advocated to you.
Unless you are willing to let the college drop, I would suggest
your sending for Taylor, and learning from him, personally and
thoroughly, just the difficulties he sees. If you decide that the college may die, so well. If you decide otherwise, it will probably be
necessary for you to say decisively to the opponents, or advocates
of change, whether at the department, or the command[an]t at
Newport, that the thing must be heartily supported; that they must
suppress all indications of opposition, whatever their opinions. This
practically Herbert did, who from the bitterest enemy became a
warm and stubborn friend.
Very faithfully yours,
A. T. MAHAN
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
2 Baron Henri Jomini (I779-1869), Swiss military writer.
3 Secretary H. A. Herbert.




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GEORGE FRISBIE HOAR TO SECRETARY LONG
WORCESTER, MASSACHUSETTS
October 6, 1898
MY DEAR GOVERNOR:
I have not received any bill for pew-rent myself, and I am afraid,
to speak frankly, that you have not got a great deal of religious
instruction by reason of your right in that pew 1 for the past year.
But if you think it worth while to pay the quarter bill and will
send your twenty-five dollars to Mr. French of the treasury department, who is the treasurer, that will be the way to do it. I think
his name is Henry F. French. But of that I can not speak positively.
I hope Roosevelt will get through all right. If he does, I think it
will be largely due to the dread of the country people in New York
of having the state and the city of New York both under the control of two men who are brothers 2 and both tools of Tammany.
Brother Roosevelt is a worthy and estimable person, but rather
careless with his affidavits.
I am, with high regard,
Faithfully yours,
GEORGE F. HOAR
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
CAPTAIN CLARK TO SECRETARY LONG
ASHVILLE, NORTH CAROLINA
October 6, I898
DEAR SIR:
With reference to your personal letter of the third instant I have
the honor to inform you that I have written Mr. T. C. Clarkson'
telling him why I can not accept the invitation to be present on
Army and Navy Day at the Trans-Mississippi and International Exposition at Omaha. The telegraphic invitation from Chicago sent
through the bureau of navigation I have answered through the same
channel.
1 In All Souls' Unitarian Church at Washington.
2 Judge Augustus Van Wyck (085o-i922), Democratic candidate for governor
of New York, and Robert Anderson Van Wyck (i849-I9I8), mayor of New York
City.
1 Thaddeus Stevens Clarkson (b. i840), general manager of the Omaha Exposition.




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I have already informed Captain Crowninshield that I am ready
for duty if my services are required but I can not after the stomach
troubles that first weakened me on the Cuban Coast, the anxieties
that most people do not understand but which must come to an
officer who had to consider the sacrifice of his ship and crew as her
capture might have given the enemy the preponderance, and the
nervous troubles to which my wife has been subjected owing to
alarming and often false reports that reached her, accept invitations.
I am grateful for them but if I accept one I must others and another
breakdown might follow. I have written at such length because the
last telegram through the department stated that my presence would
subserve naval interests. I do not wish it to be understood that I
am indifferent to the attentions others would show, or the interests
of the public service.
Very truly and respectfully yours,
C. E. CLARK2
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
CAPTAIN CLARK TO SECRETARY LONG
ASHVILLE, NORTH CAROLINA
October 14, 1898
MY DEAR SIR:
I feel that I must write some acknowledgment of your personal
letter of the eighth instant if it is only to say that I can not thank
you sufficiently for the expression of your opinion about my services
in the Oregon. You must know how an officer would feel at having
the secretary of the navy write to him in that way better than I
can tell you. So I will not trouble you further than to say that I shall
always be
Very sincerely and gratefully yours,
C. E. CLARK
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
2 Captain Clark commanded the battleship Oregon during the war with Spain.




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COMMANDER CLOVER TO SECRETARY LONG
Office of Naval Intelligence
WASHINGTON
October 17, i898
DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
In reply to your inquiry regarding circumstances connected with
the Santiago convoy, I will give a brief resume of facts and conditions from the time of my first association with the convoy to its
sailing.
The Bancroft arrived at Key West the evening of May 9 under
orders to report to commander-in-chief, North Atlantic Squadron.
The day following [she] coaled and the next day, the eleventh, was
about to proceed to the blockade off Havana, when word came that
orders from Washington were to hold vessels ready to convoy
army. [The] Bancroft was kept with full steam, ready to move on
notice, replenishing daily consumption of coal with ship's boats, so
as to start with full supply. On the evening of May 17 got urgent
orders to proceed to Tampa for protection of army transports, the
authorities there reporting that a Spanish torpedo boat had been
seen in that vicinity. In company with the Helena, the Bancroft
arrived at Tampa Bay the following evening and moved up to Port
Tampa, the embarkation point, the following morning. The same
day I called upon General Shafter, in company with Commander
Swinburne,1 going by train to Tampa. I learned that the torpedo
boat had been reported to the army officials through the pilots, some
one having seen a vessel of peculiar construction outside. It was suggested that the army might assist in a defense of the transports which
were inside a long canal, by placing a field battery on end of wharf
at canal entrance, which was done.
Being anxious for active service and feeling that the torpedoboat alarm was unnecessary and that there was no prospect of the
army being ready to embark for some time, I wrote a personal letter
to Commodore Remey 2 to that effect, asking that I might be ordered back to active service. The night of the twenty-third telegraphic orders came and at daylight the Bancroft was on her way
to Key West, the Helena remaining to guard transports.
Arrived at Key West following morning, coaled immediately,
1 William Thomas Swinburne (i847-I928), commanding the Helena.
2 Commanding the naval base at Key West.




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and at daylight the next morning proceeded to return to Port
Tampa under telegraphic orders from navy department, to procure
money coming there by express for the fleet. En route chased a
large steamer to the eastward supposed to be Spanish; Bancroft was
outspeeded and after dark gave up chase and stood course to westward. At eleven o'clock the following morning brought to a steamer,
which proved to be the Faneta of New York. Sent an officer on
board, who reported she had as passengers a General Rodriguez and
party, with a cargo of arms and ammunition, furnished by the
army, to be landed in Cuba for the insurgents. Her papers were
irregular, but a letter in regard to her being allowed wharf room
at Mobile, signed by an army quartermaster at Tampa, indicated
that the movement, as claimed, was under the approval of the army,
so after an hour's delay she was allowed to proceed. Subsequent
events showed that she engaged in a filibustering expedition against
Haiti, and that, in attempting to land, the leaders were killed. Had
I, however, taken her in, the true destination would have been disclaimed, and it would have been chronicled as a stupid interference
on the part of the navy, preventing supplies reaching the Cubans.
Arrived at Port Tampa on the morning of May 28; left morning
of the twenty-ninth, and arrived at Key West on the morning of the
thirtieth. Coaled immediately, and at four P.M. reported ready for
sea. Commodore Remey stated that he could not send me to active
service, but that I must hold the Bancroft in readiness to convoy the
army, it being expected that they would embark immediately, as orders had just been received to that effect. This was a surprise to me,
knowing from observation how unprepared they were at Tampa.
Vessels were urgently needed on the blockade, but the Bancroft
with other vessels with steam up were held ready to respond promptly
to the movements of the army. Ten days of this demoralizing suspense passed, until at daylight on the morning of June 9 the Indiana,
Detroit, Montgomery, Vesuvius and Bancroft cruised to the eastward in search of suspicious vessels reported the previous day by the
Eagle and Resolute. The search was thorough and expeditious,
under the direction of the senior officer, Captain Taylor, each
vessel being given certain ground to cover. The Bancroft landed a
party on Cay Sal, a Spanish island, near which the suspicious vessels were reported as seen, but no signs of life were observed and
during the night she skirted the Cuban coast and in the morning
visited the port of Cay Frances and in the afternoon met the Indiana




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and other vessels at rendezvous south of Anquila [Anguila] Isles.
During the night the fleet cruised to southward and eastward and
at daylight picked up the Montgomery, which had made a rapid
search up the Old Bahama Channel. The squadron then proceeded
to return to Key West, and soon after the Eagle was sighted bringing
dispatches from Commodore Remey ordering the squadron to return at once. Later in the day the Uncas met the squadron with
dispatches, and the Vesuvius was ordered to proceed to Santiago.
At midnight the squadron was off Sand Key Light, where the
Indiana anchored, and at early daylight on June I 2 the other vessels proceeded into the anchorage at Key West. All vessels were
ready to proceed immediately as convoy if necessary, but orders
were given to fill up with coal and during the afternoon all reported
ready for sea and got orders to join the Indiana outside at daylight
the following morning. At three-thirty A.M. June 13 when the ship
was about to get under way, Ensign Belknap 3came on board with
orders from Commodore Remey to delay for thirty-six hours, as
the army was not ready. At four-thirty P.M. June I4 the squadron
got under way and proceeded to the rendezvous near Tortugas
Island, where we arrived during the night and lay there the next
day waiting the arrival of the transports. Before dark the squadron
got under way and stood to the westward and shortly after dark
our scouts, the torpedo boats, signalled that the transports were in
sight, this being the night of June I5.
Very respectfully,
RICHARDSON CLOVER
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
SENATOR LODGE TO SECRETARY LONG
Personal                                NAHANT, MASSACHUSETTS
October i8, I898
DEAR GOVERNOR LONG:
I enclose herewith the advance sheets of an article by Mr. Hart,
who is professor of American history at Harvard College, as you
know. The article is to appear in Harper's Magazine, and it seems
to me one of the best and most important that I have seen, very
suggestive, and, even to those who are familiar with American his3 Reginald Rowan Belknap (b. i871). He laid the North Sea barrage in the
World War.
1 Albert Bushnell Hart (b. i854), Harvard College '8o.




1898]      PAPERS OF JOHN DAVIS LONG                   20o
tory, full of information. Professor Hart would like very much to
have the President read the article. That is all. He asks nothing more,
and I am sure that the President would enjoy reading it and be as
much interested in it and struck by it as I have been. Will you do
me the favor to read it over yourself and hand it to the President?
I am delighted to see by the papers that you are to come on
here and speak at the Republican Club. A speech from you will
help us very much.2 There is a good deal of apathy here, and a
feeling about the administration of the war department which I
do not think is appreciated in Washington, but which is going to
hurt us at the polls unless we can rouse the Republican voters to a
sense of the importance of the election. What is needed is a strong
appeal to our Republicans here to stand by the President. They do
not seem to see that the election of a Democratic House would
embarrass us very much in our negotiations, perhaps bring them to
naught, and postpone the making of peace. No one can have so much
effect as you with the Republicans of Massachusetts in a direct appeal to them to turn out in every district and sustain the President's
policy, and I rejoice to know that you are coming on.
Very sincerely yours,
H. C. LODGE
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
CAPTAIN MAHAN TO SECRETARY LONG
I60 West Eighty-Sixth Street
NEW YORK
October 24, i898
DEAR MR. LONG:
This morning's papers announce that advance proofs of Sampson's report of his operations, up to and including the destruction
of Cervera's squadron, have been made public by the department.
Assuming this to be so, I write to ask if you will permit your secretary to send me a copy. I am writing not so much a narrative of the
war, as a discussion of the lessons, I think, deducible from it. The
proofs in question will be useful to me, not for purposes of quotation, but to keep my ideas exact as to the sequence of events, and
what actually happened.
I may add that the first of the papers in the series - which will
2 Secretary Long's speech was delivered in the Boston Music Hall, October 26,
1898.




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probably run to five - appears on December I in McClure's Magazine; so that any reference to the proofs I now ask would not appear before January i, by which time I presume they will be in the
hands of the public in full.
Very truly yours,
A. T. MAHAN
Honorable J. D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
CAPTAIN WISE TO SECRETARY LONG
U. S. Receiving Ship Franklin
Personal                                    NORFOLK, VIRGINIA
November i, I898
DEAR SECRETARY LONG:
Replying to your kind letter regarding complaint of Sixth Massachusetts soldiers on the Yale, I hasten to assure you that there is
not any truth in the complaints, so far as myself or the navy is
concerned, and your understanding as to the transportation of
troops on the Yale is entirely correct.
When called on for the number of troops that could be carried,
I replied, about eleven hundred, was informed more must be taken
and eighteen horses, etc., that the secretary of war assumed all responsibility for overcrowding and discomfort, and that fifteen
hundred must be carried. When the Sixth Massachusetts came on
board off Charleston, in addition to General Garretson,1 and staff,
the brigade-commander, we carried General Miles and his staff, so
that we had nearly sixteen hundred troops, exact number I do not
recall, and with our crew we numbered nearly two thousand men.
Of course the ship was crowded and not fitted to carry any such
numbers, especially in the tropics, and there was some discomfort
and the men had to sleep on deck, there was no place else, they
would not go into the holds and steerage, on account of the heat,
very fortunately we had most delightful weather.
There were no vacant rooms of any kind, and when the troops
were received on board they were distributed by their own officers
and every available space given and utilized. I thought the troops
behaved remarkably well and they certainly appeared contented;
perhaps the complaint came from some persons who were confined
for gambling and breaking into stores, etc.
' George Armstrong Garretson (1844-19i6).




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The Sixth Massachusetts was on the Yale seventeen or eighteen
days and during that time we had nearly eighty cases of what
the army surgeon called "typhoid" but the surgeon of the ship,
Doctor Pickrell,2 United States Navy, diagnosed as "typhus,"
which, I certainly believe to have been the correct diagnosis, a
number of cases of measles, mumps, one of small-pox. The Sixth,
coming from Camp Alger, [Virginia], left a trail of fever and
death, and I beg to assure you that every attention and care that
humanity demanded was given them by the navy. We divided half
our hospital stores and medicine, fresh beef, etc., when we put the
last fifty-five cases of fever on board the Lampasas at Guanica,
Porto Rico, retaining only enough to carry us north, the Lampasas
being totally unprovided.
I feel sure that a note from General Garretson, or Colonel Greenleaf, General Miles's chief surgeon in the field, both on board the
entire time and who were unremitting in their efforts for the care
and welfare of the men, will more than corroborate what I have
written, and if the gentlemen who complained to you will take
the trouble to write to these officers they will learn exactly the
state of affairs on the Yale, and if they will also investigate the care
of the men by its colonel and other officers, feel quite sure they
will realize that everything possible was done by the navy, and
that we are in no way responsible for any discomfort.
I will be very glad indeed for any scrutiny into the conduct of
myself and officers in handling the troops.
With assurances of my highest consideration, I remain,
W. C. WISE8
SECRETARY OF THE NAVY
EDWARD ATKINSON TO SECRETARY LONG
BOSTON
November i, 1898
MY DEAR SIR:
A case of apparent grave abuses on the Yale was named to you
by Mr. Phineas Pierce who told me that you would like to have the
details submitted to you privately. I have already sent them to the
2 George Pickrell (1862-1933).
3 William Clinton Wise (1843-1923).
1 Phineas Pierce (1834-19I5), Boston merchant.




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committee of investigation and have a line from General Dodge2
stating that the matter will have attention when the committee comes
to Boston. I do not name the young man because he is still in the
service and he is himself very averse to pleading baby. He went
into the service with a full understanding of the hardships to which
he was to be subjected. He was so cheery in the camp and kept up
the spirits of the men so well that he was almost immediately promoted to be corporal and was on the way up. His sister gave the
facts to my daughter. Our families are very intimate. I then visited
the young man, who is still unable to walk and may be permanently
disabled, at the general hospital, persuaded him to let me take down
through my stenographer his statement of the facts as they appeared to him, with the understanding that I should not give his
name without his future consent. I therefore submit this dictation ex
parte as it may be, for whatever it may be worth. I understand that
the general features of the case are fully sustained by others and it
seems to me one of the cases which ought to be cleared without
fear or favor.
Yours very truly,
EDWARD ATKINSON 3
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Navy Department
WASHINGTON, D. C.
PROFESSOR HOLLIS TO SECRETARY LONG
Harvard University
CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS
November I, I898
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
Please let me thank you for your letter on the subject of the
Atlantic Monthly article. I value your opinion that my statement
of the case is fair and in good tone more than anything else. It
has seemed to me that Congress and our people might be led into
a fool's paradise by the exploits of the navy in this war. There is
so much to feel proud over that even the navy may lose sight of
its weaknesses. We have still a great deal to learn about the modem
machines which enter so largely into the management of ships of
war. I take great interest in the personnel bill and shall be glad to
assist towards its passage this winter, if I can. The only possible
2 Grenville Mellen Dodge (183i-I916), president of the commission to inquire
into the management of the war with Spain.
3 Edward Atkinson (I827-I905), economist.




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element of weakness in the bill springs from its effect upon the
Naval Academy. If the course of studies there is not reshaped to fit
this bill, and to give all graduates a respectable education in engineering, the effect may not be happy. I sincerely hope that Congress
will act speedily, so that the change required at the school may be
made during your administration. I shall feel gratified, if you will
call on me for any help which you may wish me to give to the
service which is still dear to me.
Yours very respectfully,
IRA N. HOLLIS1
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
COMMANDER STOCKTON           TO SECRETARY LONG
War College
NEWPORT, RHODE ISLAND
November 3, I898
MY DEAR SIR:
I write to thank you for the honor conferred upon me in detailing me as the president of the War College. Coming in the way
it does I trust I am not wrong in relying upon the hearty support
of the department while retained in this position. Just now, perhaps
not unnaturally, I am more weighed with the responsibilities, than
the honors conferred.
As it is not likely that we will be very strong numerically for
the present in our permanent staff, reliance will have to be placed
largely upon lecturers from the outside both in and out of the
service. I ask therefore for permission to use your name in extending
an invitation to the following gentlemen to address the officers in
attendance next summer, Mr. James C. Carter1 of New York,
Mr. John C. Ropes of Boston, Professors Hollis and Strobel2 of
Harvard University and Senator Lodge.
I write this to you privately so that the name of any one can be
withdrawn quietly if it should not meet with your sanction.
Very respectfully,
CHARLES H. STOCKTON
1 Ira Nelson Hollis (1856-1930), graduate of the Naval Academy and professor
of engineering at Harvard.
1 James Coolidge Carter (1827-1905), Harvard College '50.
2 Edward Henry Strobel (I855-1908), Harvard College '77, professor of international law.




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REAR-ADMIRAL         SAMPSON      TO  SECRETARY       LONG
Hotel Trotcha, Vedado
Sonal                                               HAVANA, CUBA
November 4, 1898


Pen


DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
Mr. Charles W. Gould, who has been detailed by the attorneygeneral to advise with the commissioners, has, I understand, orders
to return to New York to-morrow, and to be in Washington a
few days. If you have not met him, I will be very glad if you will
consider this note as one of introduction.
It has been my pleasure to meet and consult with him on several
occasions, and I may add that the commissioners have not consulted him to the extent that I think would be advisable, considering
his legal attainments.
If he calls upon you I request that you will speak freely with him
regarding your wishes.
The character of the work which Mr. Gould has had in hand
he seems to have pursued with zeal, and to have won the confidence
of the Cubans with whom he has been associated.
Yours sincerely,
THE SECRETARY OF THE NAVY                  WV. T. SAMPSON
Navy Department
WASHINGTON, D. C.
CAPTAIN WISE TO SECRETARY LONG


Personal


U. S. Receiving Ship Franklin
NORFOLK, VIRGINIA
November 4, 1898


DEAR SECRETARY LONG:
Replying to your letters of the second instant, enclosing letter
of Colonel Sohier,1 and also one from an unknown person, I feel
that my letter to you of the second [first?] instant covered the
ground, but as you desire an answer to each complaint, in detail,
desire to say that there is no truth whatever, in the first statement
1 Charles Winthrop Gould (1849-1931), Yale '70, counsel to the commission for
the Spanish evacuation of Cuba. The commissioners were Major-General James
Franklin Wade (1843-1921), Rear-Admiral Sampson, and Major-General Matthew
Calbraith Butler (1836-1i909). The relations of the commissioners seem not to have
been harmonious. See Captain Chadwick's letter of February 3, I899.
1 William Davies Sohier (1858-1938), Boston lawyer.




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regarding my not allowing the lighter to unload rations, etc. The
Yale received all the rations sent off at Charleston from the lighter.
In this case, as in every other, when rations, ammunition, etc., were
sent off by the army, no officer or man was present to attend to the
unloading or stowing of the rations, etc. Absolutely no care whatever or oversight - only an unreliable clerk on the lighter checking off; that was all. It was a gross neglect of duty and incompetency
on the army part. The Yale received provisions and troops the
same day and sailed at midnight. I am positive that the lighter was
unloaded and that the men were never short of provisions. There
was gross neglect of duty on the part of those whose duty it was
to see and care for the rations and that they were properly stowed.
We unloaded at Guanica2 provisions that the army people did not
seem to know were on board. The troops used "travel rations"
you know, and the navy had absolutely nothing whatever to do
with their subsistence.
There is no truth in the complaint that the use of only a small
cooking galley was allowed. The galley, known as second-cabin
galley, and used for cooking for second-cabin and steerage passengers in transatlantic steamers, was set aside entirely for the use of
the troops. It is capable, I believe, of cooking for a thousand,
but all the cooking facilities of the ship were utilized and also the
ship's cooks worked day and night to help the incompetent and
ignorant army cooks in making coffee, etc., for which they never
received a " thank you."
True, the men were kept on board eighteen days and also that
they had to sleep on the decks as stated in my former letter. With
nearly two thousand people in a vessel entirely unsuited and not
fitted, where else could they go? But these decks were nearly all
covered and the upper deck all awnings were spread, the lower
deck entirely covered. In fact it was tent life, with a deck for
sleeping on, instead of the ground. The troops would not go into
the steerage and holds for it was too hot, and they could not sleep
below. I think nearly all of the officers slept on deck. The weather
was fine throughout. I think we had one rain only during the entire time. The open air was unquestionably the place for them, and I
never before heard of persons in the tropics wanting a place to keep
warm in. I never received, or heard of any complaints from a single
officer or man. I carefully avoided in any way interfering with the
2 Guanica, in the south-western part of Puerto Rico.




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troops other than taking the necessary precautions to preserve their
health and maintain discipline. General Miles never in any way said
one single thing as to the condition of the troops. There never was
any deficiency of food and as I have before said, we of the navy
had absolutely nothing to do with this matter. The sickness, as I
remember, was principally confined to one company and it came
from Camp Alger, and it was sad indeed. It is not true that fifty
per cent. of the men were sick when landed. I know nothing
whatever of the non-commissioned officers trying to obtain the
pickings from the officers' tables - do not believe any self-respecting
man would do so, so, as I said before, there was no deficiency of
food.
There seems to be a desire on the part of the volunteers and
army people to unload on the navy the great burden of gross neglect, incompetency, and selfishness of the officers of the troops
and in the matter of transportation as handled by the army; and we
of the navy decline to have any share in the grave responsibility.
The gentlemen seem to forget that the Yale was not a transatlantic
liner with its corps of two hundred cooks and stewards, and all
that the troops had to do was to march on board and they would
be looked after in the ordinary passenger way, overlooking the fact
that the Yale was an armed cruiser of the navy, with its battery,
crew of over four hundred and ready for fighting at any moment,
and that it was not a picnic, but real war we were engaged in, with
necessary deprivation and discomfort. Now having answered statements, may I ask Colonel Sohier and the gentleman with him, to
ask General Garretson, the brigade-commander, as to the status on
board? Surely he is competent authority. In connection with the
food, feeding, sickness and care of the men it is also proper to ask
them to investigate the officers of the sixth, from its Colonel Woodward3 down, and we must decline to assume any share in their
utter neglect and incompetency.
I hope you will pardon me for speaking this plainly, but it seems
rather hard that I am asked to answer complaints, etc., for which I
am in no way whatever responsible. I beg to return herewith the
letters, and with assurances of my highest consideration, believe me
to be,
With greatest respect,
W. C. WISE
3 Colonel Charles F. Woodward (b. I852), of the Sixth Massachusetts Infantry,
who resigned his commission while in Puerto Rico.




1898]       PAPERS OF JOHN       DAVIS LONG               209
CAPTAIN    MAHAN TO SECRETARY LONG
i60 West Eighty-Sixth Street
[NEW YORK]
November io, 1898
DEAR MR. LONG:
I find, upon looking over the advance sheets you were good
enough to send me, that they are almost entirely deficient in the
very point I most need, in order to treat my present subject in the
method employed in my previous works. The telegrams framed in
the war board scarcely appear at all, except so far as quoted by the
officers to whom sent; which presents of course only a partial, irregular and disconnected series. It is very important to me, in order
to present an instructive commentary on the operations, to refer to
the telegrams; and if you can have sent me the series, after the
present need of the department for them has passed, it will greatly
facilitate the work.
Permit me to congratulate yourself and the administration upon
the result of the elections. It can fairly be construed as an endorsement; but, what I doubt not you will value more, it shows that
under your conduct the country has been reverting to the paths
of integrity, has gained in prosperity, and has placed in the hands
of the administration the means of further progress.
Very sincerely yours,
A. T. MAHAN
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
CAPTAIN MAHAN TO SECRETARY LONG
i60 West Eighty-Sixth Street
Personal                                           [NEW YORK]
November i6, 1898
MY DEAR MR. LONG:
Now that the opening of Congress is near, I beg your permission
to suggest to you two considerations, not as urging you to act upon
them, but because they may not have occurred to you yourself.
First: As to the rewards to our admirals. The administration has
awarded promotion to three,' and so far made a final decision for
1 Dewey, Sampson, and Schley. Sampson was awarded an advance in grade of
eight numbers and Schley of six numbers, but these promotions were not confirmed
by the Senate because of the controversy brought about by the friends of the two
officers. See Long, The New American Navy, II, 43-45 -



210         PAPERS OF JOHN DAVIS LONG                [1898
which I have neither criticism nor quarrel. There remains the question of a vote of thanks. This carries with it, when given individually,
ten years additional on the active list. In my judgment it is not
desirable to give Schley ten years on the active list. Personally, if
again called upon for the duty I performed this summer, I should
strongly protest against any responsibility for operations intrusted
to him as commander-in-chief, on the ground of what he did while
acting as such. It appears to me that the well-earned vote of thanks
to Dewey and to Sampson should not go below them, by individual
mention unless for special services; nor, in the nature of things, is
there necessity for going below the one man responsible.
Second: Assuming that Dewey be brought forward for promotion to vice-admiral, should it be tolerated that there should be
hooked on to this rightly earned recompense a measure to promote
Miles to lieutenant-general? 2 I don't propose to resist the latter
measure, standing by itself, but I do suggest that it should stand
upon its own merits - or Miles's own - and not that the army
should have because the navy receives. Dewey has made proof of
very eminent qualities, both at and after Cavite. If promoted, as I
hope he will be, I trust that the praise will not be watered down by
coupling in the same measure a man who is undoubtedly a very
gallant soldier, but who has done nothing conspicuous this war.
You and I know that to the President's tenacity was chiefly due
that the Santiago garrison was not permitted to retire to Holguin
with the honors of war, as Miles recommended. Miles may have
been right, but if so, our achievement at Santiago would have been
far from brilliant. The Porto Rico landing I once said to you, at
Guanica, and the initiation of operations there, appears [sic] to me a
military stupidity so great, that I can account only by a kind of
obsession of vanity, to do a singular and unexpected thing. This
opinion I may modify after closer study; but I still retain it after
reading his letter to Higginson.3 It seems to me, however, perfectly
clear that to build upon Dewey's advancement a claim for the
same reward to Miles, to equalize the two services would materially
detract from the compliment and reward due to the former, implying that their achievements were equal - or their merits.
I have been more argumentative than I intended; but, while submitting cordially to your final decision, there seems no impropriety
2 Miles was promoted to lieutenant-general in i900.
3 Captain F. J. Higginson, commanding the battleship Massachusetts.




1898]      PAPERS OF JOHN DAVIS LONG                 211
in suggesting these views and their reasons. It is for you only to
take action- positive or negative; and it would not be becoming in
me to do anything of myself, beyond writing to you. The two questions concern, one the interests, the other the credit, of the navy,
and are therefore especially in your hands and those of the President.
My own views upon them may be wrong, and I recognize also that
policy as well as strict right has to be considered, in many cases.
Very truly yours,
Honorable JOHN D. LONG                      A.T. MAHAN
REAR-ADMIRAL SAMPSON TO SECRETARY LONG
HAVANA
November 18, i898
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
Your very kind letter of November 10 just received and I write
to thank you for it.
I am very much better, and shall improve as rapidly here, perhaps, as anywhere. That you and the President wished me to come
is reason enough why I should remain until my work is finished,
but when it pleases you I shall be glad indeed to return to the work
of the squadron, or any other work you may have for me.
Most sincerely,
W. T. SAMPSON
CAPTAIN BARKER TO SECRETARY LONG
U. S. S. Oregon
Personal                                      Rio DE JANEIRO
November 19, I898
MY DEAR SECRETARY LONG:
We have just said good-bye to the authorities on shore and to the
foreign men-of-war and are about to leave these waters, where,
during our stay, it has been one round of visiting, banqueting and
ceremony. Our reception on board the Oregon was a fine affair,
about one thousand persons being present. Colonel Bryan, our minister, is delighted at the success of our visit. " They say " that there
has not been such a reception on a man-of-war for a good many
years, but as you will see by an official communication on the subject, it cost eight hundred and ninety-seven dollars instead of five
hundred dollars, the affair having grown after its inception like
Jonah's gourd.




212         PAPERS OF JOHN DAVIS LONG                [1898
At the banquet given by the retiring President, Dr. Moraes,' to
his successor, Dr. Campos Salles, I had the honor of sitting between
the incoming minister of foreign affairs, Dr. Olyntho de Magalhaes,
and the incoming minister of marine, Admiral Balthazar, and as both
spoke English and were disposed to be agreeable, I had a particularly
pleasant time. It was by far the most desirable seat at the table under
the circumstances, though at the moment these gentlemen were not
government officials. I took this occasion to tell the future foreign
minister such things as I thought would be proper to say to him,
in regard to matters of the war; how the President and you were
strongly averse to war, and how you had opposed it as long as
possible, I told him that the President wished to do what was perfectly right in all things, that he was guided by the Golden Rule,
which I supposed should be followed by governments as well as
by individuals. (To this he assented!)
I was particular to tell him of the President's desire for peace,
as the Spanish charge was seated right opposite to me - across the
table, and as our war has not yet ended I did not know how soon
some question might arise. I also told him that on the part of the
navy there had never been any bitterness against the Spaniards.
We spoke of the Philippine Islands and I mentioned that until
after Dewey's victory no one had dreamed of our annexing them
or of establishing a protectorate over them, but that after the Spanish fleet was destroyed we were confronted with the very serious
question-what shall be done with the islands.
I have seen the minister several times since the banquet and last
night at the minister of marine's banquet he told me he was sorry
we were not to sit together. My companion on this occasion was
the secretary of the interior, a very pleasant young gentleman whose
knowledge of English about equalled mine of French, so neither of
us could enthuse!
It was at the banquet on the fourteenth that I decided to remain
until the nineteenth in order that the new president might have all
the vessels here at the naval review and that we could be present at
the minister of marine's banquet to the foreign naval officers. I
saw that this would please the new President and his cabinet, who
conversed with me on the subject. I think that some of the other
foreign men of war remained because we did.
All the foreign men of war leave to-day, except the Portuguese.
1 Prudente de Moraes.




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Yesterday, during the review the President visited all the ships of
the senior officers. While on board the Oregon he expressed his
satisfaction at our being here, and his respect and admiration for
our country. The minister of marine, after his banquet was over,
told me that our coming here had given him and the Brazilians
generally a great deal of pleasure.
This official, Admiral Balthazar, was in Washington during
President Harrison's administration on some official business, and
Secretary Blaine 2 gave him a banquet and Secretary Tracy a reception, which I remember very well. The admiral asked after a number
of our officers whom he remembered, Walker, Ramsay,' Franklin,4
Rodgers,5 Sampson, Schley, etc.
Among the interesting incidents that have occurred is the following. A gentleman who sympathizes with the Spaniards visited
the Oregon, and was asked upon his return, what he thought of her.
He replied, "The Spaniards must have been very brave to attack
those vessels " (Oregon and Iowa).
Well, I think our visit has done much good, but it has been hard
work. Not a day that I did not make official calls. And not a single
personal or rather private visit during the week that we were here.
Very sincerely yours,
A. S. BARKER
EVERETT FRAZAR TO SECRETARY LONG
63-65 Wall Street
NEW YORK
November 22, I898
DEAR SIR:
Referring to my interview with you in Washington on Friday
last, and to the special interest shown by you in our conversation
together upon the matter of the cessation of war premiums, brought
about promptly by the action of Admiral Dewey in destroying the
Spanish fleet at Manila, I think it may be of interest to you, in connection with your coming report to Congress, that I furnish you
2 James Gillespie Blaine (830o-893), secretary of state in the administration
of President Harrison.
3 Rear-Admiral Francis Munroe Ramsay (i835-1914).
4 Rear-Admiral Samuel Rhoads Franklin (I825-1909).
5 Probably Rear-Admiral Frederick Rodgers (1842-1917); possibly Rear-Admiral Christopher Raymond Perry Rodgers (s81-i892).




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a little more in detail, taken from a special letter I addressed to
President McKinley on November i i, in the matter of war premiums charged by marine underwriters from the inception of
the late war with Spain to the time of destroying the Spanish fleet
by Admiral Dewey. In that letter I stated as follows: -
"The prompt action at Manila in the destruction of the Spanish
fleet by Admiral Dewey, and the holding of Manila Bay and city,
was a master stroke of policy in favor of our American trade and
interests in the Far East, for the reason, that, at once the Pacific
Ocean was rendered safe and secure from the actions of Spanish
men-of-war or privateers, thus saving our American Pacific mail
steamers, running between San Francisco and Hong Kong, from
capture, and relieving our Pacific coast ports of San Francisco,
Seattle, Tacoma, etc., from the risks of visits from Spanish ships,
and the payments by American merchants of excessive war premiums of insurance which were beginning to advance almost daily,
and likely to continue as long as Spain's ships were in the Philippines, ready on short notice to leave on their cruises towards Hong
Kong to intercept and capture our American vessels, and to proceed to our Pacific coast possessions.
" Up to one and one-half per cent. war premiums were paid, and
had Admiral Dewey not destroyed the Spanish fleet, in all probability, five or even ten per cent. war risks would have been charged
by marine underwriters. This would have been ruinous to the large
American interests involved, under contract deliveries for American products and manufactures, being shipped to the full capacity
of all the various steamship lines; six from Pacific Coast ports, and
four from New York, via Suez Canal, to Japan, China and Korea.
Many millions of dollars to my own knowledge and personal experience were involved.
"The fact of Admiral Dewey's action resulting in the war premium not advancing beyond one and one-half per cent. and then
ceasing altogether promptly, has been a cause of great rejoicing
on the part of all our merchants, and of passengers on our mail
steamers, as well."
Large sums of money were thus saved to numbers of those interested in property, both merchandise and steamers, as well as to
passengers, and their effects, to say nothing of the probable serious
inconveniences and losses which would have arisen had Spain been
in the position to have made captures either by her own warships




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21 5


or by the commissioning of privateers. The quick, sharp and decisive blow given by Admiral Dewey brought the desired effect
in favor of all American interests, for which we ought to be truly
thankful.
In this you have the honor to reap a large share of the success and
glory, to which, as an humble American citizen I am only too happy
to give my testimony, and to show my appreciation.
You very kindly offered to send me a few copies of Admiral
Dewey's reports as supplementary to your annual report to Congress. I would be pleased to receive four or six copies, if you can
spare same, of each as soon as may be convenient to you.
You will pardon the liberty I have taken in thus going into detail
above. Trusting same may not be found uninteresting or unacceptable to you, I have the honor to remain,
Your obedient servant,
EVERETT FRAZAR
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
CAPTAIN    BARKER TO SECRETARY LONG
U. S. S. Oregon
MONTEVIDEO
December I, 1898
MY DEAR SECRETARY LONG:
We leave in a few hours for Valparaiso via the straits.
There is no doubting the fact that a visit to these ports of such
ships as the lowa and Oregon does good, so long as the officers and
men behave modestly and show nothing of a disposition to brag.
For fear that some of the men might abuse liberty and create a
disturbance with the Spanish subjects ashore of whom there are
over one hundred thousand, I have given no liberty here. By the
way, the Temerario1 is in dock at this place. She arrived the same
day that we did I believe! A good many Spaniards have visited the
ships quietly, wishing to see, doubtless, what kind of ships thrashed
their fine navy. And they return perfectly satisfied! All officials
have shown themselves friendly. Many have sent members of their
families to visit us. Considering the fact that we are six miles from
1 Spanish torpedo boat, supposed to have been at Montevideo in the spring
of 1898 lying in wait for the Oregon and Marietta on their passage around South
America.




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shore and that the sea is quite rough most of the time one can see
what interest is attached to our visit. Yesterday the President 2 sent
an army officer of rank to represent him.
The Oregon is in perfect condition. No trouble of any kind with
her machinery. Have not had to draw from the water supply which
we took in at New York.
I hope the remainder of the cruise will be as successful.
With kindest regards to your family and with congratulations
upon the termination of the war, I am
Yours sincerely,
A. S. BARKER
CHARLES F. DOLE TO SECRETARY LONG
JAMAICA PLAIN, MASSACHUSETTS
December 5, I898
MY DEAR MR. LONG:
I venture somewhat reluctantly to write to you what is coming
to be a burden upon my mind. I begin to think that the multitude
of us who have never believed in the Spanish war, were wrong in
our silence and seeming acquiescence all through the period of the
war. We surmised that it was useless to say any more. It looks now
as if the President had misconceived our silence to mean goodnatured consent. I wish you to know, I wish that the President
might know, the strong, and I believe also earnest and thoughtful
feeling, which the apparent outward success of the war has in no
way diminished, that it has been from the first, and is now in its
tremendous consequences, a vast national evil. I say this very carefully, I do not fail to see certain incidental compensations. They
seem to me the same kind of compensations that I am accustomed
to hope for when sickness or death comes into a household.
I can hardly believe, that what confronts us now in our assumption of the Philippine Islands as well as Porto Rico, could have ever
been undertaken, if the administration had really known the mind
of the country. We are asked to pay twenty millions for what?
For a bad title to a sovereignty that Spain had never rightfully possessed or indeed fully exercised. It seems to many of us exactly
like paying for " stolen goods." If we are really paying for them in
order to return them to their rightful owners, we are failing lamentably to make any one understand our action. It has every sem2 Don Juan Lindolfo Cuestas.




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21I7


blance in the eyes of the world, and in the thought of our own
people, of action taken in the ambition of power, mingled with
the greed of gain.
I think you know well that I do not speak as a conservative. I
know of no respect in which I can be classed with the timid set
who hold back from all new and forward movements and prophesy
evil. I am a progressive wherever I see progress. I mean to be hospitable always to new measures. But the more I live and believe in
progress, the more wary I become of any movement that crosses
the sacred lines of right. I am sure in the case of the nation as with
the individual, that this is misnamed progress, and if ever gain seems
even thus to come at last, it comes inevitably at the dire penalty
of broken law.
What are we going to do with our army and navy in the Philippine Islands? We are going to shoot and kill men who do not
choose to submit to our authority, which they have never invoked
or recognized. The very idea of this likelihood makes every drop
of my American blood stir in abhorrence.
Yes, Mr. Long, we have been too quiet. We have let the administration think that we trusted it. Little did we dream how far
in this easy trust we were drifting. There is one righteous thing
even yet that we can do. We can pay, if we must, for the extinguishment of Spain's worthless title to the Philippine Islands, and then
as soon as we can make temporary arrangement for the safeguarding of life and property at Manila, we can leave the title, where
alone it belongs, with the inhabitants of the islands. They may
suffer? Yes, as they suffered before Spain attempted to plunder
them, as they will doubtless suffer, if we keep them, as all people
must suffer from ignorance and barbarism till they learn true civilization. What is clear to me is, that we have absolutely no right to subjugate them even in the plausible name of humanity. Nothing but
the old heathen argument for slavery will suffice for this purpose.
Meanwhile, so far as our people honestly love humanity there
are plenty of " open doors," through which we can carry all the
civilization of which we have yet attained any surplus. Does the
United States care enough for the Philippine Islands to send them
a million dollars a year in schools like Hampton and Tuskegee? I
believe that we can do this without the intervention of a single
ironclad ship.
I write with great regret and hesitancy about troubling you.




218         PAPERS OF JOHN DAVIS LONG                [1898
But if you are going to take the opinion of the people, you will
surely be willing to weigh the opinion of many thousands of those
who have as yet hardly spoken. We are not pessimists, we are not
mere conservatives, we never despair of the republic. We believe
that the advancement of the national welfare is not in the path of
military glory, of territorial aggrandizement, or of arbitrary protectorates over half-civilized peoples. Our real welfare must be in
perfecting our free institutions, in realizing our splended democratic
ideals, in doing justice to all our own people, of different colors and
races, who heartily call our flag their own, in directly promoting
international good will, and finally in creating such national happiness that other nations seeing what freedom, law, enlightenment,
peace do for us, shall follow our beneficial lead.
With great respect,
Yours sincerely,
CHARLES F. DOLE1
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
P. S. Of course this is not to make you trouble by way of reply.
A. K. MCCLURE TO PRESIDENT MCKINLEY
The Philadelphia Times
December 6, 1898
MY DEAR FRIEND:
The hardest place on the continent to learn the truth is Washington, and the places farthest out of touch with the sovereign
power of the nation are the cloistered bureaus of government departments. I write you because I think it a duty to you.
I have never met or had any intercourse, direct or indirect, with
either Admiral Sampson or Admiral Schley, excepting a recent
meeting with Admiral Schley when he visited this city, and it
is due to him to say, that he is not my authority for any of the
statements I make. I have no prejudice against either and certainly
no partiality to influence my judgment, but it is evident to any
intelligent and dispassionate observer of existing conditions, that
the administration and the navy department have become committed to an act of great injustice to the navy and to the country
by the proposed promotion of Sampson over Schley.
1 Reverend Charles Fletcher Dole (1845-1927), Harvard College '68. See Professor Thayer's letter of July 6, 1899.




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2I9


The public know, and I mean the intelligent and considerate
public, that Schley fought the battle at Santiago; that his command
was not accidental; that it was committed to him by signal from
his commander-in-chief; that he was nearest the enemy when the
first gun was fired; nearest the enemy at every stage in the conflict,
and nearest the enemy when the flag was struck, while Sampson
had no [more] part in the actual conflict than I had.
The public know that Sampson took from his fleet his fleetest
and one of his strongest cruisers apparently in obedience to the
laws of the martinet, to confer with General Shafter, who had
come to meet him on a mule or in a mud wagon. He not only took
from his fleet the vessel most needed, but he could have gone in
half the time in his own steam launch or any of the smaller vessels.
Had our fleet been defeated or suffered serious loss, he would have
deserved to be court-martialed and shot.
The public know that Sampson's first act after reconnoitering
the harbor of Santiago, was to withdraw his fleetest and one of his
best vessels from the squadron when he took the New York and
spent twenty-four hours away from the harbor in search of a prize,
and when Cervera's fleet had been entirely destroyed, and the
Brooklyn, bearing more scars of battle than all the other vessels
of the fleet combined, and the crew exhausted, he was ordered by
Admiral Sampson to go, accompanied by the Oregon, to attack
two Spanish war vessels reported off the coast, one of which was
believed to be the Pelayo, the strongest battleship of Spain. Schley
promptly started and after he had gone, the Oregon was halted
by Admiral Sampson and Schley left alone on his mission to fight
what was believed to be two Spanish men-of-war, and one of them
vastly stronger than his own.
The public know that Sampson in his natural disappointment in
losing the leadership of a great victory, gave no congratulations
either to the commodore or any of the others who had won the
fight, and he reported to the government in a bombastic dispatch,
distinctly claiming the credit for himself; neither in that, nor any
later report, gave any credit to the man who commanded the fleet
from start to finish in the fight, and who would have been promptly
court-martialed by Sampson had he failed in his great duty.
These facts seem to be steadily ignored in the navy bureau, and
that bureau with its strong environments, political and social, seems
to be dominant at Washington. It is a great wrong to the navy,




220         PAPERS OF JOHN DAVIS LONG                  [1898
to the nation and to the administration, and I think if you shall
attempt to make Sampson vice-admiral over Schley, you will be
appalled at the protests that will come from the people of every
section of the republic. I doubt not that the present efficiency of
the navy that did so much in making our achievements lustrous,
is due to Admiral Sampson's exceptional capacity as a bureau officer,
but like McClellan, who could organize the best army in the world
and could not fight it, Sampson can organize a navy, but is incapable
of command, and his incapacity is specially shown in his efforts
to claim the laurels won by others than himself.
I write you without the knowledge of any one, and only for myself. My only excuse is that I hope the administration may be
saved from a blunder that would be little less than a crime.
Sincerely yours,
A. K. MCCLURE1
Honorable WILLIAM MCKINLEY
Executive Mansion
WASHINGTON, D. C.
HORACE N. FISHER TO SECRETARY LONG
60 Congress Street
BOSTON
December 26, 1898
DEAR LONG:
In December, 1884, President Arthur sent to the Senate for ratification a canal treaty made during the summer recess of Congress
with Nicaragua. Whereupon a sharp discussion arose between members of Congress and between members of the diplomatic corps at
Washington whether the Clayton-Bulwer Treaty' did not present
an insuperable obstacle to the ratification of such treaty.
The then Chilean minister 2 telegraphed me to know whether I
had made a study of that treaty and if I had arrived at a definite
conclusion as to the force of that treaty (Clayton-Bulwer Treaty).
My reply was " yes on both points." Whereupon he came to Boston
to confer with me and stated the position substantially as follows:
(I) That the Senate and diplomatic corps were both about
1 Alexander Kelly McClure (1828-I909).
1 Negotiated in I850 by John Middleton Clayton (1796-1856), secretary of state,
and Sir Henry Bulwer (180I-I872), British minister to the United States.
2 Don Joachim Godoy.




1898]      PAPERS OF JOHN DAVIS LONG                 221
equally divided on the question whether the Clayton-Bulwer
Treaty was still binding; but that neither party could present arguments sufficiently conclusive to convince his colleagues on the
other side.
(2) That Secretary Frelinghuysen3 has sent for him and inquired, "What does your government think as to the validity and
present force of this Clayton-Bulwer Treaty?" Godoy replied
that he had no instructions from his government on the subject. Then the secretary asked what opinion he had personally
formed on the subject; to which he replied that he was by no
means clear and that, in view of the importance of the question,
would prefer to withhold his opinion until he had consulted with
Mr. Fisher, Chilean consul in Boston, who was an expert on LatinAmerican questions. Mr. Frelinghuysen then suggested that he
would be very glad to know my views, which Senior Godoy said
he would report to him as soon as possible: hence his telegram to
me, and his visit to Boston on receipt of my telegraphic affirmative.
The subject had long been recognized by me as the knottiest
problem in our American diplomacy and I had spent a vast amount
of time in trying to solve it, in fact I had examined critically every
available source of information as to both facts and opinionsperhaps " six thousand octavo pages " as I told him. But not without
satisfactory results, however.
That result was the following opinion:
(I) Preamble and first seven articles refer to a particular canal
concession made by Nicaragua in 1849 to the " American Atlantic
and Pacific Ship Canal Company."
(2) That the right of Great Britain and United States to make
any treaty in regard to a canal in Nicaragua depended upon the
consent of Nicaragua that a canal should be constructed across
her territory.
(3) That such consent had been given by the concession referred
to above: but the permanence of such consent depended upon
whether the concession was permanent and unconditional.
(4) That concession was conditional upon certain performances
of the grantees, and therefore revokable by non-performance.
(5) For non-performance and abandonment of the undertaking,
Nicaragua under the terms of the charter, revoked it in 1856.
3 Frederick Theodore Frelinghuysen (I817-1885), secretary of state in President
Arthur's administration.




222         PAPERS OF JOHN DAVIS LONG                [1898
(6) Therefore since 1856 the Clayton-Bulwer Treaty, so far as
the first seven articles were concerned, became voidable on notice
by either Great Britain or the United States: but was obligatory
until thus made void.
(7) The eighth article was general in terms and intentionally
vague; providing for the contracting powers to take into consideration, etc., other routes, but not binding upon either to do so.
(8) That this eighth article had been interjected into the treaty
at the last moment to secure the ratification of the treaty in general,
the Senate being very close.
(9) But the British negotiator recognized this incidental and immaterial character of this eighth article and signed the treaty without submitting it to the foreign office for approval as the first seven
articles had been submitted and approved.
Consequently my opinion was that the eighth article, as well as
the other seven, was voidable on notice by either party subsequent
to 1856.
At Mr. Godoy's request I wrote out these points in my " memorandum of March 7, 1885 on the Clayton-Bulwer Treaty" (held
back until then, as the Senate had decided not to act until after
Mr. Cleveland's administration came into power), which was sent
to Secretary Bayard,4 who told me afterwards that it was absolutely conclusive, "the ablest exposition of the subject in state
department." Mr. Cleveland was equally emphatic; and the proposed treaty was called back from the Senate and cancelled.
In these later days the same question having come to the front,
I have had a typewritten copy of that memorandum made, with
supplement to date, which I should be pleased to furnish to the
President or state department, or Senate committee as you may
advise.
Awaiting reply, I am
Yours very truly,
HORACE N. FISHER
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
HINGHAM, MASSACHUSETTS


4 Thomas Francis Bayard (1828-1898), secretary of state in President Cleveland's administration.




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CAPTAIN    MAHAN TO SECRETARY LONG
I60 West Eighty-Sixth Street
[NEW YORK]
December 28, I898
MY DEAR MR. LONG:
I noticed in General Miles's testimony a week or so ago, a statement, or at the least an implication, that the navy had in some way
failed to meet its engagements to provide facilities for landing the
army at Santiago. I presume there was not wanting some one to
remind you - if you forgot - that the department at the suggestion
of the war board wrote to the war department, to know if such aid
were wanted; and that the reply was that they would do their own
landing, asking of us only safe convoy to the spot.
I wish also to say to you that an opinion attributed to Senator
Hanna' by the papers, that the conditions of naval war-ship construction are so unsettled, that we should postpone further increase of the navy, and should await the results of other nations'
experiments, is wholly without practical foundation; by which I
mean that there is nothing so far in sight, indicating such radical
change, that it is expedient for us to postpone by a day such naval
development as our political conditions demand, and our financial
conditions permit. On political and financial considerations I do
not undertake to speak; but on the military question I submit the
above as my professional opinion.
With much respect,
Sincerely yours,
Honorable JOHN D. LONG                       A. T. MAHAN
Secretary of the Navy
1 Marcus Alonzo Hanna (1837-1904), U. S. senator from Ohio.




2 24       PAPERS OF JOHN DAVIS LONG                [1899
1899
COMMODORE PHILIP TO SECRETARY LONG
448 Washington Avenue
Personal                                 [Brooklyn, New York]
DEAR MR. SECRETARY:                          January 14, 1899
I desire to personally thank you for the confidence you have
shown in ordering me to so important a command as the New York
Yard.
I appreciate it very much, and it will be my endeavor in the
execution of duty to do nothing that will ever cause you to regret
the official act of the department.
I relieved Admiral Bunce 1 to-day: a sad scene to witness - the
departure from active service of an officer of such long and honorable record in the navy.
Again thanking you for your kind consideration, I remain,
Sincerely and obediently yours,
J. W. PHILIP
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
WASHINGTON, D. C.
CAPTAIN MAHAN TO SECRETARY LONG
i6o Xlest Eighty-Sixth Street
NEW YORK
January i6, i899
DEAR MR. LONG:
While you were good enough to dispense me from replying to
your letter of the first, you will believe that I should not have
availed myself of such permission had not a combination of press
of work and indisposition prevented my doing so promptly.
After looking the matter up in the appendix to bureau of navigation report, I find that the navy convoy was reported ready to proceed Saturday evening, June 4. My recollection is very clear that on
the morning of June 8, when Southerland's' report of a Spanish
squadron was received, our anxiety was increased by the fact that
we had gone home the evening before expecting the transports to
sail on the morning of the eighth. Whether they would have got
away I don't know, but they were stopped. The rest of the record,
however, is clear. When the naval vessels returned from scouring
the place where the suspicious sails were reported, they had to coal,
Francis Marvin Bunce (I836-i90I).
Lieutenant W. H. H. Southerland, commanding the yacht Eagle.




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and the result was (page 675) that they left Key West for the rendezvous the same day, June 14, that the transports sailed from
Tampa (Remey's and Hunker's2 telegrams, page 675). The delay in
the final sailing was from the eighth to at least the fourteenth, unless
I am wrong as to the army's readiness on the eighth; and was due to
Southerland's report, and the action taken on it.
As regards the panic, I was speaking more from the popular
point of view, as represented in the press and in general conversation. Since your letter, I have had three occasions to observe the
impressions of other men, at dinner talks, in conversation, not
originated by me. The coincidence was singular, as I had your
letter in my mind; and I find that all those present agreed in the
fact that very exaggerated apprehensions were felt, and precautions taken, by the seaboard populations. Writing as I was for the
public as well as for the navy, hoping to convey ideas useful for
the future, if a similar future should arise, I felt justified in pointing
[out] pretty sharply the baseless nature of much of the fears, as well
as the proper means of securing us against the recurrence of the
same.
With regard to the function of the Flying Squadron, I think there
is no real difference between us. Its object I apprehend to be as
you say; to attack the Spanish fleet if it came north. That, however, in a military sense, is coast protection; the offenso-defensive,
as some call it. My point was that proper fortification of the coast,
would have released that squadron for offensive operations on the
Cuban coast. I develop this further in succeeding papers.
I feel much indebted to you for your trouble in criticizing the
papers. Even when a man thinks himself substantially right, it is
helpful to see that his words may require modification, either by
softening, or retrenchment, or amplification.
If you should ever happen to have the curiosity to look at the
telegram I sent from Paris April 29, to [the] state department, you
will recognize the relation my present papers bear to the general
ideas with which I approached the subject. The telegram seemingly
never got on the navy department files, and I had to recover it, for
myself, through the state department.
With much respect,
Sincerely yours,
A. T. MAHAN


2 Captain John Jacob Hunker (1844-19I6), commanding the convoy which
transported General Shafter's army.




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[1899




EDWARD EVERETT HALE TO SECRETARY LONG
39 Highland Street
ROXBURY, MASSACHUSETTS
January 17, 1898 [I899?]
MY DEAR GOVERNOR:
Your note, I need not say, gratifies me very much. I had no
thought of offering advice. I only meant to say, "Amen." The
only advice I have given in my pulpit to the South Congregational Church, is that they should do what they were told to do,
and not offer their advice to people who know more than they do.
The army, of course, must be governed by the terms of surrender.
But for the seamen and their officers, you have white paper. The
war itself is a new-fashioned war. It is for new motives, and may
make its own precedents. If you send home these officers without
parole, you gently intimate that they will do us no harm, wherever
they are - while you are doing a great courtesy to them. You could
say, " We intend to leave these gentlemen quite free as to their future
lives." I am quite clear that this would be a real step forward, toward
the war code of the twentieth century.
Always yours, with admiration,
E. E. HALE
CAPTAIN SIGSBEE TO SECRETARY LONG
U. S. S. Texas
HAVANA, CUBA
January i8, 1899
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
Several days ago Commodore Cromwell 1 permitted me to select
a souvenir of what is left of the wreck of the Maine - a very well
stripped wreck. I selected a brass railing that protected the after
search light, which has no value beyond that of scrap brass. May I
keep it? It is my wish to present it to some institution in Albany,
my native city, or to the capitol at Albany. I visited Albany several
weeks ago and was received by the people in a way to make me
wish to show some recognition in the manner suggested. While
at Havana previously I gave no thought to the collection of souvenirs. I should like to feel that I have secured the souvenir openly.
With much respect,
Yours sincerely,
Honorable JOHN D. LONG                       C. D. SIGSBEE
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
1 Reverend Edward Everett Hale (182z-1909).
t Bartlett Jefferson Cromwell (I840-I917).




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CAPTAIN    MAHAN TO SECRETARY LONG
i60 West Eighty-Sixth Street
[NEW YORK]
January 19, 1899
DEAR MR. LONG:
Dining out last night I found myself close to General (Wallace)
Randolph,' who was, I believe, chief of artillery with Shafter's
corps. I asked him whether it was true that the expedition was
ready when held up by the report of a Spanish division. He replied yes, that four transports had already gone down the bay;
and that in the intervening time water had been used to such an
extent on board some vessels as to require rewatering before another start, involving a fresh delay. One man's memory of course
is not final demonstration; but it shows the need of establishing the
point decisively, for such recollections find their way through society and become part of the stock of belief as commonly held.
Very truly yours,
A. T. MAHAN
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
SENATOR PLATT TO SECRETARY LONG
Senate Chamber
WASHINGTON
January 19, 1899
SIR:
Referring to our conversation, I send you copy of the paper which
I referred to as having been furnished me by a friend of Captain
Goodrich giving a summary of his services during the war with
Spain.
I hear that Admiral Sampson is in Washington or is soon to come
here, and I should certainly feel much gratified if you had the occasion to speak with him regarding the services of Captain Goodrich.
Yours truly,
0. H. PLATT 1
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
1 Wallace F. Randolph (1841-1910).
1 Orville Hitchcock Platt (1827-1905), U. S. senator from Connecticut.




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[Enclosure]
SUMMARY OF SERVICES DURING THE WAR WITH SPAIN OF
CAPTAIN C. F. GOODRICH, UNITED STATES NAVY
I. Organized the coast signal service 2 so efficiently, and without
expending a dollar, that within twenty-four hours of the sending
of a telegraphic order on April 2 2 " to establish and man coast signal
stations already determined by me" the service was in order from
Maine to Texas. (See report of the superintendent of the United
States Coast Signal Service).
2. Took command of the auxiliary cruiser St. Louis on April
24 and scouted until May o off the Windward Islands.
3. May 13, the St. Louis cut the cable between St. Thomas and San
Juan, Porto Rico.
4. May 8, in company with the tug Wompatuck, she cut one of
the two cables from Santiago to Jamaica, being for over seven hours
within easy range of the forts. After her hooking onto the cable the
Spaniards opened up on her and for forty-two minutes the St. Louis
with her two six-pounders in broadside, and the Wompatuck, with
her one three-pounder, fought the batteries on shore. She brought
the cable to the surface, cut out some two hundred fathoms, and
then steamed away.
5. May 20, cut the French cable from Mole St. Nicholas to Guantinamo.
6. June 7, the St. Louis cut the cable from Guantanamo to Santiago.
7. During the nights of June 14 and 16 the St. Louis went closer in
to the western battery and the shore than any battleship ever got.
She was grappling for the Santiago-Cienfuegos cables. Why she was
not blown out of the water possibly the Spaniard can say.
8. At midnight of June 18, the St. Louis went alongside the patrol
battleship off the mouth of the harbor, grappled and cut the second
Santiago-Jamaica cable. Captain Goodrich had now completely
isolated Cuba from Madrid by himself cutting every one of the three
foreign cables leading to that island. From this time on, Blanco3 had
no communication with his home government, or the outside world,
except such dispatches as were permitted to pass over the American
lines between Havana and Key West.
2 See Captain Goodrich's letter of March 24, 1898.
3 Marshal Ramon y Arenas Blanco (b. 1833), Governor-General of Cuba.




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9. June 20, Captain Goodrich went on board the Suwanee and took
her close in to the harbor mouth at Santiago in another night attempt to grapple the Cienfuegos-Santiago cables. Spanish officers
on shore subsequently stated that the Suwanee was so near the beach
that conversation on board was heard on shore. One again wonders
why Captain Goodrich was allowed to escape alive.
io. From June 22 to June 27, Captain Goodrich had sole charge of
the landing of General Shafter's army, winning great praise for the
navy. The President, in his message, says of this operation, "This
was accomplished under great difficulties, but with marvellous despatch." General Shafter never fails to express his obligation to the
navy and to Captain Goodrich, personally, when he has occasion to
refer to the matter.
1. That Captain Goodrich was not present when Cervera's fleet
was destroyed, is due to his voluntarily staying at Cape Cruz until
word could be heard from the Scorpion, which had gone into Manzanillo, or another ship should arrive to relieve the St. Louis.
12. Captain Goodrich brought Admiral Cervera and nearly 700
other Spanish officers and sailors north. None were killed or
wounded on board the St. Louis, none died and so well were all
treated that Admiral Cervera recorded his gratitude in his letter
of thanks to Captain Goodrich, published by the navy department.
13. The St. Louis took Major General Brooke, his headquarters
and the Third Regiment Illinois Infantry from Hampton Roads to
Porto Rico. General Brooke wrote to Captain Goodrich, "I can
not refrain from expressing to you my gratification at the complete
and comfortable arrangements which were made on your ship
for the transportation of my headquarters and the Third Illinois,
from Fortress Monroe to this point. The uniform courtesy and consideration shown by yourself and officers will also be a pleasant
remembrance of this time of war." Captain Goodrich appears to
stand alone in winning laurels in the transportation of troops.
14. August i, Captain Goodrich, having the Gloucester and Wasp
under his immediate command, demanded and received the surrender of Arroyo, Porto Rico, selected as the landing-place of the First
Army Corps under General Brooke.
15. August 8, Captain Goodrich was transferred to the Newark.
i6. With the Resolute, carrying the marine battalion, Hist, Osceola, and Alvarado, in company with the Newark, Captain Goodrich went through the Barrier Reef on the south side of Cuba and




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through the Inland Sound, some seventy miles of indifferently
known navigation, drawing six feet more water than any ship that
ever before had gone there. He appeared on August 2 off Manzanillo, and demanded a complete surrender. That being refused
he commenced to bombard the place at 3.45 P.M. At sunset he
hauled off the smaller craft - but, from the Newark, kept up an irregular fire during the night. It is creditably [sic] reported that some
three hundred Spanish troops were killed and wounded in the
affair. At daylight, August 13 white flags were seen flying all over
the town, and a flag of truce brought out a telegram from the secretary of the navy, announcing the armistice. Subsequent information proves that the Spaniards had drawn up and signed a letter on
unconditional surrender of the place, its dependencies and several
thousand troops. So near did Captain Goodrich come to achieving
the fourth great victory of the war, Manila, Cervera's fleet, and the
fall of Santiago, being the other three.
IRA  N. HOLLIS TO       SECRETARY      LONG
Lawrence Scientific School
Harvard University
CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS
January 19, 1899
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I send you by mail to-day an invitation to a dinner given in honor
of Admiral Sampson here in Boston. We all hope that you can
be present, and I shall be especially glad to be able to convey the
good news of your coming to our committee having the matter
in charge.
While writing you I find occasion for congratulation in the passage of the personnel bill by the House of Representatives.1 The
practical disappearance of opposition seems to augur well for the
Senate and I sincerely hope that it will go through the Senate. If
you have anything to suggest which can be done from Cambridge
towards its speedy passage I shall be glad to assist. I venture to
add that the most important thing in connection with this bill will
be a practical examination and overhauling of the course at the
1 The chief feature of the personnel bill, enacted March 3, 1899, was the amalgamation of the line and the engineer corps. For discussion of the subject, and
of the line and staff controversy, see Long, The New American Navy, I, 77-88.
For the line point of view see letter of Admiral Selfridge, November 19, 1897; and
for the staff point of view see letter of Chief-Constructor Bowles, December 6,
I901.




I 899 ]


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23 I


Naval Academy in order to put it in the way of carrying out
the ideas suggested in the bill. All reorganizaton must begin in the
school, and if our men are to do good work in the engine room and
on the quarter-deck the fact must be recognized in their education.
I have been tempted to write you that I should be delighted to
serve in any way in connection with a report on the Naval Academy
course, or to draw up some kind of a report for the board of visitors
in the spring. My interest is great, doubly so as I should like to see
the whole project started before your administration comes to
an end.
Yours very truly,
Honorable JOHN D. LONG                     IRA N. HOLLIS
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
CAPTAIN CHADWICK TO SECRETARY LONG
Personal                                   U. S. S. New York
February 3, I899
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
Writing you as requested: I think the admiral's health has decidedly improved in the last few days and I believe his going to
sea in the normal conditions which we shall have, will go a long
way to re-establish it completely. To the great strain of responsibility up to July 3 followed the attitude of so many which in a
large number of cases extended to vituperation. Papers came to
him marked with the most outrageous expressions and even papers
of the class of the Baltimore American spoke of him as a coward. He
never said anything more than " Oh, it will all come right," but it
was not in human nature not to be affected by such things. As you
well said in your letter on this subject, had he been an enemy of
his country, he could not have been spoken of more harshly.
Following this came the very unsympathetic association of the
commission in Cuba.' I need not say much about this, but it was
far from agreeable. These things largely account for his ill condition.
I think the next three months of active duty of the sort he will
have will bring him back in the health in which we should all like
to see him.
I am,
Very truly yours,
Honorable JOHN D. LONG                    F. E. CHADWICK


1 See Admiral Sampson's letter of November 4, i898.




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CAPTAIN    SIGSBEE TO SECRETARY        LONG
U. S. S. Texas
HAVANA, CUBA
February 7, 1899
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
Your recent letter makes it quite clear, that you could not authorize me to retain the piece of railing from the Maine. I was
misled by Goodrich's presentation of a gun to the state house
at Hartford. I note that his case is covered by the statute. I shall
hold the railing subject to your order, and later may request that
it be set up in some government building - perhaps the Naval Academy Library. I regret that the hinges should fall under the ban:
they were not worth more than twenty-five cents as I found them.
It is the work put on them since that makes them what they are.
In choosing I took only what I thought had paltry intrinsic value,
- and nothing for myself except two or three rivets which I have
lost. With cheerful concurrence in your decision I remain,
Yours most respectfully,
C. D. SIGSBEE
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
CAPTAIN    SIGSBEE TO SECRETARY        LONG
U. S. S. Texas
HAVANA, CUBA
February 7, I899
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
May I ask your acceptance - personally - of a copy of my book,
the Narrative of the Maine, which I have requested the Century
Company to mail you. The facts in the book are set forth correctly,
I think, but I fear the literary style is very wooden. I would like
to call your attention to the last appendix and, especially, to that
giving Powelson's 1 discussion of the seat of the originating explosion. He gave to the court facts only: in the appendix he draws deductions. His argument is very able. My book was issued by the
1 Ensign Wilfrid Van Nest Powelson (b. 1872), whose testimony before the
court of inquiry tended to prove that the Maine was blown up by an external
explosion.




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Century [Company] on February 4. It goes to you with my sincere
good will and my full appreciation of your kindness towards me.
Most respectfully yours,
Honorable JOHN D. LONG                          C. D. SIGSBEE
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
HORACE N. FISHER       TO SECRETARY      LONG
60 Congress Street
BOSTON
February 25, 1899
MY DEAR LONG:
There was another dinner in Boston last week in addition to
that of the Home Market Club;1 and very naturally the position of
the President in his speech at the great dinner and subsequent addresses on the following day, was discussed at the Free Trade League
dinner last Saturday, under the general subject for the evening -
" United States in the East." As the guests of the evening, Mr. E. B.
Haskell2 and I spoke in favor of our expansion policy, while the
opposite side was taken by Mr. W. L. Garrison3 and Mr. H. W.
Chaplin,4 members of the club and apparently its exponents.
I have had my address typewritten for you and enclose it with
my compliments: as an appendix you will find the table I promised
you on the "Comparative Value of Latin-American and Asiatic
Trade," which has been carefully prepared: some time since I sent
you my ethnographical chart of America, showing per cent. of
the different races in each of the American countries. I refer you to
it for details as in the sixth point of my argument I state the reasons,
thus proved by three centuries of experience in America, why
there seems to be a paramount natural law governing the colonization and immigration of Caucasian race; that the proportion of
seven-eighths Caucasian in both the north and the south temperate
zones drops to twenty-five per cent. upon entering the tropics
and steadily declines to ten per cent. at the equator, whether it is
approached from the north or the south. Consequently we may assume the rule that, where the Caucasian element is greatly over1 A political club advocating a high protective tariff.
2 Edwin Bradbury Haskell (I837-1907), editor of the Boston Herald.
3 William Lloyd Garrison, Jr., anti-imperialist, secretary of the Free Trade
League.
4 Heman White Chaplin (I847-I924), Harvard College '67, Boston lawyer.




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shadowed by the mixed or native races of the tropics, political
systems of government found suited to the Caucasian peoples of
the temperate zone must be radically modified to suit the condition
of such tropical peoples. Just what modifications are necessary depends upon more accurate information than we at present possess,
but without which it would be hazardous to plan a system of government.
There are, you will observe in the sixth and seventh points of
my argument, two fortunate exceptions to this general rule: that
Cuba and Porto Rico have respectively sixty-five per cent. and fiftyseven per cent. Caucasian in their population, and thus stand upon
a similar race-footing with North Carolina (sixty-two per cent.) and
Georgia (fifty-three per cent.): whence we may feel encouraged in
the belief that those islands may ultimately become fit for selfgovernment in accord with our American ideas of republican government.
In the absence of a Caucasian predominance I believe that experience is unanimously in favor of a strong government, - whether
it be by an oligarchy or by a president-dictator, - as the only prospect of assuring peace, order, and justice. This explains the numerous
"dictatorships," which are synchronous with order and prosperity
in the tropical states of America, which otherwise are in a state of
revolutionary chaos due, I think, to investing their people with
universal suffrage before they are prepared to use that political
privilege wisely and intelligently. If nations or individuals can not
or will not control their passions, they must be controlled by the
strong hand.
In the seventh point -" Common Origin of Local Government
in Spanish America and the United States "-I state the historical
fact that the Anglo-Saxon invasion of England took place at the
same period of the Visigothic invasion of Spain; that these two
peoples were branches of the same race and neighbors in north
Germany; that presumably they had similar customs and ideas of
government; that their local government (and the idea of national
government, properly so-called, did not develop until long after
the fifth century) would probably be traceable to a common origin.
Such, I show in my address, was the fact; the pueblo of Castile
(Gothic Spain) was transplanted in Spanish America, just as the
Anglo-Saxon town was brought to New England by our forefathers.
You will find unanswerable evidence in that part of my address




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of the common origin of the pueblo of Gothic Spain and of Spanish
America, and of the New England town as first organized in Massachusetts: that both were democratic republics, with town officers
annually elected, with town meetings, common mowing-fields, cow
pastures, wood lots, and planting-fields; with house lots of twelve
acres for married and eight acres for unmarried men, held in fee
simple; with public worship supported by town taxation; and the
same general overseers of commons, etc., as we still elect at March
meetings. Thus we find a common original basis for the New England town, from which self-government has been developed in the
United States along the line from school district and town to state
and national government. In Spanish America, the "pueblo," or
town, was the political centre from which radiated the marvelous
success of the Spanish conquerors for the first century after the
discovery of America. Under Philip II popular liberty and local
self-government was suppressed in both Spain and Spanish America,
and the proconsular government of centralized despotism substituted completely in Spain and to a considerable extent in Spanish
America.
Under this new dispensation, the Spanish rubbish of centralized
government can be swept away and thus uncover the sound system
of the original pueblo (still existing in Mexico and Chile and some
other parts of Spanish America), which is the same as our own
original town government; and thence by carefully following the
lines of development which we have followed, the local government of Porto Rico and Cuba may be gradually assimilated to our
American system; and, once in successful operation there, this
adaptation will ultimately spread to other Latin-American countries
and assimilate them to the United States, resulting in a genuine
commonwealth of American nations under the hegemony of the
United States. This would be constructive statesmanship of the
highest type: and this explains what I said in a former letter - " I had
rather have entrusted to me the Americanizing of Porto Rico, than
be President."
Yours truly,
HORACE N. FISHER
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Navy Department
WASHINGTON




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CAPTAIN MAHAN TO SECRETARY LONG
I60 West Eighty-Sixth Street
[NEW YORK]
February 26, 1899
DEAR MR. LONG:
I have to thank you for the copy of Hunker's letter to Southerland. I have read it twice attentively. It is clear that the expedition, so
far as the army was concerned, could not have started on the day
which we were at the time given to understand; i.e., June 8. It
seems equally clear that much delay was occasioned by the telegram of Southerland's report, which was the point I desired to
emphasize. The delay was improved - or more properly was beneficial- in permitting a larger number of troops to go; but I should
say from Hunker's letter there can be no question that delay there
was. This in no way reflected upon the navy at large, and if any
expression of mine seems to imply it, I will to the utmost of my
power correct it. No such impression has ever been in my mind;
but I thought then, and think now, that the precipitancy with which
the report was brought - or, it may be more accurate to say, the
failure to wait till daylight to test an appearance antecedently most
improbable-was a grave fault on the part of the officer. I don't
suppose there was a man on our board who believed the report to
be well founded; but when sent by an officer of Southerland's intelligence, we thought then, and I think now, it would have been
culpable to disregard it. Had that convoy been seriously injured,
we had no army to replace the one it carried.
The precipitation to carry the report, when waiting a few hours
for daylight would have tested the matter, is one of those lessons
which the service should take to heart.
I shall of course be at pains to bring my paper into strict accordance with the facts, as now shown to me. I fear it may be too late to
make the change in my final paper, due to appear April i. What I
say, however, is entirely general, no names mentioned, and the
whole incident treated merely as a military lesson. It is mentioned,
also, wholly incidentally. The date June 8 is really the only thing
out.
Sincerely yours,
A. T. MAHAN




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SECRETARY LONG TO B. F. BROWN
Navy Department
WASHINGTON
February 28, i899
MYDEAR SIR:
I thank you for your kind letter, in which you refer to the
article in the Atlanta Constitution with reference to Admirals
Sampson and Schley.
You are quite right in the impression that this article does injustice to the navy department in accusing it of injustice to Admiral Schley. I am sure the Constitution would not have done this,
if it had been more familiar with the action of the department. It
so happens that the navy department has treated Admiral Schley
with the utmost consideration. It selected him for command of the
Flying Squadron, although he was the junior officer on the list of
commodores. It gave him the opportunity to take that squadron
to meet Cervera's fleet when it was approaching the southern coast
of Cuba, which was one of the great opportunities of the war. After
the battle of Santiago, when Sampson, as commander-in-chief, was
recommended for advancement, Schley, being next in command,
was recommended for advancement with him. The department
has never expressed any criticism of Admiral Schley, unless it be
criticism that when the Senate, at the request, I am informed, of his
friends, called upon the department for a report of the facts, it
reported them in its communication of February 6, and then reported simply the record. Before doing so, it submitted its report
to a board of officers, one of whom was Admiral Schley's flaglieutenant, and they certified that the facts as stated in the report
corresponded with the facts and records of the department. It
is true that the report shows what I think Admiral Schley himself
will frankly admit, that he committed a mistake in retreating from
before Santiago in his original approach to that port, without first
ascertaining, what he would easily have discovered had he held on,
that Cervera's fleet was there. The backward step which he took
at that time starting on his return to Key West caused a great deal
of anxiety to the President and to the department, and I am sure
that nobody now regrets it more than Admiral Schley himself.
You will thus see that the department has treated him, as I said
above, with the utmost consideration. It has been the desire of the
department to avoid all frictions. Although, as Admiral Schley




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once remarked to me, the best of men sometimes make mistakes,
I had hoped that both officers would be confirmed, as I have nothing
but the kindest feelings for each of them. I am sure you will agree
to this when you reflect that the only word that the department has
uttered that could in any way be construed into a criticism of the
officer in question is contained in the report which it was compelled
to make in reply to the demand of the Senate for the facts and
records in his case. You may be sure that Admiral Schley, who is an
officer of long experience, would demand a court of inquiry if he
thought the department had put on record anything that unjustly
reflects upon his discharge of his duties as a naval officer.
Very truly yours,
JOHN D. LONG
MR. B. F. BROWN                               Secretary
3 Goodrich Street
AUGUSTA, GEORGIA
ADMIRAL DEWEY TO SECRETARY LONG
Flagship Olympia
Personal                                             MANILA
March 8, 1899
DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
For over a year I have been in a trying climate with many cares
and responsibilities and now begin to feel the effects. So when the
work of the commission is completed I shall ask to return to the
United States. This I can do the more readily from the fact that
it should cause you little embarrassment, as Captain Barker of the
Oregon, now on the eve of promotion, will be here to take my
place in the interim until my successor can arrive on the station.
Captain Barker is a man of rare good judgment, as you know, and
is in my opinion fully able to act upon any of the many delicate
questions continually arising here.
If you concur, I should like to return to an Atlantic port, via
Suez, and in the flagship Olympia. I need not remind you that the
Olympia was ordered home over a year ago for repairs. The Baltimore now on the station is fully equipped as a flagship, so that the
absence of the Olympia would not leave my successor without one.
I ask this not only for myself but also on behalf of the officers and
men of this ship as a reward for faithful services.
I will, of course, make the above request officially at the proper
time.




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Thanking you for your uniform consideration, and with assurances of my high esteem, I am,
Very truly yours,
GEORGE DEWEY
My successor should leave United States as soon as convenient.
He should be made member of the commission to Philippine Islands.
The Baltimore requires mess outfit for commander-in-chief.
REAR-ADMIRAL SAMPSON TO SECRETARY LONG
U. S. Flagship New York
HAVANA, CUBA
March 9, I899
MY DEAR SECRETARY:
I am sending you a letter addressed to the President in the hope
that it may put a stop to the unseemly discussion regarding my
promotion.
It appears that no matter how clearly you may place the matter
before Congress, even when called for by Congress, such statement
has only produced anger where it was intended to produce conviction. Probably any further argument or reasons would meet the
same fate. I therefore see no other course left but acquiescence and
silence.
I do not ask that anything be done for myself; but I shall deeply
regret that any dislike to me personally should deprive those who
served with me, and to whom I am greatly attached, of the honor
and reward they so justly deserve.
If the enclosed letter meets your approval, I ask you to hand it to
the President.
Yours sincerely,
W. T. SAMPSON
THE SECRETARY OF THE NAVY
SECRETARY LONG TO REAR-ADMIRAL SCHLEY
Navy Department
WASHINGTON, D. C.
March I7, I899
DEAR ADMIRAL:
In view of the suggestion in some of the newspapers that injustice has been done you in the matter of your examination for
promotion, although I am sure you entertain no feeling of that
kind, the department having only followed the usual routine as pro



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vided by law, I shall yet be glad if you will freely inform me if I
am in error in that respect and, if so, in what manner I can make the
method of examination better or more satisfactory.
Very truly yours,
Rear-Admiral W. S. SCHLEY                     JOHN D. LONG
REAR-ADMIRAL SCHLEY TO SECRETARY LONG
The Everett
WASHINGTON, D. C.
March 17, 1899
DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
In reply to your note of this date I beg to say that I am in no way
responsible either by intimation or inspiration of [sic] the suggestion that injustice was being done me in the matter of my examination for promotion, and I am gratified that you should feel sure that
I entertain no feeling of that kind: I would state that you are not in
error in that respect.
I could have no objection to the examination which the department orders upon all officers alike preliminary to promotion, and
I have already presented myself and have been examined by the
medical board at the navy yard, Washington, D. C. Nor could I,
in all fairness to my brother officers who like myself are to be examined for promotion, ask the department to make the method of
examination other than that which has been usual heretofore.
Availing the invitation of your note to freely inform you if
there is any error in this respect to the end that you can make
the method of examination better or more satisfactory, I feel some
surprise that the matter should have become one of controversy.
Very truly yours,
W. S. SCHLEY'
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
SENATOR LODGE TO SECRETARY LONG
United States Senate
Confidential                                 WASHINGTON, D. C.
March 20, I899
MY DEAR GOVERNOR LONG:
I have just finished the most minute study I can make of the
course of Admiral Schley during the war, and I have come very
1 This is the only Schley letter in the Long collection.




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strongly to the conclusion that the only way to settle this matter
properly and clear the public mind is to have a court of enquiry.
I should think you could order such a court for both Sampson
and Schley on the ground of the controversy that has arisen and
the earnest desire of the department to have absolute justice done
to those officers. In that way you will get all the testimony before
the public in a conclusive manner, and I know of no other. Of course
Admiral Schley's failure to ask for a court of enquiry is conclusive to
those who understand the situation, but the public does not understand it, therefore it seems to me that it is of great importance that
the records of both Sampson and Schley should be submitted to an
impartial court.
Sincerely yours,
H. C. LODGE
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
ALEXANDER AGASSIZ TO SECRETARY LONG
Long's Hotel, New Bond Street
LONDON W.
March 22, 1899
MY DEAR SIR:
I take it that you have been informed by the Honorable George
M. Bowers,' United States fish commissioner, that he proposes next
September to send the United States fish commissioner ship Albatross on an exploring trip to the islands of the South Seas in the
Pacific. He has kindly offered me to take charge of the expedition
and to enable me to explore the coral reefs of the paumotus 2 of
the Friendly Islands, the Gilbert and Marshall Islands and on our
way to sound out and explore by trawl and dredge the part of the
basin of the Pacific which we cross and which lies outside the track
of any of the expeditions thus far sent out by the English and German governments.
I look upon this expedition as one of the most important which
has ever been sent out. The Albatross as you know is the best
equipped vessel for such a purpose existing. On a former occasion
when the Albatross was placed at my disposal for three months
off Panama we accomplished more than the Challenger expedition
did in three years in certain lines and a trip of five to six months such
1 George Meade Bowers (1863-I925).
2 British chart, the equivalent of the French official tuamotus.
3 British scientific expedition, i872-I876.




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as is proposed can not fail to be of the greatest importance both from
the hydrographic and the natural history point of view.
My object in writing is to ask your friendly cooperation, for the
success of the expedition must in a great measure depend upon her
officers and crew. The present commander of the Albatross, Lieutenant-Commander Jefferson F. Moser,4 United States Navy, has
had great experience in the handling of all the machinery designed
for sounding and deep sea trawling and I hope it may be possible to
retain him in command at least for this trip as well as such officers
as have served on such work before or have a special interest in it.
As I remember the crew of the Albatross many of them were old
hands at the work and thoroughly familiar with the routine of deep
sea work and naturally I am anxious that the crew of the Albatross
should be men specially selected for their capacity.
Since the expedition of Wilkes in 1843 the United States have
not sent any expedition to the Pacific except the one of the Albatross
in 1891 and I am sure that under favourable conditions the results
can not fail to do honour to the department and the country.
I hope to be in Cambridge again the first of April and expect
to be at Washington in the middle of April and will if you allow
me take the liberty of calling upon you and explaining more in
detail the objects of the expedition as well as the conditions under
which the Albatross has been placed at my disposal by the United
States commissioner of fisheries.
I am,
Yours very respectfully,
A. AGASSIZ5
To the Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
LIEUTENANT STAUNTON TO SECRETARY LONG
U. S. S. New York
KINGSTON, JAMAICA
March 30, I899
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I have to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of March
I i, and to thank you for its kind tone, and for the interest in myself
which you express. I beg that you will believe that I wish no recognition except that due to my professional service and record; fur4 Jefferson Franklin Moser (I848-I934).
5 Alexander Agassiz (I835-19IO), director of the Museum of Comparative
Zoology at Harvard.




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ther that I desire to give to the department's wishes in all respects
the same heed that I give to its commands. I think my record of
thirty-one years' service bears out both of these positions.
I think, Sir, that under the circumstances I should state briefly
my reasons for complaint of the department's action. I can not
" take my case alone " as suggested. The whole question is one of
comparison with similar cases; its professional bearing and importance lie entirely in the difference which has been made between
myself and others of the same service and recommendation.
The navy knows very well that of the considerable number of
officers named for advancement, only a small number had especially and individually distinguished themselves under fire. Excepting a few cases of especial gallantry like those of Hobson, Blue,'
Wainwright, and Winslow,2 the service was good, steady reliable
service on a high plane; always ready for duty and always struggling for a place at the front. This became conspicuous only when
it was connected with brilliant and dramatic successes which commanded the attention of the whole country. These cases, I submit,
stood together and were entitled to the same treatment. If a part
were advanced without reference to the naval promotion board,8
the others should have been so advanced. If some were referred to
that board, all should have been so referred. I have no exception to
take to any construction of the statute which the department sees
fit to adopt, but I think it is incontestable that the construction
adopted should be of uniform application. This, if my information
has been correct, the department has failed to accomplish. Of the
considerable number of officers nominated by the two commandersin-chief all but a few were acted upon directly; and those few were
referred to the naval promotion board which sent back an unfavorable opinion.
This distinction, injurious to myself, was continued to the last.
On August 14, several days after Admiral Sampson's recommendations of July IO had been acted upon by the department and myself
alone refused advancement, Admiral Dewey asked promotion for
Lieutenant Brumby4 on the ground solely of efficient staff service
I Lieutenant Victor Blue (i865-1928).
2 Lieutenant-Commander Cameron McRae Winslow (i854-I932).
3 Board on promotions: Rear-Admirals Sicard, president, Edmund Orville
Matthews (i836-i91), and Charles Stuart Norton (i836-I9ii). See Long, The
New American Navy, ii, 96-98.
4 Thomas Mason Brumby (I855-i899).




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during the campaign. Favorable action was at once taken upon this
recommendation. Later, on September I6, Admiral Dewey requested for the executive officers and chief engineers of his ships
"similar advancement to those of the fleet which destroyed the
Spanish squadron at Santiago de Cuba." Admiral Dewey did not
recommend these officers after the battle of Manila; and not until
he had been informed of the rewards in the North Atlantic Fleet;
and then for the expressed purpose of securing an equitable distribution of favors; and these nominations also were promptly made. I do
not forget, Sir, that you personally disapproved of some of these
advancements; but I do not think that I can be expected to look at
anything but the final result.
I refer in this letter only to officers recommended by name for
reward by the two commanders-in-chief. Men of military training
and tradition attach exceptional importance to such recommendation and regard it as the highest certificate of merit. No one can
judge so well of an officer's worth as the admiral or general under
whose eye and command and responsibility that officer's work
has been done. Especially is this true of an officer of the personal
staff whose duties are intimate and confidential, and do not attach
to any particular ship but to the whole command. The commanderin-chief whom he serves alone can judge in any degree of the
value of his efforts. The members of the promotion board could
not judge - had no means of judging - of the value of my services
during the war, except as they were informed by Admiral Sampson's despatches.
Finally I desire, Mr. Secretary, expressly to disclaim any argument in favor of my own merit or services. Admiral Sampson's
recommendation came to me voluntarily and without my previous
knowledge of his intention. But I can not submit without respectful
protest to action of the department which discriminates in such
a manner as seriously to reflect upon my professional standing. If
I am persistent in my objections, it is for self-defense, and not for
self-seeking. I care little for five numbers; where I stand on the
navy list they are of small moment; but I care a great deal for the
principle which refuses to me what is granted to others of no
greater claim. For as to actual participation in battle the New York
was engaged oftener than any other heavy ship except the Iowa,
and you have yourself stated that the battle of Santiago began on
the first of June.




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It is a gratification to know that many officers of this command,
captains and others, think the admiral's recommendation deserved;
and it is a mortification to know that other officers, not of the squadron, deem the performance of staff duty in the North Atlantic
fleet less excellent than in the Asiatic fleet; - a natural and obvious
conclusion; - for neither to the public at large nor to the navy
was any notification given of a different estimate until February
last, and first impressions are not easily dispelled. Admiral Sampson's despatches of recommendation of July Io were published for
the first time in your communication to the Senate after the removal
of the injunction of secrecy.
I have written frankly, Sir, because I feel that with the compliment of your personal letter, it was due to you as well as to myself;
but I have written with perfect respect, and I hope with entire
propriety. I beg to thank you again, Mr. Secretary, for your kind
letter.
Very respectfully yours,
S. A. STAUNTON
THE SECRETARY OF THE NAVY
WASHINGTON, D. C.
CAPTAIN    CHADWICK TO SECRETARY LONG
U. S. Flagship New York
Personal                                      KINGSTON, JAMAICA
March 31, 1899
DEAR SIR:
I have been so much impressed by the seriousness of the questions
involved in the action of the Senate in the matter of the President's
nominations of certain officers, that I hope I shall not be taken as
going beyond my province in writing this letter. There is much
more than merely the failure of a number of officers to be promoted: the failure of the Senate to act in the circumstances, is, to
my mind, a blow struck at the efficiency of our governmental system itself.
The executive is charged with the discipline and administration of the army and navy and on any proper theory of good
government its efforts toward the discipline and well being of the
service should, under every circumstance, be upheld where possible by both houses and particularly by the Senate. These promotions can properly only be looked upon as disciplinary in char



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acter: not particularly as rewards to individuals, but as incentives
to the service at large,- they must be taken to have been well
considered-to ignore them, and particularly under the circumstances in which it was done, is a step destructive in character, a
step in the direction of the worst tendencies of our system of irresponsibility, an irresponsibility which to my mind we shall find
more and more a serious flaw in our system. It is vain to set up a
department charged with the administration of such a branch as
the navy, and utterly ignore its views without weakening, and most
seriously weakening, authority in general.
I shall not venture to characterize the action of the Senate, but
I am forced to believe that the conduct of a considerable number
of members was probably beyond doubt based upon personal
considerations advanced by officers of the navy, rather than upon
the interests of a great service, and in so far as this was so, it was
directly subversive of the authority of the commander-in-chief
(the President). It is not that officers who thus opposed do not
favor such action in the abstract, but the personal question involved was, combined with their knowledge of the senatorial attitude, too much for their sense of duty and fitness; I have every
sympathy with those who were passed over, I have had so far as
I know, no particular desire for promotion, or if I have had, it has
been largely nullified by the feeling that I did not in any wise
desire it at the expense of others, and I am far from writing this
in any personal sense; but the promotion of officers who have had
opportunity to see active war service and who have acquitted
themselves in particular circumstances so as to meet approval is
in the abstract right, is usual the world over and is desired by the
service at large. If it were not so desired, then we would have lost
all the finer sentiment which should govern a military organization. Certainly it can be stated as a general principle that no senator
has a right to lend himself to such insubordination on the part of
officers as that I have mentioned: he has no right to discredit the
authority of such an administrative department and of the executive
head of the nation, by ignoring their action because some special
protege is not included, and far less has any one in such a body a
right to talk of such a department's having entered into a conspiracy
against a particular officer.
The inability shown to grasp the merits of a particular question
as it was so plainly and succinctly put by the department is too




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astonishing for the naval mind to grasp, but " truth is the daughter
of time " and I have no doubt about its final prevailment.
I speak as I have done above, because I am much impressed by
the Senate's action simply from the point of view of good government. I have long, as have so many, deeply felt the very important
and dangerous defects of our system arising from its irresponsibility,
and the necessity of mending rather than still further weakening
its weak points. Congress should by the plainest dictates of common
sense be chary of discrediting its principal instruments: to do so unless under a stress of great necessity, makes a travesty of government
and can only tend one way, and that a fatal one.
Very truly yours,
F. E. CHADWICK
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
CAPTAIN BARKER TO SECRETARY LONG
U. S. S. Oregon
Personal                                         MANILA BAY
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:                          April 8, 1899
During this cruise I have thought of many things to say to
you but have not carried out my purpose, thus far.
At Guam I wrote a long letter and then tore it up - and sent
none at all, but you have been so kind to Mrs. Barker in your conversations about the Oregon, etc., I must thank you most sincerely.
A few pleasant words go a long way to smooth over difficulties, in
this little world of ours.
First, Guam can be made a fine place. The natives are goodnatured and glad to be under our flag. I am sorry the whole group
was not taken, so that we may have no near foreign powers, and
I suppose if Spain sells her possessions in the Pacific, the other
islands of the Mariana group could be bought for a very little.
I believe they were all surrendered to Captain Glass,' when Guam
was taken.
Our officers were very much pleased with Agania, the principal
city of the island. It was very clean - the cleanest city they had
ever seen, though to do justice to our own officers, I will add that
1 Henry Glass (I 844-1908).




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Commander Taussig2 of the Bennington and the surgeon 3 of that
ship advised the local government what to do to keep sickness away.
It is not easy to realize that ninety-nine years before the Pilgrims
landed at Plymouth, Magellan had landed at Guam!
I fear that the fact that Spanish soldiers will be on the neighboring island, but a comparatively few miles distant where there is
something of a harbor, will be bad for us, i.e. it will make it harder
for a governor at Guam. It is said that the natives are only too
glad to work if encouraged.
On the eighteenth of March I had the pleasure of saluting my
old shipmate Admiral Dewey with seventeen guns. If ever you saw
a pleased man, it was Dewey when the Oregon arrived.
And by the way, Manila Bay is just the place for the Monadnock
and Monterey. No one who sees those vessels in this harbor can
say a word against their efficiency. They can get close in shore
and station themselves in such positions that they ought to beat
off a very large force - much larger than their own. With the
Oregon, Monadnock and Monterey here, Dewey says no foreign
power would dare attempt the capture of Manila. Fighting has been
going on almost every day since we have been here. The Helena
is stationed on the northern flank, the Monadnock on the southern
flank of the insurgents. The Monadnock has fired her guns almost
daily at intervals - her smaller guns - but yesterday and to-day the
insurgents are being driven from their positions.
I think there is but little doubt but that the backbone of the
war has been broken. What vitality there may be in the creature
after its back is broken remains to be seen. We have a splendid
navy yard at Cavite. No one realizes it until he has seen it. Of
course there is a great deal to do among these islands before they
are entirely quieted, but I trust it will not be long before the natives
will see that we are here for their own good.
Admiral Dewey has me with him almost every day. We drive
about the country, in all directions. He seems to be very popular
among the natives, and I admire him for the pains he takes to return
all their salutes, to greet the mothers with a kind word, to pat the
children, etc., etc. He really has a kind heart, and he shows the
natives that he has a regard for them.
Sometimes I think if he could have had five thousand marines, he
2 Edward David Taussig (1847-1921).
3 Passed Assistant Surgeon Eugene Potter Stone (186i-i9i6), Harvard Medical School '84.




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would have been able to manage so that there would have been
no war- but perhaps not. And again, it is very likely it is best
that we have had war. The western soldiers have done splendidly.
They are accustomed to the open air, and they have done excellent
fighting.
Admiral Dewey seems to think that I am to relieve him, but I
tell him I do not see how it is possible, for now that we have eighteen
rear-admirals there will be no more acting admirals, and there
seems to be no prospect of my promotion for a long time yet. I
tell him that so far as I know I am here temporarily until relieved.
He has already given me his rear-admiral shoulder straps! I do not
envy the officer who relieves him. He is a hero in the eyes of the
great American people and woe to any one that succeeds him, if
anything should go wrong.
Although one gets no credit for sea service, in a junior position
(I mean that sea service as a captain does not count for anything
when promoted, but one is expected to go to sea again in the new
grade just the same) still I am perfectly willing to remain here until
the department chooses to relieve me, if the department really
wishes me to stay. I leave it all to you.
Please excuse this rambling letter. I am writing it hurriedly in
order to catch the mail which leaves this morning. Again thanking
you for your kind words to Mrs. Barker and with kindest regards
to the ladies, believe me
Very sincerely yours,
A. S. BARKER
ALLAN D. BROWN TO SECRETARY LONG
Norwich University
NORTHFIELD, VERMONT
April i, 1899
SIR:
I beg leave respectfully to call your attention to the fact that
after correspondence with Admiral Dewey on my part, the trustees
of this institution have decided to erect here a building to be called
Dewey Hall, as a testimonial to the admiral. This project has his
explicit approval conveyed to me in a cable message on January
20 last. It was at this university that the admiral received his first
military education, having been one of her cadets for three years
prior to entering the Naval Academy; he has frequently expressed




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his warm regard for her and has said that " nothing the state could
do for him would give him greater pleasure than to have the legislature vote substantial assistance to Norwich University as in his opinion circumstances have shown the excellent character of the training received by young men here."
We seek to obtain subscriptions from the public at large for
this purpose, believing that no more worthy memorial of the deeds
of the great admiral could be erected. We desire to obtain sufficient
funds not only to erect, but also to maintain, the building in proper
manner, and if you will be good enough to signify your approval
of this plan, I am sure its success will be assured.
Messrs. Atwill and Knox2 inform me by telegraph that they
have this day called upon you in person in the interest of this plan,
and that you have signified your wish that I should address you
in this manner.
Trusting you may be able to render us the assistance we desire
and with many thanks for the kind attention shown to our representatives, I am, Sir,
Very respectfully,
Your obedient servant,
ALLAN D. BROWN3
President
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON
SECRETARY LONG TO ADMIRAL DEWEY
Navy Department
WASHINGTON
April 12, I899
MY DEAR ADMIRAL:
I have your letter of March 8 and am not surprised that you
begin to feel the effects of the cares and responsibilities to which
you have been subjected for more than a year, not only in a trying
climate, but in a most trying crisis of official duty.
I have shown your letter to the President, who joins with me
1 Probably the Right Reverend Edward Robert Atwill (I840-191I ), Episcopal
bishop of Western Missouri, who had lived several years in Vermont and had
given an address at Norwich University.
2 Possibly William Shadrach Knox (I843-I914), M. C. from Massachusetts.
3 Reverend Allan Danvers Brown (1843-1904).




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in hearty appreciation of your work and in sympathy with the
purpose which you express of returning to the United States when
the work of the commission is completed.
I need not say that it is with a great feeling of regret that I
contemplate your coming away from the position in which your
services are so vitally important. I will at once confer with the
bureau of navigation, and meantime will await the official request
which you say you will hereafter make.
With most cordial kind regards, I am,
Very sincerely yours,
JOHN D. LONG
Admiral GEORGE DEWEy, U. S. N.                  Secretary
Commander-in-Chief, Asiatic Station
MANILA, PHILIPPINE ISLANDS
REAR-ADMIRAL PHILIP TO SECRETARY LONG
Navy Yard
NEW.YORK
April 20, i899
SIR:
In reply to your letter of the eighteenth I would submit the following statement.
Upon the recent visit of our President to the southern states, I
read his speeches and remarks in the papers and, with pleasure,
noticed how he referred to all matters connected with the rebellion
of i86i-I 865. I have also been in the South of late and had the pleasure of noticing the great patriotic feeling manifested everywhere.
During the late war we all know the spirit which animated the
southern people and the eagerness with which they responded to
the President's call.
After assuming command of this yard I noticed that the inscription on the ram needed repainting, and that the said inscription
read as follows: " Taken from the Rebel Ram Mississippi." I sent
word to the captain of the yard and the ordnance officer that when
the ram was repainted the word " rebel " should be left out, as I
thought that term no longer existed in our country. This was done
and the inscription now reads: " The Ram of the Mississippi."
There is no definite information here concerning this ram; but
it is said to have been brought to the yard in I 865, and it is probable
that the inscription was then placed upon it, with the approval of
the commandant at that time.




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If I have committed any error in changing the title, which appeared to me inappropriate at this date, I regret the act, and remain,
Very respectfully,
J. W. PHILIP
THE SECRETARY OF THE NAVY                      Conmmandant
WASHINGTON, D. C.
GEORGE BATCHELOR TO SECRETARY LONG
272 Congress Street
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS
April 20, 1899
MY DEAR MR. LONG:
I am moved to write to you some things that I would not say
in the Christian Register. I would write to the President, but probably my letter would never come to his notice, and if it did it would
mean nothing to him. I am a straight Republican, having never
voted any other ticket since the days of John C. Fremont. I am
not an outsider or a kicker. I have some opportunity of knowing
what thoughts are moving in the minds of men, and I am extremely
solicitous for the welfare of the Republican party. I am going to
write therefore, from the lowest point of view as a practical politician, stating a few facts which are daily brought to my notice.
The war in the Philippines is slowly alienating the American
people from the administration. The President's personal popularity
is steadily waning. That which the extreme anti-imperialists are
saying publicly, is slowly in some form taking possession of the
minds of men. The reticence of the President in regard to his policy
is interpreted in two ways: both to his disadvantage. Those who
think he is drifting and trying to find and express the wishes of the
people, say that he mistakes their wishes, and is weekly leading us
to disaster. They who think that he is secretly moved by an ambition to be the first great American expansionist are beginning to
distrust his sincerity. They who believe in him and admire him,
but do not believe in subjugating the Philippines, say that he is
taking upon himself unnecessarily a responsibility which threatens
to overwhelm him.
So great is the change which is coming over the silent people
who are not politicians, that within three or four weeks the unexampled enthusiasm for Admiral Dewey has begun to suffer
eclipse. The change from intense admiration to a negative atti



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rude is very striking. No military personage in the Philippines has
by his exploits excited any popular enthusiasm; no one returning
will be hailed as a popular hero because of military achievements in
the Philippines.
The country is divided into three parties. First those who favor
colonial expansion and advocate it freely. Second those who oppose
it and are vociferous in their denunciation of the government.
Third, a rapidly increasing, silent multitude who will have to be
reckoned with at the ballot box.
I look forward with apprehension to the possibility of a popular
reaction against the administration and the Republican party. The
one thing we may count upon to save us, is the folly of the Democrats. Between Bryan and Croker1 they can not put up any candidate who would win the votes of the Republican party; but if
they were able to unite the Democratic party upon say Grover
Cleveland, they would, in my opinion, catch the votes of one-third
of the Republicans of the United States. The change in the tone
of the religious press during the last month from the expression of
an elated expectation to silence is very striking, and to me ominous
of misfortunes which may befall the party which I have loved and
trusted since its beginning.
Very cordially yours,
GEORGE BATCHELOR 2
Editor
P. S. Since writing the above and letting it lie on my table for
consideration, the decision of Mr. Reed3 has been announced. I
do not know whether he intends to be a candidate or not; but if
the change of feeling which I have described should become more
pronounced six months hence, nothing could prevent the nomination of Mr. Reed. You said in Boston, " It will be a cold day when
the President gets left." Men remember that remark and now begin
to quote it with the addition, "the cold day is coming." As I read
the signs of the times, we are at the beginning of an ominous silence
which may precede a storm. If a reaction comes, the very intensity
of the emotions which accompanied the beginning of the Cuban
1 Richard Croker (I841-1922), leader of Tammany Hall.
2 Reverend George Batchelor (1836-1923), editor of the Christian Register.
Secretary Long's reply was printed in the Christian Register of April 25, i899.
3 Reed's decision to resign from Congress, which took effect September 4, 1899.




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war, will make the revulsion violent and irrational. The word " Algerism" connotes vastly more in the common speech than any
opinion about "beef."' It indicates a cloud which is casting an
increasing shadow upon the administration, and threatens even to
obscure the brilliant record of your department, and by association
to dim the fame of the secretary of the navy, of which Massachusetts
is justly so proud.
CAPTAIN MAHAN TO SECRETARY LONG
I60 West Eighty-Sixth Street
NEW YORK
May 2, 1899
MY DEAR MR. LONG:
As I see the Evening Post of this city is trying to pick to pieces
your speech before the Essex Club,1 I borrow a moment from the
hurry of packing to say to you how much solid common sense
I found in it. Of course I am of your way of thinking, but common
sense, like good taste, is the final verdict of the great mass of sensible
people, and that I am persuaded you have with you. The trivialities
to which the Post is driven, and the calm logic of a respectable
Democratic paper like the Times, alike endorse the course of the
administration.
Sincerely yours,
A. T. MAHAN
EDWARD A. HORTON TO SECRETARY LONG
25 Beacon Street
BOSTON
May Io, I899
MY DEAR MR. LONG:
You have done great good by your address here before the
Essex Club and through the letter published in the Christian Register. No one needs to describe to you the elements in Boston and
the peculiar array of political forces. The excessive language and
the offensive attitude of many who are our friends make the situation at times a little unpleasant. But I feel quite confident a clearer
4 See Senator Lodge's letter of August 8, 1898, note.
1 Celebration of Dewey Day, May i, by the Essex Club, at Young's Hotel,
Boston.




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judgment is fast prevailing with regard to the policy of the administration. I do not say that I rejoice in everything that the administration has done; that would be an astonishing result. But
I have cast what little influence I have in public and private toward
creating a loyal support of the administration at the present time,
especially with regard to the Philippine Islands. You may remember
I said in your own home at Hingham months ago, that I hoped
we should have little to do with that remote territory. But circumstances have led us on, we have followed in good faith, and there
is only one statesmanlike thing to do. That course I believe is
being taken by the administration.
I enclose a clipping from the Transcript which is a slight token
of the kind of discussion which is going on here. You may be interested to know that two of our leading papers have been compelled to change their editorial position by the proprietors of the
said papers. The first was the Herald. Mr. Holmes' is an old friend
of mine, but I was frank enough to tell him I was glad the proprietors brought about this change, though it was undoubtedly a
grief to him. The second and latest example is the Transcript. It
is a curious condition of things that this clipping which I send
you was written at the urgent request of the leading proprietor of
the Transcript. The modification in Mr. Clement's 2 "leaders " has
been caused by the pressure brought to bear by the Transcript
owners because their convictions did not agree with his. I only
mention these things to prove two facts; first, that the men of
affairs, whose judgment we always respect, and who are not mere
theorists, are very much in earnest in regard to supporting the administration. And the second conclusion is that sentiment is changing in this region, and the extremists for peace, and the extravagant
theorists with regard to the rights of the people, are losing ground.
Best of greetings to Mrs. Long and best wishes for you and for
your splendid work at all times.
Sincerely yours,
EDWARD A. HORTON 3
John H. Holmes, editor of the Boston Herald.
2 Edward Henry Clement (1843-1920), Tufts '64, editor of the Boston Transcript.
3 Reverend Edward Augustus Horton (1843-I931).




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HORACE N. FISHER        TO SECRETARY      LONG
60 Congress Street
Personal                                                 BOSTON
May 13, 1899
MY DEAR LONG:
Your kind letter of eighth instant announced the President's
selection of a director of bureau of American republics. If Mr.
Rockhill should decline the appointment, - as did General Hastings, - when he returns from Athens, will you kindly inform me
promptly, for reasons which you may easily imagine from what
I have hitherto written. He was to leave Athens May 6.
It is said that the secretary of state 3 has, through our ministers and
consuls, collected a large amount of information in regard to the
details of colonial government by European powers; and I presume
that it will be published for the use of Congress when it convenes
- perhaps in extra session this fall. I am very desirous of obtaining
a copy of this information at the earliest opportunity, as I have
been studying this subject for the past two years (since Hawaiian
annexation became a living question) and am preparing a paper
for publication on this subject, which I expect to publish in August
or September at the latest.
I will here only outline my idea of the true basis of colonial
government for your consideration, as the most likely to assure
success and permanence. But I should add that, to my mind, there
must be a distinction between the governments of colonies in the
temperate zones (north or south) and of colonies within the tropics
where the Caucasian element is almost invariably largely outnumbered, if not overwhelmed, by the so-called inferior races. It is in
regard to this latter class that my remarks more particularly apply.
It has been very truly observed that Great Britain and Russia
have proved exceptionally successful as " colonizers," that is to say
in governing colonies inhabited by alien and inferior races. This
is largely due to their wise policy of appointing the ablest men of
the native races to positions in the local administration, but under
a centralized civil government in contradistinction to a military
government.
In this respect they have followed the old Roman policy, which
1 William Woodville Rockhill (I854-1914), U. S. minister to Greece.
2 Probably Daniel Hartman Hastings (1849-1903), Pennsylvania lawyer.
3 John Hay (1838-1905).




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was exactly the reverse of the Spanish and French system of filling
colonial offices with men sent out from the mother-country. This
latter system establishes militarism as the corner-stone of colonial
rule, the government of colonies by military proconsuls with military subalterns sent from home, ignorant of, and out-of-touch
with, the natives who are studiedly ignored. Aside from the inevitable corruption of such a system and its reflex action upon the
moral sense of the mother-country, the natural consequence is to
keep the native population in a state of pupilage under military and
often religious task-masters, and their brightest men naturally grow
restive under these essentially foreign rulers and keep up a series
of revolutions, instead of feeling honored by being associated with
them in the burdens and responsibilities of government.
I think you will agree with me that the above diagnosis is fully
confirmed by the course of events in Cuba and the Philippines
during the past half century. And my studies of Latin-American
affairs convince me that this was equally applicable to Spanish
America as the cause of the great uprising at the beginning of this
century.
Secretary Bayard, when I discussed with him the question of
Hawaiian annexation, based his objections to foreign colonies
largely upon the danger of a " proconsular system " as an incident
to such colonies, which (he said) had proved fatal to the continuance of every republic in ancient and modern times which had
held alien colonies.
We know that the system of centralized government introduced
into Spain and her colonies by Philip II not only disturbed the
previous manly vigor and personal initiative of the Spanish race at
home and in America, leading to wholesale corruption, but debilitated the colonies into a condition of hopeless pupilage and ended
in her loss of the colonies, their anarchic condition as states during
a long period and the decline and fall of the once mighty Spanish
monarchy. For generations the name peninsulares has been synonymous with everything bad throughout Spanish America.
We know from Parkman's histories that the French lost Canada
through the shameless corruption of the French proconsuls and
their train of unscrupulous followers.
On the other hand, England and Holland have (for the last half
century at least) sought to govern their Asiatic dependencies by
a carefully selected and trained civil service and have thereby suc



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ceeded in giving them an orderly, just, and progressive government,
under which those peoples have been contented and prosperous.
In i858 the Queen's proclamation to the princes and people of
India set forth this great principle of native cooperation in governmental affairs: viz.
" It is our further will that, so far as may be; our subjects of whatever race or creed be freely, and impartially admitted to offices in
our service, the duties of which they may be - by education, ability
and integrity - qualified to discharge."
That this was not an empty promise, witness these facts:
(I) that in I890 nearly all the civil judges under the superior courts,
and a great majority of the magistrates in courts of original jurisdiction, were natives of India; and that there were a considerable
number of native judges in the appellate courts of Calcutta, Bombay,
and Madras.
(2) that, in 1892, there were seven hundred and sixty-one incorporated cities and towns wherein the public officers were all elected by
the tax-payers and had exclusive charge of roads, sewers, water supply, markets, and sanitation, with the consequent right of making
town by-laws, improvements and of taxation for local purposes.
(3) that this system has been extended to rural communities all
over India, to a greater or less extent as circumstances warrant,
under the Local Self-Government Acts of i882 and i884.
(4) that, in all the larger towns and many of the smaller towns,
the majority of the town officers are natives, in many of them all
are natives.
Thus it happens that with only one hundred thousand Britishborn residents in a population of two hundred and twenty millions
the total military force (European and native) is less [than] one per
one thousand, no more than in the United States: yet peace, justice,
and prosperity reign throughout India.
The acquisition of foreign dependencies brings us face to face
with problems of grave moment as to their government. But, in
entering this new phase of our national life, we have the experience
of centuries to teach us how to bear our new burdens and what
errors particularly to shun. If we heed the lessons learned by other
4 Royal proclamation published at a great durbar at Allahabad, November I,
1858, announcing that the Queen had assumed the government of India. Parliament
had passed the act for the better government of India, transferring the entire administration from the East India Company to the crown.




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nations and adopt the true basis of colonial government, we shall
do a noble work for those distant peoples "for their benefit and
ours, and for the future ages of our posterity" (as Secretary John
Quincy Adams said of the Monroe Doctrine).
Yours truly,
HORACE N. FISHER
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
WASHINGTON, D. C.
T. JEFFERSON    COOLIDGE TO SECRETARY LONG
BOSTON
May 22, I899
MY DEAR SECRETARY:
I have never applied to the President or yourself for a favor of
any description but I shall make an exception in this case as I am
warmly interested in Raymond Rodgers.1 He was my naval attache
when I was minister in France and I found him one of the finest
fellows I ever met: industrious, modest, and able. He is very anxious
to have a separate command and I know nobody more deserving.
He did his duty admirably in the war, as you know. If you would
decide the question yourself and give him a vessel, you would
oblige me besides making an excellent appointment.
Your remarks in Boston against anti-imperialism have, I think,
borne good fruit, Boutwell and Atkinson and Storey do all the
talking, but the heart of Massachusetts is with the President, and
if it came to a vote, the state would support the policy of the administration overwhelmingly.
The whole matter will die out if we continue successful in the
Philippines.
Please excuse the liberty I take in writing to you and believe me,
Very truly yours,
Honorable JOHN D. LONG              T. JEFFERSON COOLIDGE
WASHINGTON
HORACE N. FISHER TO SECRETARY LONG
60 Congress Street
BOSTON
May 31, I899
MY DEAR LONG:
Before you go back to Washington, I should be glad to have a
half hour's talk with you - if agreeable and convenient for you to
1 Commander Raymond Perry Rodgers (I849-1925).




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do so. My object is to present certain results of my investigations
in regard to local autonomy, which may perhaps prove suggestive in
regard to forms, or rather principles of government suitable to be
established in the Philippines.
In general, allow me here briefly to state that our New England
town-government, for the first generation at least after the emigration, bears a most striking resemblance to the Spanish-pueblo system of Castile in the time of Columbus (afterwards changed by
Philip II), which was transplanted into Spain by the Visigoths
simultaneously with the emigration of the Anglo-Saxon race into
England. These two systems of local government-the AngloSaxon and the Gothic-Castilian - had the same source.
The Russian "mir," or town system, has many of the salient
features of the original Anglo-Saxon town system, though it is
a later importation from Asia. Hence we may account for the
solid reflux action of Russia eastward towards the Pacific, where
the mir system finds congenial development. This seems to me a
sufficient explanation of the solid growth of Russia's power in
Asia; it proves that local autonomy in all prudential matters is not
inconsistent with concentrated political and military control, as
we shall presently see exemplified elsewhere.
As we trace our Aryan ancestry back to India, we may naturally
expect to find, in the village communities of India, remnants at
least of local institutions not much different from our own some
centuries back. Led by this reasoning, investigations begun there
half a century ago have led to such startling results that Sir Henry
Maine1 has justly said: -
" For many years the discovery and recognition of the existence
of the village communities of India has ranked among the greatest
achievements of the Anglo-Indian government."
Based upon that discovery has grown the regeneration of India
now in progress, and the development of local self-government
has so rapidly spread since the great Indian mutiny of 857; whereby
elected municipal bodies have the care of roads, drainage, watersupply, sanitation, and markets, with power to make by-laws, public improvements and public expenditures, paying therefor by selfimposed taxes. This applies not only to incorporated towns (which
in 1892 numbered seven hundred and sixty-one with fifteen millions
of inhabitants), but to rural communities all over India.
Thus we behold a general system of elected local self-govern1 Sir Henry James Sumner Maine (1822-i888), author of Ancient Law, etc.








1899]      PAPERS OF JOHN DAVIS LONG                   26i
ments in successful management of their own "prudential" concerns, under an intense concentration of political power; as it is
deemed incompatible to entrust political and military control to a
population consisting of many different races and creeds.
Nor is the participation of the native peoples confined to " prudentials "; for a majority of the civil judges in the lower courts of
original jurisdictions and of the magistrates are natives, while even
in the appellate courts there are not a few native judges.
In like manner the protected Malay States of the Straits Settlements enjoy now, after endless contentions, internal peace and prosperity based upon the same discovery and application of elected
village communities, as in India.
In Java, the Dutch are deriving similar benefits by following out
the same general policy of concentrated political power with local
autonomy in " prudential " matters; and it results that with a population of thirty millions in the Dutch East Indies, only thirty thousand troops are needed, half of them being natives under European
officers; and that, with an independent colonial budget and financial
system, the Dutch treasury does not pay out a farthing unless it
be indirectly for naval operations in the Far East.
The population of the protected Malay States, as well as of Java,
belongs to the same Malay race as the majority of the natives of the
Philippines. Hence it would seem that, by following similar lines of
action and principles of government, a practical form of government
can be devised for the Philippines - say on the following lines:
(i) Local autonomy in prudential concerns under elected native
officials for towns and rural communities.
(2) Perfect religious freedom and equality, for all creeds.
(3) Exemption from religious and from military over-lords.
(4) Prompt, cheap and fair justice, under native judges and magistrates and American appellate courts.
All this under a concentrated political and military control.
The question of the " monastic orders," whose greed, tyranny,
and intrusive intermeddling everywhere has thoroughly alienated
the Filipinos and was the great incentive to their rebellion against
Spain, will require a strong hand and great wisdom and resourcefulness to handle successfully. Under one pretext or another the four
mendicant orders of Spanish monks have appropriated vast landed
estates and reduced to serfdom great multitudes of natives whom
they ruled with a rod of iron; and, being practically in control of
the government, established a system of theocratic despotism and




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cruelty unsurpassed by that of the Spanish inquisition in the Netherlands.
Whence it seems necessary to abolish this system of monastic serfdom and to devise some equitable measures for the restoration of
their landed estates to the colonial public use. Perhaps the Chilean
method of meeting this evil might be applicable with such modification as the different circumstances might require; or the system
devised by Cavour, whereby the monastery lands in Sardinia were
taken by the crown in trust, their income being divided into three
unequal parts, - one to pension aged monks and nuns, the second
for public education, and the third for works of internal public
improvement (such as railroads).
There is still another system of local government of extreme
interest, which seems of practical application. I refer to the mura,
or village system of Japan, each consisting of (say) some fifty
neighborhood groups called kumi, - five families each; each kumi
being responsible for the misdeeds of any member of the five households, much as with the Anglo-Saxons. Indeed a study of the mura
system reminds one of the old Anglo-Saxon system; each had its
" watch and ward," its " hue and cry," its common planting fields
and commons of pasture, its common granary and its obligation to
care for its poor and its orphans and its responsibility for "all
within its gates." Each developed a similarly complete system of
democratic self-government and of the responsibility of the individual to society.
This outline of my ideas can be developed if you desire it.
Yours truly,
Honorable JOHN D. LONG                       HORACE N. FISHER
HINGHAM, MASSACHUSETTS
CAPTAIN     MAHAN     TO   SECRETARY LONG
International Conference at THE HAGUE1
Commission of the United States of America
June 7, I899
MY DEAR MR. LONG:
This morning's papers tell us that the question of maintaining
offensive operations in the Philippines has been under consideration
1 The Peace Conference at The Hague met May I8, 1899. American commissioners: Andrew Dickson White (1832-1918), Yale '53, U. S. ambassador at
Berlin; Seth Low (1850-1916), Columbia '70, president of Columbia University;
Stanford Newel (I839-1907), Yale '6i, U. S. minister at The Hague; Captain A. T.
Mahan, U. S. N.; Captain William Crozier (b. 1855), U. S. Army; secretary, George
Frederick William Holls (1857-1903), Columbia '78.




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by our government; and one, the Mlianchester Guardian, states that
they were to be suspended. This, however, is contradicted by the
Standard, which I believe and hope is better informed.
I feel it to be somewhat presumptuous to intrude my opinion, unasked; but the trust with which you honored me last year leads me
to hope I may be forgiven for saying, that, from the point of view
of general military principle and experience, in dealing with enemies
of this character, the decision would be disastrous, and if in the
particular case the commander on the spot favors continuance in
offensive movement, all reasons would combine to adopt his view.
The effect of inaction upon our own troops would be demoralizing, especially as they are largely new to the habits of disciplined
endurance; while relaxation would not only encourage the immediate enemy, but its influence would not unlikely be felt among
the ill-disposed in Cuba and Porto Rico.
I doubt if our public at all realize under what odds we have been
contending in Luzon. I do not refer to numerical shortness, though
that there has unavoidably been, but to the comparative rawness
of our troops, a condition which must still last some time; for our
best regulars, though admirable material, (I am here quoting the
opinion of Colonel Lee,2 the British attache), are still only recruits.
This difficulty is the inevitable result of a large task thrown upon a
nation that has heretofore maintained a very small army. It will
diminish with every month, and when our men are aguerri, to use
the expressive French word, they will handle the business decisively.
I have never seen any reason for discouragement in the military
conditions; while, as regards the political considerations inseparable
from a popular form of government, I am satisfied that steady persistence in aggressive advance will most surely lead to the success
which people too impatiently desire.
It may interest you to know that, meeting Mr. Low casually
this morning, he remarked " I don't like the news from the Philippines." He had see the Guardian, which is regularly sent to each
of us. I then told him what the Standard said, at which he expressed
himself relieved, and upon my saying I thought of writing to either
you or Mr. Hay, he said he hoped I would, and to my inquiry replied he had no objection to being quoted. The opinion of this
eminent civilian, joined to my own, is I hope but one of many the
President is receiving.
2 Lieutenant-Colonel Arthur Hamilton Lee (b. i868), British military attache
at Washington.




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I have written with the view that you show this letter to the
President, if you thought proper. May I add that in case serious
doubt arises, I hope that General Francis V. Greene, who was last
year in Luzon, may be consulted. He is a man who to great brilliancy of intellect, and military acquirement, adds unusual energy
and sound judgment.
With much esteem,
Sincerely yours,
A. T. MAHAN
Army officers used to say that our western Indians began to be
thoroughly overcome only when our troops gave up the habit of
winter quarters, and followed the savages through the bitter winters
of the plains.
CAPTAIN MAHAN TO SECRETARY LONG
International Conference at THE HAGUE
Commission of the United States of America
June 7, I899
MY DEAR MR. LONG:
I have received an application from a Russian officer for detailed
information concerning the course at the War College in its development and present condition. I replied that this could best be
shown by successive reports of the presidents of the college, and at
his request I undertook to ask that copies should be sent him for the
last ten years if possible. They are included in the yearly reports
of the bureau of navigation, until the college was transferred to the
assistant secretary.
Would you give directions that they be sent as far as possible,
from and including I886? The officer's rank and name is, Lieutenant
de Vaissian Ovtchinnikow, and I would suggest sending through the
Russian embassy at Washington.
Very truly yours,
A. T. MAHAN
If there should seem any irregularity in sending through the
embassy data, for which the request had not come through the
embassy, the package addressed to Lieutenant Ovtchinnikow at
the department of marine, St. Petersburg, would doubtless reach
him.
They wish to establish a college of their own, with which this
officer is to be associated.




1899]      PAPERS OF JOHN DAVIS LONG                    265
CAPTAIN CHADWICK TO SECRETARY LONG
U. S. Flagship New York
Personal                                 NEWPORT, RHODE ISLAND
June 28, 1899
DEAR SIR:
I beg to ask if the question of raising the Colon may not be again
taken into consideration? She lies structurally intact and in a situation where she can, in my belief, be successfully handled. It will
be a difficult job of course. It would require an effort of about
thirty-eight hundred tons to lift her upright, if no aid were exerted
by using the ship's compartments. The apparatus would be costly,
and the whole expenditure would be large, but the result, if the
ship be successfully floated, would be worth much, not only from
the sentimental point of view, but from the material.
No wrecking company now in this country is, in my opinion,
equal to the work.
I would beg to suggest an examination of the situation by such a
man as Naval Constructor Bowles. I believe he is fitted by knowledge and temperament, not only to give a trustworthy opinion, but
to do the work if it be possible.
The ship may lie there, if her rescue be not attempted, a hundred
years, and if so left without a real effort to float her, will be a reproach to us.
Very truly yours,
F. E. CHADWICK
The Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
JAMES BRADLEY THAYER TO SECRETARY               LONG
BAR HARBOR
July 6, I899
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
Yesterday I received by registered mail the valuable " Messages"
of all the Presidents to I897. These must have come from you in
answer to my inquiries of a short time ago. I am very much indebted to you for them and for your kind attention. The books will
be very useful to me.
I have just been reading our friend Dole's1 letter to the President, - of June i6. It is a thing to make a man that likes him, as I
1 See Mr. Dole's letter to Secretary Long, dated December 5, I898.




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do, pretty melancholy,- so unconscious is he of the true character and conditions of the problem, so naively superior in his
morals, and so assured that others are wrong and do not understand
what he perfectly understands, - or rather misunderstands.
One of the best results of the new state of things will be that
of putting a backbone into our people's ideas of government. It
is astonishing to see with what foolish literalness many sensible
people are applying our fundamental political maxims, and how
ignorant they are of the simplest principles of international dealings and of the notions of political sovereignty.
Have you, or has the President, conferred ever with the Japanese minister2 as to their experience in Formosa? He and his friend
Kaneko3 were at Cambridge the other day. Komura is, of course,
reticent, but Kaneko talks freely and in a very interesting way on
this matter. He thinks, and I was much impressed by what he said,
that we might well profit by their experience. The situations have
strong points of resemblance. Both these men were graduates,
twenty years ago, at our law school.
Truly yours,
J. B. THAYER4
RICHARD HARDING DAVIS TO SECRETARY              LONG
MARION, MASSACHUSETTS
July 23, [I899?]
MY DEAR MR. LONG:
On my return from Europe I find among my newspaper clippings a certain number which refer to a statement I made here
before I went to London in the course of a reading I gave at the
Congregationalist church, on the "Santiago Campaign."
It was to the effect that when the Spanish fleet was in Santiago
Harbor, Admiral Sampson desired to enter the harbor, and attack
the fleet, and that he was restrained from so doing by you.
As usual, those papers which support Admiral Sampson applauded
his desire, and those opposed to the administration criticised the
secretary of the navy.
The matter is not important, and it may be that it has not reached
you, but if it has, I sincerely hope that you will understand that I
2 Jutaro Komura.
3 Kentaro Kaneko.
4 Professor James Bradley Thayer (183I-I902), Harvard Law School, Harvard
College '52.




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made the statement on excellent authority, that I thought the facts
showed the spirit of the admiral, and the judgment of the secretary
of the navy, that it reflected credit on each, and that had I supposed
the statement would be twisted into a criticism of either, I would
not have made it.
The reading was a talk to a few of my fellow townspeople, which
I gave to help pay for the church organ, or to paint the walls, or
for some other innocent purpose, and in view of your recent
courtesy to me in regard to the new book on navy uniforms, I am
sorry to have been represented as making a criticism upon you and
the admiral, when I intended a compliment.
I am sincerely yours,
RICHARD HARDING DAVIS
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
CAPTAIN MAHAN TO SECRETARY LONG
Slumberside
QUOGUE, LONG ISLAND
August 2I, I899
MY DEAR MR. LONG:
My recollection of the incident is as follows:
General Shafter had telegraphed that the Spanish commander
offered to surrender Santiago, upon the condition that the garrison
should be at liberty to march out and go where it chose. Both
Shafter and Miles approved, under the conditions existing, and
their telegrams to that effect were before the council, whom the
President had called - among whom were several members of the
Cabinet, yourself among them, our board and some army men. I favored the proposition myself, considering that the place was what
we then needed chiefly, and also because of Miles's and Shafter's
opinion, who were on the spot, and I understood most of those present to hold the same view; but the President was very emphatically
opposed to it - indeed vehemently, and in speaking of the surrender
I have for that reason always said since that it was owing to the
President - primarily, and to no one else - that the Spanish demand
was rejected. I think, however, that he was going to yield, not because of his own change of mind but in acquiescence with the
weight of professional opinion, when it occurred to me, and I suggested, that to surrender and to return to Spain would meet all
our requirements, and perhaps be acceptable to them. The matter




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was settled, and the telegram to our general drawn up (if not sent)
before we broke up, so there is no possibility of its having originated
outside. As regards my part in it, I began to suspect my own memory, and wishing to reinforce it, I went to you a very few days
after, and asked, "Do you recall who it was in the council suggested the Santiago garrison being allowed to return to Spain? "
You replied at once and without hesitation, "Yes, it was you."
This was before you left Washington, and you did not return until
after I left. As I said, I have had no desire to have the facts made
public, but I do object to the credit, if such there be, being attributed to another by the public and in history.
The telegrams would very probably establish the sequence of
action, and the time of sending them. I suppose they are on record
with their dates.
This seems a fitting time to suggest to you, that the navy department should insist upon [that? ] the rules for adapting the Geneva
convention1 to maritime war, passed by the peace conference,2
should undergo the scrutiny of its law officers. I formulated certain
objections to them, and proposed amendments, for which I could
obtain no support; but I am quite sure I was right, and I should
regret to think that our government should accept this work (formulated in ten articles) without careful consideration of the articles
themselves, and of my comments upon them. Our delegation left
them unsigned, pending the decision of our government upon them.
Sincerely yours,
A. T. MAHAN
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
HENRY L. HIGGINSON TO SECRETARY LONG
44 State Street
Personal                                             BOSTON
September I, i899
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
When General Leonard Wood was in Washington, just at the
beginning of July, the President kindly spoke of an order instructing him to establish a liberal school system in eastern Cuba, that
is to say, in the portion of the island under his command. Thus far,
no such order has been received by General Wood, and it is easily
1 Geneva Cross Convention, August 22, 1864, signed by the United States,
March i, i882.
2 The Hague Conference of I899.




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understood that the President and all of you have been too busy
to think of it. Would you consider it wise to bring this matter to
the President's notice and ask if he will issue such an order in case
he sees fit?
General Wood, when here, was very urgent that a liberal school
system should be established at once and said that if we could help
him to books for the school, we should do a great service. Some
of us have therefore been getting together money to buy these
books. We promised him ten thousand dollars and shall endeavor
to carry the sum higher than that amount.
Will you kindly act in the matter as you see fit, and much oblige,
Yours truly,
HENRY L. HIGGINSON
Of course that which would seem to me best, is an order empowering General Wood to do as he sees best.
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Navy Department
WASHINGTON, D. C.
CAPTAIN MAHAN TO SECRETARY LONG
QUOGUE, LONG ISLAND
September 27, i899
MY DEAR MR. LONG:
I received yesterday a letter from Mr. Low, in which he says
that he told the President last week that, while he did not " venture
to differ from me, as to the technical aspects of the Geneva Cross
Convention," as adapted to maritime warfare,' in the "Ten Articles " recommended by the Hague Conference, he " thought it had
a public and non-technical aspect which demanded careful consideration, and would lead me [him] to sign it."
Personally, I care little about the matter, although I have recommended non-concurrence. I wish chiefly to have no more bother;
but I suppose I ought, in view of this act of Mr. Low, to write
something to you.
The ten articles have two principal bearings: i - upon hospital
ships belonging to belligerent powers, and flying their national
flag; 2- upon vessels of the same kind belonging to neutral states,
and flying the flags of the latter, but benevolently attending belligerent fleets. The articles contain, besides, provisions to meet the
1 See Captain Mahan's letter of August 21.




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case of neutral vessels carrying sick or wounded belligerents, or
picking them up.
To the provisions concerning the first class I had, and made, no
objection. Concerning the others I formulated very carefully certain objections, which appear to me incontestable, and of which
the Deerhound and Alabama incident gave a very concrete illustration.2
As all this is fully set forth in my reports to the commission,
and in papers submitted by the latter, there is no need for me to
repeat here. I have already recommended to you that the international legal aspect be reviewed by the legal authorities of the department. I venture now to suggest to you that the views of the
latter, and possibly my own report, etc., to the commission-in
short the general subject of the neutral flag authorized on a scene
of naval warfare - be submitted to Dewey and Sampson, with another flag officer or senior captain.
The United States will never need neutral hospital ships. Their
presence will certainly incommode rather than benefit us; and as
regards other neutral vessels, I would have such a board consider
the embarrassment of neutral press-boats, which are going to be
more troublesome even than war correspondents on shore, because
it is so much more difficult to define the limits of belligerent naval
local control than it is of military.
I don't believe our people will care a rap how our government
decides upon this question of neutral hospital ships on a field of battle. Where not wholly cranky, (you should have heard some of the
ideas), it is largely academic. It is most unlikely that there ever will
be such neutral hospital ships; but there will be other neutral intermeddling, which, unless controlled by previous definitions, will do
more harm than good.
I can't quite understand Low's point of view, but I have little
congenital aptitude for getting into line. " Be sure you're right, then
go ahead," is a motto not only simple, but on the whole most apt
to win - even with the populace. There are, I conceive, grave military inconveniences, and consequent international difficulties between neutrals and belligerents, - possibly most embarrassing to the
latter, - to be apprehended, unless further definitions be adopted,
2 When the Confederate cruiser Alabama sank, after her battle with the Kearsarge, June I9, I864, Captain Semmes was rescued by the British yacht Deerhound
and, although he had surrendered, allowed himself to be taken to England and
escaped.




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in the sense of the recommendations we tried to carry in the conference. You yourself must remember that during the late hostilities
the action of neutral powers, and the avoidance of occasion of
offence to them, had to be constantly in our minds. Is it wise,
is it just, to lay up additional causes for such anxieties for the future,
in order to avoid in the present a possible grumble among our
people? I personally do not believe discontent can arise on such a
subject; there is more fight than compromise just now in the air;
but in any event, the opinion of officers recently in responsible chief
command, which they have borne with conspicuous ability, can
not fail to contribute valuable light to the government in forming
its decisions upon this question of extending neutral immunities,
in a manner likely to cause hereafter international friction.
Very truly yours,
A. T. MAHAN
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
THEODORE ROOSEVELT TO SECRETARY LONG
Fifth Avenue Hotel
NEW YORK
September 28, 1899
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I thank you most heartily for yours of the twenty-seventh. You
are more than kind. I think I can understand the reasons.
Would it be convenient for you to have the Dolphin in Oyster
Bay on Monday afternoon next? If not, where shall I meet her? If
you will tell me where to telegraph her commander, I won't bother
you with another word.
By the way, do you recollect how you used to lecture me on
showing a proper spirit towards England! You see I have learned
a good many lessons in the last year and a half.
On Tuesday I shall be on at the President's dinner to Dewey, and
I hope I shall have the chance of seeing you. There are one or
two matters I should very much like to talk over with Mr. Allen,
if I were able to see him that afternoon. There is no need of my
bothering you about them.
With hearty thanks to you and the President, I am
Very sincerely yours,
THEODORE ROOSEVELT'
'This letter, evidently a copy, is written in long hand but not in Roosevelt's
handwriting, nor is the signature his.




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EDWIN GINN TO SECRETARY LONG
9-13 Tremont Place
BOSTON
October 4, 1899
MY DEAR MR. LONG:
Mr. Alexis Everett Frye,1 the author of our series of geographies,
tells me that he has been requested by General Brooke,2 through the
secretary of war, to go to Cuba in some capacity connected with
education, and Mr. Frye will report to Secretary Root3 Friday
noon of this week. I should like to say a word in regard to Mr. Frye
and to ask you as a favor to see Secretary Root personally if possible,
before Friday noon, and lay before him the facts which I shall give
you, in regard to Mr. Frye's fitness for educational work. In this way,
he may be started in the work in a broader way than would otherwise be the case. Mr. Frye is one of the most successful educators and
authors of school-books in the United States, and his services will
be invaluable to Cuba if he is given latitude in which to work. Perhaps your introduction will start him in the right way with the
authorities. They certainly will make no mistake in giving him all
the responsibility he is willing to take.
Mr. Frye is willing to serve in any capacity, as I understand it,
but I should like to suggest, if I may, his eminent fitness to act,
for instance, as director of schools with the work of organizing
a school system. President Eliot of Harvard has said that he knows
of no man better qualified for this work than Mr. Frye. Mr. Frye
would be specially interested, I think, in the industrial, the practical
side of education. He is enthusiastic over the possibilities in Cuba,
and two days ago, in half an hour, obtained pledges of money gifts
for erecting six school-buildings on the island. I have no doubt that
if set free to do the work there, he would not stop until he had
built a school-house in every village and town in Cuba.
Mr. Frye is a graduate of the Chicago Normal School; a graduate
of Harvard University with the degree of A. M.; a graduate of the
Harvard Law School and a member of the Massachusetts bar. He
has taught every grade from the primary through the high school;
has been a teacher of methods in the Chicago Normal School; a
city superintendent of schools in California; and has given over
1 Captain Alexis Everett Frye (1859-1936).
2 John Rutter Brooke (1838-1926), Governor-General of Cuba.
3 Elihu Root (I845-1937), secretary of war.




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fifteen hundred lectures on education, lecturing in nearly every
state in the Union. He is the author of a series of public school textbooks.
I send you a set of his geographies, and I may say that through
these books Mr. Frye is now directing the work of nearly two
million children and nearly one hundred thousand teachers. One
of the books, the Elements, has been translated into Spanish and is
authorized for the schools of Puerto Rico, and both English and
Canadian editions of the complete book have been made.
We are selfish enough to wish that Mr. Frye would stay here and
write other books which we have asked him to prepare and which
if as successful as his geographies would be worth thousands of dollars to us and a small fortune to himself, but he prefers to leave
all and serve the country in Cuba without pay and in any capacity.
Under the circumstances, we can not ask him to stay.
I enclose a photograph of Mr. Frye. You can gather something
of the man from this. I may add that I have never known any one
with a greater capacity for hard work.
I hope it may be possible for you to see Mr. Root personally;
but if it is not, may I ask that you will turn this letter over to him,
letting him know at the same time that you know me personally?
Sincerely yours,
EDWIN GINN 4
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
WASHINGTON, D. C.
COMMANDER WAINWRIGHT TO SECRETARY LONG
United States Naval Academy
ANNAPOLIS
October 13, I899
DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
A friend sent me a copy of your speech 1 before I received one
from you. I showed it at once to my wife and we agree that such
very high praise, from the head of the navy during the war, given
so publicly, was of far more value to me and mine than any number
of banquets and swords.
I assure you that I feel deeply grateful for such favorable mention
of the services of the Gloucester, under my command. I have felt
4 Edwin Ginn (i838-I914), Boston publisher and founder of the World Peace
Foundation.
1 Speech at Chicago, October 9.




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that my personal satisfaction, in being in the fight at Santiago, was
sufficient reward for my part in the action, and now your speech
has left me nothing to wish for in connection with the war, except
that the country should appreciate more thoroughly the services
of Admiral Sampson.
Very truly yours
RICHARD WAINWRIGHT 2
CHARLES FRANCIS ADAMS TO SECRETARY LONG
23 Court Street
Confidential                                         BOSTON
October 13, I899
MY DEAR GOVERNOR:
You remember, some time ago, I wrote to you, enclosing an extract from a private letter I had just received from Frank Millet.
You acknowledged it from Kittery, I believe.
Yesterday I got another letter from Millet, and enclose you a
copy of a portion of it which, it seems to me, may be of interest to
you and to the other members of the Cabinet, including, possibly,
the President.
The Philippine question is so remote and at arm's length, that
any information in regard to it from a private and reliable source
can not be otherwise than of value. You probably know Frank
Millet. I never met either the President, or Secretary Root, and
have no idea that they know Millet. Accordingly, I prefer to communicate with you.
I want to suggest to you, would it not be possible for the government to avail itself of the services of Millet in this Philippine
situation? He is quite a remarkable fellow, thoroughly reliable,
with large experience among men, and a singular capacity for dealing with them. I should have great confidence in his judgment.
Now, if, among you, you could arrange to send him to the Philippines in some confidential capacity, either as a special agent of the
treasury, or war department, or otherwise, you would have, in
my judgment, a much more reliable source of forming opinions as
to the condition of affairs there and the wisest course to pursue,
than ordinarily falls to the lot of those compelled to direct important
affairs from such a great distance.
This is, of course, a confidential communication. The extract
2 Commander Richard Wainwright (I849-1926).




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I send you from Millet's letter you are welcome to use in any way
which commends itself to your judgment, not implying publicity.
As for the suggestion, it is wholly mine; but I should not make it
if I did not know that Millet would be strongly inclined, if opportunity offered, to go back to the Philippines, and if I was not
also well satisfied that, if there, he would prove a very valuable government agent.
Leaving the matter thus confidentially as a suggestion merely
for your better consideration,
Believe me, etc.,
CHARLES F. ADAMS1
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
EXTRACT
"The Philippines still interest me. I hope they won't send Merritt 2 back. No greater disaster could be imagined. He is absolutely
incapable of service there, good soldier as he is. The problem is not
essentially a military one, it is largely a task which demands tact, experience with the world, and sound judgment in matters of the
racial differences, the religious questions and the traditional rights
of the people. In these respects Merritt is absolutely devoid of the
necessary qualities and if he goes there again, it will be a decided
setback. Otis 3 is a good man for organization, and, having a legal
mind, is doing great work, I think, in establishing order out of the
Spanish chaos. In his campaign he was not over successful for many
reasons which are perfectly apparent to me, and which do not
change my estimation of him for I know pretty well what he had
to do. Merritt left him a ruinous legacy."
SECRETARY LONG TO REAR-ADMIRAL SAMPSON
Navy Department
WASHINGTON
October 2o, i899
DEAR ADMIRAL:
Will you explain to me why you have done what, unexplained,
seems to be a most injudicious and an unnecessary opening of a
1 Charles Francis Adams (1835-1915).
2 Major-General Merritt's administration provoked violent criticism in the
United States.
3 Major-General Elwell Stephen Otis (1838-1909).




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contention with General Shafter and the army. I can not believe
that you would deem it of much importance that Captain Chadwick
should have done the literary work of writing a letter which became Shafter's the moment Shafter signed it. But I wish especially
that you would advise me whether you have been correctly quoted
in the interview, which was published in the Boston papers; whether
you made the reflection there attributed to you upon the capacity
of an army officer to write such a letter as the one referred to, etc.,
etc. As the matter now stands in the public mind, it is most unfortunate.
Truly yours,
JOHN D. LONG
Secretary
Rear-Admiral W. T. SAMPSON, U. S. N.
REAR-ADMIRAL SAMPSON TO SECRETARY LONG
BOSTON
October 22, I899
DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
At a late hour last night, I received your letter of the twentieth
and make haste to send reply.
I do not understand your reference to the remarks which I made
on the occasion of Captain Chadwick's sword presentation.l Probably I have not carefully read the papers to which you refer. There
was no thought in my mind of any possible contention with General Shafter or the army, and no thought of implying that an army
officer has not the capacity to write such a letter; except that
General Shafter from an army officer's point of view could not
understand the bearing which the late naval operations had upon
the question involved, and therefore did not know - until Captain
Chadwick told him - what was his great advantage over the enemy.
He was discouraged and ready to fall back. Captain Chadwick's
statement made him change his mind, and he put the fact so well
in his letter, which he wrote, and which Shafter so promptly used
without alteration, that I thought the story a complimentary one
to tell to Chadwick's friends that day at Morgantown. This I was
glad to do, among other remarks of a complimentary nature, quoting the despatch of July 6, I898, as merely a specimen of Chadwick's good judgment and reliability when acting independently.
1 At Morgantown, West Virginia, Captain Chadwick's birthplace.




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Not for one instant did I imagine that Shafter would deny the
authenticity of the despatch. It was unnecessary to do so. It has
long been published as his despatch and with perfect propriety:
and this I was careful to explain when I read the despatch.
Hoping this explanation will be clear and adequate, I am, Sir,
Very respectfully yours
W. T. SAMPSON
SECRETARY ROOT TO SECRETARY             LONG
War Department
WASHINGTON
October 23, 1899
MY DEAR GOVERNOR:
I return herewith, after reading with interest, the letter of Mr.
Charles Francis Adams, and the extract from Mr. Frank Millet's
letter. I know Millet very well, and have a very high opinion of
him. I should be glad to talk with you and the President at Tuesday's
meeting on this suggestion.
Faithfully yours,
ELIHU ROOT
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
[Enclosures]
HORACE N. FISHER       TO SECRETARY      LONG
BROOKLINE, [MASSACHUSETTS]
October 29, 1899
DEAR LONG:
How few of us at our class dinners could have dreamed of John
Ropes as the one whom we should next be called upon to follow to
the grave. No better, nor purer, nor more patriotic man was in our
class and we shall greatly miss him as long as any of us gather for
class reunions, wherever they may be held. He is to be buried at
noon to-morrow from Trinity church.
Carl Schurz's anti-imperialist speech at Chicago has been carefully studied by me, at the request of John Candler2 originally and
1 Dated October 13, 1899.
1 Carl Schurz (i829-906). The speech was delivered at a national meeting of
anti-imperialists at Chicago, October 17.
2 John Wilson Candler.




278        PAPERS OF JOHN DAVIS LONG                [1899
subsequently of others including Senator Lodge; my criticism of it
is said to be conclusive in exposing its fallacies - not to use a harsher
term. It will be published verbatim over my name in the Boston
Journal to-morrow or Tuesday, and I will send you advance proofs
for such use as you may deem best. Perhaps republication in Ohio
might prove timely.
Yours truly,
HORACE N. FISHER
P. S. Mr. Clement, editor of the Transcript, told me yesterday that
Mr. Schurz considered this speech of his the crowning work of his
life, his magnum opus.
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
WASHINGTON, D. C.
COMMANDER MERRELL TO SECRETARY LONG
U. S. S. Montgomery
PERNAMBUCO, BRAZIL
October 31, I899
SIR:
In connection with my report of the twenty-eighth instant relating to the cruise of the Montgomery to the African coast, the
following, which would be somewhat out of place in an official report, may be of interest and is therefore submitted in this informal
way for what it may be worth.
The current opinion among the white people both in Monrovia
and Sierra Leone seems to be that the Liberian republic can not last
much longer unless it receives support from some other and stronger
government. It is said that the country is hopelessly insolvent, that
its customs revenues are mortgaged for years to come for one purpose or another, that the moral support of Great Britain and the
United States is all that has kept the government from going to
pieces long before this; and that corruption among the Liberian
officials is the rule and not the exception.
The general opinion seems to be that both France and Germany
have an eye on the territory of the republic; Germany for the
reason that the greater part of the trade of the country is German,
and France because she already has possession of all the country
back of Liberia and desires to advance her holdings to the sea.
At Monrovia I heard rumors of the existence of a secret treaty
between France and Liberia providing that, in case the present gov



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ernment of Liberia should cease to exist, the territory of the republic is to be ceded to France. This rumor probably grows out
of the following which I was informed at Sierra Leone, by good
authority, is undoubtedly true; viz., that in connection with the
last boundary treaty between France and Liberia, France gave
notice that in case Liberia ever should cede any part of her territory
to a foreign government, France would claim Cape Mount and
other points on the coast, basing this claim on alleged cessions from
the aboriginal African tribes ante-dating those made to the American Colonization Society, under which, as I understand, Liberia
holds title.
I enclose a clipping' from the Mail (London) of October 6,
which bears on the matters presented above.
Very respectfully,
JOHN P. MERRELL
The Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
FITZHUGH LEE TO SECRETARY LONG
Westmoreland Club
RICHMOND, VIRGINIA
November 20, 1899
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I am glad to hear you liked my book.' Of course it was written
from a southern standpoint. I gave a copy to Mr. Root also and express the hope that he may find it is " written in a generous spirit " -
as you did. I was very sorry to hear of your daughter's sickness and
trust the change of climate may prove beneficial. I sent you a copy
of Captain Stevens's report made to the Ward Company on the
night of the disaster to the Maine. Secretary Root talks of running
down to Cuba this winter. I wish you could do so too. You could
then see for yourself the wreck and harbor.
It was Sir Walter Raleigh I think who said " no two men could
1 Abstract of clipping: Berlin, October 5. The Kolonial-Zeitung, organ of the
German Colonial Society, points out Germany's interest in the future disposal of
Liberia, and no time should be lost in forestalling British and French schemes and
in securing for Germany " a place in the sun " in West Africa, in other words annexing Liberia. The natives would be useful to Germany - the Kru, Wey, and other
tribes furnishing stokers on steamers and laborers on plantations in the Cameroons;
also fighting men and porters.
1 His life of his uncle, General Robert Edward Lee.




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see the same thing and give the same account of it." I leave here for
"The Smile of the Sea " on the twenty-ninth.
Very sincerely yours,
FITZHUGH LEE2
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
LIEUTENANT-COMMANDER SOUTHERLAND
TO SECRETARY LONG
U. S. S. Dolphin
PORT OF SPAIN, TRINIDAD
November 23, 1899
DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
So many little things have happened since we left Washington
that I now feel like keeping my promise to write you occasionally.
Mr. Snowden' had a touch of illness which kept him in his bed
from the time we left Washington until our arrival here. He is
on duty now and is again strong and well. Young Lieutenant Ryan 2
was taken sick the third day out and upon our arrival here his case
was diagnosed as typhoid. I transferred him to the government
hospital, where he commenced to improve very soon. He is under
the direct care of the surgeon in charge, and Urie 3 and I have arranged that he shall have every attention and comfort. The governor 4 has become interested in him, and with our consul and some
others, will see that he lacks for nothing.
My present intention is to return here about December 24, so as
to get Pocahontas coal from our contractor before his contract expires on December 31, after which we would probably have to pay
much more for it. If young Ryan is then able to do any work, I
will take him on board for light duties, but if the doctors think that
unadvisable, I will order him home. You can imagine that I was
very anxious about these two sick officers, but Urie's unremitting
care was almost an assurance that nothing serious could result. The
passenger, Mr. Roeder,5 was seasick all the way and spent most of
2 Major-General commanding the Seventh Corps during the Spanish-American
War.
1 Lieutenant Thomas Snowden.
2 Thomas William Ryan (1857-1930).
3 Surgeon John Francis Urie, U. S. N. (b. 1862), Harvard Medical '88.
4 Sir Hubert Edward Henry Jerningham (b. I842).
5 Not identified.




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his time in bed. All the sick were berthed and cared for in the
cabin, which for the time looked like a hospital.
Had a rough trip all the way - strong head winds and seas, but
the little craft behaved quite well. Spent one day at La Guaira and
got a fairly good idea of the Venezuelan situation from Commander
Hemphill,6 who is most earnest and energetic and has matters well
in hand. Since arriving here every attention has been paid to the
officers. The governor, Sir H. E. H. Jerningham, has been exceedingly attentive to me, and seems desirous of helping me in any
possible manner.
Within two hours of arrival a Mr. Morgan Olcott called on
board and told me that he was the cause of the Dolphin's orders
to this neighborhood; in the course of conversation he told me that
Wayne McVeagh was his active friend. And also gave me information as follows: That he was an American and the managing director
of the Orinoco Shipping and Trading Company; that this was an
English concern, with some American capital, having a most valuable concession from the Venezuelan Government; that it owned
many river steamers trading along the Orinoco, all of which fly
the Venezuelan flag in accordance with the provisions of the concession. His idea evidently was that the Dolphin was to go up to
Ciudad Bolivar, two hundred and twenty-eight miles up the river,
to protect these river steamers. I listened attentively and was, of
course, very courteous. Told him that I could not discuss the matter
with him officially as my orders did not contemplate such a trip
as he had specified. We talked over the international law view of
his steamers as under the Venezuelan flag in Venezuelan waters, on
which subject he was evidently not well informed. I gained the
impression that Mr. McVeagh who, it seems reasonable to suppose,
represents Mr. Olcott's company in the United States, was possibly
not aware of the fact that the steamers in question were legally flying
the Venezuelan flag. This is about the gist of the matter. Mr. O1 -cott is a gentleman and makes a good impression. I did not allow
the matter to weigh with me at the time as I knew the Dolphin
drew too much water to get that far up the river without running
extreme risks. Telegrams from the department have since convinced
me that the status of this company is known there. Mr. Olcott as
much as told me that his company could get no help from its own
government.
6 Joseph Newton Hemphill (1847-1931), commanding the Detroit.




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Am waiting here to determine the chronometer rates in accordance with the department's orders. Snowden is doing this work
and has had poor luck so far, due to cloudy weather. I think we
will get away on the morning of the twenty-fourth, and return
for coal after about thirty days.
The governor's courtesy has been so delicate and so continuous
that I am convinced it is due to a desire to evidence the friendly
feeling existing between the two countries. He has had me to dinner
twice; has asked me to stay at Government House with him, has
taken me for a day's excursion to the Pitch Lake (Barber Asphalt
Company); has driven me through the interesting points near by;
has arranged to later give the officers a railroad trip to the interesting
points on the island; has made a long call on board in person, and
is giving a dance to-morrow night which is practically for our officers, and which will enable them to meet the nicest people here,
and thus give our young fellows homes to visit instead of passing
their spare time at the clubs and hotel. Upon our return I shall entertain the governor properly, at which time his wife will have joined
him from England.
We are splendidly equipped for the survey, and I hope for success.
The matter which troubles me is the element of time and the danger
of bad weather setting in for a full due. Young Ryan's sickness,
by taking him from us, will probably increase the necessary time
for the work by two weeks.
Our decks are filled fore and aft with lumber purchased here.
Not one soul lives at the mouth of the Orinoco and I can not afford
to leave here with anything lacking. While we have purchased a
great deal of lumber and other things, I feel that no money has
been wasted.
All hands are in good trim. Snowden seems strong and well again
and Cole' never looked better. Mrs. Cole is here and heartily enjoying herself. I work pretty steadily and actually have no time
to grumble at anything.
Please give my kindest regards to Mrs. Long and Mr. Allen; '
and tell Mr. Allen that I wish he could spend the next month with
me off the Orinoco and get some shooting and fishing.
With all good wishes, believe me,
Sincerely yours,
W. H. H. SOUTHERLAND
7 Lieutenant William Carey Cole (0868-i935).
8 C. H. Allen, assistant secretary of the navy.




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ARTHUR LORD TO SECRETARY LONG
53 State Street
BOSTON
5 December, i899
MY DEAR GOVERNOR:
I write to inquire if you can obtain for me an official copy of the
President's civil service order,' issued last summer, and the report or
statement of Secretary Gage 2 in relation to the same. They were
published in the newspapers at the time, but I hesitate to rely in
any public speech upon a newspaper report either of a modification
of a law or an opinion of an official. I had the impression at the time
the matter came out that the secretary's defence of the order was a
very strong and convincing statement and especially in reference
to certain of the departments affected by the order.
We are to have in Boston the latter part of the month a meeting of the American Historical Association. I notice that one of the
subject[s] for discussion is a paper which will be read on the " Selection and Training of Colonial Officials in England, Holland and
France." If an opportunity offers, I should be glad to take part in
the debate, as I have had some ten years' experience, as you know,
in the administration of the civil service law in Massachusetts as
a member of the commission until July last, when I resigned, and
because I made last summer in England a somewhat careful study
of the application of the civil service in England especially in connection with the colonial and diplomatic service. I there had some
favorable opportunities to go into the matter, more fully than is
possible from a study merely of the printed reports, by personal
interviews with the officials of the civil service commission, and the
foreign office.
When I consider that it is the same Reform Club which is abusing
the President so offensively for his action in Philippine matters,
which seem to me eminently just and reasonable, I am the more convinced that their attack upon him for the civil service order may
be equally unjustifiable.
Upon such examination as I have made of the civil service system
as administered here and abroad, I am quite confident that some
practical bill can be framed for its extension into our new possessions which will prove of substantial value and in which much of
the present criticism against the civil service law can be avoided.
1 Executive order, dated May 29, I899, exempting 4000 officers from civil service
rules.           2 Lyman J. Gage, secretary of the treasury.




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If you can kindly obtain for me the papers asked for I should
esteem it a great favor. Would it be considered impertinent for me
to address a formal communication to the President or the proper
officer of the Cabinet in relation to the application and extension of
the civil service to the government of our newly acquired possessions, with a draft of a proposed law or presidential order as may
be necessary, with the reasons therefor?
I am, with regards,
Yours very truly,
ARTHUR LORD
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
CAPTAIN MAHAN TO SECRETARY LONG
i6o West Eighty-Sixth Street
NEW YORK
December 12, I 899
MY DEAR MR. LONG:
I have received a letter from Chadwick, in which he mentions
a letter addressed by him to the President, through the department,
protesting against Schley's advancement until he shall have been
cleared of heavy charges affecting his professional character, made
as these are not by irresponsible persons, but by very responsible
ones.
I have no difficulty in saying that, be these charges true or erroneous, there would be to me something monstrous, and to military
experience unheard of, (as far as I know), in advancement under
such conditions. In leaving the Dewey dinner, Sampson told me
he had been consulted by Senator Chandler as to a bill making him
and Schley vice-admirals, and asked my opinion. I replied that I
thought he ought to be a vice-admiral, but to make Schley one,
under known conditions, would be a disgrace to the navy; and I
authorized him to say I so said, if necessary.
Personally, I have upon most of these charges no opinion to which
I am committed. As to their truth I hold opinion in suspense; but
as regards the impropriety of promoting an officer who lies under
such charges, and seeks no inquiry, there is no room, in my judgment for differing opinions.
But, personally, I consider that Schley's utter unfitness for com3 Arthur Lord (085o-I925), Harvard College '72.




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mand is conclusively demonstrated, over his own signature, by
two facts. One is the well-known telegram announcing his purpose
to return to Key West; the other is the statement, in his letter of
May 30, that the speed of the squadron was reduced, from seven
and a half to eight and a half knots, to four or five, going from
Cienfuegos to Santiago, to allow the Eagle to keep up. The man
who, under all the circumstances, could do those two things, is
demonstrably unfit for command; and I have always purposed, in
case my opinion were asked, to rest it on these two statements. In
my judgment as a student of military history, there is no escape
from this conclusion.
With much respect,
Sincerely yours,
A. T. MAHAN
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
HENRY L. HIGGINSON TO SECRETARY LONG
44 State Street
BOSTON
December 12, 1899
DEAR SIR:
In reading over the Life and Letters of Mr. John M. Forbes,'
which have been published by his daughter, I was again struck
with what I had seen through many years, - the enormous energy,
courage, and ingenuity and boldness of this man. He was never content until he had carried out his object, and his chief thought during
the Civil War and during many years after seemed to be the good
of his government and of his fellow men. He never asked anything
nor ever wanted anything except to carry out these ends. It seems
to be the way that our country moves, and it is well that it is so.
I say this in regard to General Wood, whom you know all about.
General Wood and his wife passed the Fourth of July with us
in Manchester, during which day he saw a great many people. I
asked him what his chief immediate want at Santiago was, and he
replied "A little money to buy school-books for the children." I
asked him if ten thousand dollars would do, and he replied that it
would. Therefore, I went to work and raised that sum, which is
now in my hands subject to his order. He at that time had found
that "the parents and children in his province of Santiago de Cuba
1 John Murray Forbes ( 813-1898).




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were very anxious to go to school and to learn our ways and our
language and have the advantage of our courts of justice. Granted
these things, and they would be delighted to live under our government, without those they had no such wish." Soon after that there
were three thousand children at school in Santiago alone, and although the schools were of the most primitive description, still
the children were getting on. Presently, the schools were closed by
the orders coming from the governor-general,2 and many of General Wood's moves were rendered futile by orders which he received from Cuban headquarters.
If there is anything that is going to make Cuba of use to us, it
is the education of the people, and of course we must begin with
the children. We have got the island on our hands, as we have Porto
Rico, and we must prove that we can take care of the inhabitants
in a very different manner than [sic] that which the Spaniards practised. No matter how soon the people come to vote, we have got to
prepare them for that trial and duty as quickly as possible.
All these facts you know as well as I, and much better. The only
object of my letter is to beg that such orders shall go forth from
the government as will enable these schools to be re-established at
the expense of the inhabitants there, if necessary; and, then that they
shall be pushed and supported by our United States officials.
General Wood was absolutely intent on these points as well as
many others, and I have rarely seen a man more likely to succeed
in that way than he. He is young enough and old enough; has had
the New England training and the army training; does not fear
responsibility the least in the world; is cool, and courageous, and
level-headed. In short, he seemed to us all here born to be a governor
of the province. It was not I alone that saw him, but plenty of other
people, and they all had the same opinion.
Again I must apologize. I am not giving you any information
about him, for no doubt you know him very well, but I very much
hope that you will be able to so guide matters that his wishes in
regard to the education and administration in that island will be
carried out. I had hoped last summer that he3 was to be made governor-general of the island and wish that it might be so. General
Brooke is an old officer of the Civil War, whose reputation for
2 Major General J. R. Brooke. See Edwin Ginn's letter of October 4.
3 General Wood was appointed Governor-General about the time this letter was
written.




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gallantry and skill in handling his troops is a matter of history, but
the present sort of work is not in his line.
At any rate, all these points aside, my ardent wish and that of
most good citizens of the United States must be that the school
system which has made our country should be introduced into
Cuba and carried on as thoroughly as possible without any delay,
and yet I repeat that in the province of Santiago there is not a child
that is at school or a school-house that is open, and I fear very much
that there is none at all in Cuba. Is not this wicked and ruinous to
us? I think you may rely on my information absolutely, for it comes
from the best of sources, and I hope you will pardon me for interfering in the matter.
I am, with great respect,
Yours truly,
H. L. HIGGINSON
We've just won a good fight for good school-committee people
here, and it is the fight everywhere. I am anxious for Wood's advancement on our account, not on his account.
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
THEODORE ROOSEVELT TO SECRETARY LONG
ALBANY
December i6, I899
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
Even your long suffering patience will give out some time if
I keep on writing to you; but you need not answer my letters, and
I only want you to take them at exactly their face value. I do not
write you about any man with whom I was not brought into personal contact, and my letters are simply to be taken as testimonials
such as I would give to any man who served with me - such as I
have given about men in my own regiment and the other cavalry
regiments to the secretary of war.
I learn that Captain Sigsbee has applied for Lieutenant-Commander Kimball for the intelligence department. During my year
of service in the department, Kimball was one of the men with
whom I was thrown into intimate contact. He did invaluable work,
not merely with the torpedo-boat squadron, but in formulating and
preparing plans of action for the war with Spain. He has a rather




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rare combination of executive capacity in practice, and of knowledge of the theory of war. This makes him peculiarly fitted for
such an office as the bureau of intelligence, for he neither disregards
books and learning, nor on the other hand fails to understand the
necessity of practical training. I would regard him as a peculiarly
valuable officer for the place.
I enclose a letter from gallant Dick Wainwright on behalf of
Paul Dashiell.1 You note what he says of how invaluable Dashiell
is to the Naval Academy. I have the utmost confidence in his word.
Always yours,
THEODORE ROOSEVELT
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
HENRY L. HIGGINSON TO SECRETARY LONG
BOSTON
December 17, i899
MY DEAR MR. LONG:
If you knew from what source my information as to Cuban
schools came, you would forgive my strong assertion that no schools
were open. Let it go.
General Wood is in command of the island, and will do good
work. It is a wise and timely appointment by the President - the
best possible.
You will be glad to know that the Harvard Corporation have
told Frank Bartlett and the class of '57 - the best class known to
me - that they are glad to have a memorial to John Ropes put in
Memorial Hall.
With best wishes,
I am yours truly,
H. L. HIGGINSON
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
THEODORE ROOSEVELT TO SECRETARY LONG
ALBANY
December 19, i899
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I have just received your thoughtful and kind letters.
Unless you especially want it I won't send that letter to Kimball;
1 Professor of physics.




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because unless I said I did so at your suggestion, it would look as
though I was trying to be unpleasant with him. I understand perfectly about Dashiell.
Now, I think I am going to adopt this rule about the navy department - the same rule as about the war department- that is,
tell those people who write me (and you have no conception of
how many do write me) that I will with pleasure testify to whatever
I know at first hand about any man who served with me, but that
I will make no request and do nothing of any kind further than
speak about matters of which I have personal knowledge.
Meanwhile, my dear Sir, do let me assure you that I appreciate
your patience and kindliness.
Faithfully your old friend,
THEODORE ROOSEVELT
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
LIEUTENANT-COMMANDER SOUTHERLAND
TO SECRETARY LONG
U. S. S. Dolphin
Personal                            Mouth of the Orinoco River
VENEZUELA
December 23, 1899
DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I have just finished an official report to the department which I
hope you will read, as it will give you an idea of the situation down
here and show you why we are going to take many months to
complete our work.
Until our arrival on the ground no one on board had any realization of what a stupendous undertaking the contemplated survey of
this great expanse was; but we were not discouraged and have
been working like beavers ever since.
Personally, I never had as anxious a time during the late war as
I did when bringing the ship in. When we reached the bar, in coming in, there was not a mark in sight by which the position of the
vessel could be verified. It was like working in the dark and trusting a great deal to luck. For several miles, although the little craft was
drawing sixteen feet, eight inches, we forced her through a muddy
bottom with a depth of water of only fifteen feet. During this time,
while the leadsmen were calling out " a half two," even the men on
deck were startled into silence; many of them looking at me in silent




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amazement. I realized that it was too late to turn back and can
assure you that I felt very sick at heart, although I tried not to
show it and simply smoked a cigar and chatted with the pilot. The
pilot was much more nervous than I, and with good reason; as it
was only the third time a pilot has gone over the bar to bring a vessel
in within the last eighteen years and, in addition, no vessel of such
deep draft has ever before crossed the bar. I practically took the
vessel in myself as he, having no landmarks to guide him until well
across the bar, could only assist me by warning me when the vessel
neared water with a hard bottom. He was a fine old fellow and
realized the risk being taken. He has been of great assistance to me
in the work of the survey since we got inside and, when the other
pilots went on a strike and left here a few days ago because they
had not received their pay, he remained behind to be of any possible assistance to me.
Had not Admiral Crowninshield told me of his experience here
in I892, I don't believe I would have taken the risk of crossing the
bar with so deep draft a vessel. We have practically worked day and
night since our arrival and each one has had about an equal share of
the work. I am up every morning at 5: 15 and am mighty glad to go
to bed by 9:30.
Our progress has been slow, due principally to rough seas, and
will probably be slower in the future as the windy season is about
setting in. We are making every effort to finish up the really essential and practical features of the survey by January 20, about
which date we will have to return to Trinidad for coal. The entire
work as outlined in my instructions will I fear, with our one deep
draft vessel and two small launches, take many months to complete.
And if the information I have gained from the pilots and others in
regard to the weather is correct we will be unable to even commence
some of it before June. This is all explained fully in my report to
the department, which was written in order to show that we on
board are in no wise to blame for the slowness with which the work
is progressing. We are doing our best, and only the elements at
this season of the year are against us.
Our latest mail was November 22, and we know of no opportunity of receiving any other before we reach Trinidad next month.
Our passenger, Mr. Roeder, did all that he could for us. The extra
steam launch which he placed at our disposal would have proved of
the greatest value had she not had a defective shaft which broke




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and dropped her propeller overboard the first day we put her to
any real use.
All the officers are in good trim and are doing fine work. We all
work so steadily during the day time that we don't have time to
grumble at anything, and we are too tired at night to do anything
but sleep.
We have had several accidents but none serious excepting one -
a deplorable case of drowning of one of our men. I fell down a
ladder while trying to raise a swamped boat the other morning and
broke my fall on one thumb. Urie pulled it into place in no time
however, and says I will be using it in a few days. Am thankful it
was not the wrist. Urie is a fine fellow to have around under these
circumstances for, when discouragements come, which is rather
often, he makes it his duty to convince me that it is probably all
for the best and that it might be much worse. He keeps a close eye
on every one and is of great assistance in many ways.
The yarns about the fine game and fish to be obtained here are
fairy tales. Urie is caterer of the mess and as such tries to provide us
with fish caught by his own hook. He has caught nothing but catfish and very few of them. They make a chowder, which tastes
good because it is fresh.
The southern shore line is about thirty-five miles long and there
is scarcely one place where a man can put his foot, it being one
mass of tangled, matted mangrove growing out in the mud and
water. Nothing but this mangrove growth is in sight anywhere,
and although on a clear day, we could see a small mountain forty
or fifty miles away, nothing of the sort is in sight. Two small settlements- about five houses in each - are on the banks of two small
rivers near here, one English, containing a few native soldiers; the
other, Venezuelan. Each house is situated in a small plot of muddy
soil around all sides of which is a deep ditch to carry off the water
and keep the house on comparatively dry ground. This is a great
country for irrigation. Of course, no game would live in such mangrove swamps.
Mr. Roeder sent me two coon foxes and a parrot from up the
river and they are elephants on my hands. The men have obtained
two or three more parrots and a Venezuelan rabbit. If they live to
get north, I will send them to the Washington Zoo.
We have heard a great deal of devil fish and manatee being in
the neighborhood, but as yet have seen none. The base line party




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have seen a few alligators. Of the less than two dozen inhabitants in
this neighborhood, one is a Chinaman, and he is the most thriving
one of the lot.
The weather is not specially trying, our only trouble being due
to the constant dampness. Mould forms on clothing and leather
articles within two or three days, and constant care has to be exercised by officers and men to keep clothing from being ruined. The
general health is good, due principally to Urie's constant watchfulness over all on board.
We have felt Lieutenant Ryan's absence very much, one officer's
aid, under these circumstances, meaning a great help. Urie does
not think he will be able to do any heavy work when he returns to
us. Am very sorry I told you this work could be finished in so short
a time, but hope you realize that my information at the time regarding the conditions here was of such a character as to warrant
my predictions.
The information, however, was of too uncertain a character, and
we find obstacles, principally due to physical conditions and wind
and weather, which result in the work of a deep draft vessel and
two small launches going on quite slowly. However, we have met
these obstacles, and knowing something about them, will work with
increased vigor and to better effect, and will end up by successfully
overcoming them.
I am quite certain that a good part of the outside work called for
in my instructions is not only unnecessary but can scarcely be done
by this vessel or any vessel of her draft. It is in water out of sight of
land having depths of less than sixteen feet. Small launches could
do it if the parent ship could keep near them in case of sudden bad
weather or heavy seas. Our light draft yachts could do it, but I
can not see that it is necessary as it would be of no practical use.
What is wanted here is a safe channel across the bar. When I
have further investigated this matter and am absolutely certain in
my own mind, I shall make it the subject of a recommendation to
the hydrographic office, bureau of equipment, and am sure that
Admiral Crowninshield, who has been here, will approve my ideas.
Please give my affectionate regards to Mrs. Long and don't fail
to send nice messages to Miss Helen when you write. I do earnestly
hope Miss Helen is doing well. Tell her I will make every effort
to get north before August or September so as to give her at least
a week or two on board.




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And now, with all good wishes for yourself and fully believing
that you realize that we are all doing our level best and that our
slow progress and possible lengthy stay down here is not due to
lack of ability, resourcefulness and effort, I am
Very sincerely yours,
W. H. H. SOUTHERLAND
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
Navy Department, WASHINGTON, D. C.
REAR-ADMIRAL SAMPSON TO SECRETARY LONG
BOSTON NAVY YARD
December 27, I899
DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I have your letter of the twenty-second instant referring to the
question of my recommendations in the case of Commander Delehanty.1 While I thoroughly appreciate your views on the matter,
I am still of the opinion that I was justified in employing one of the
expressions " eminent and conspicuous conduct in battle," or " extraordinary heroism," for these are the only ones permitted by
law in recommending a man for promotion. If an officer is considered worthy of promotion, for whatever reason, he must be
recommended in the above terms, as you yourself have stated, or the
recommendation fails. But suppose an officer has conducted his
ship in action and has attained a victory complete and decisive,
though under circumstances that admit of no eminent and conspicuous conduct on his part, his conduct can not be described in
such terms; and yet is he not entitled to some reward? Is there no
difference in degree of merit? The view that I hold is that when
an officer has actually performed an act of extraordinary heroism,
etc., he should, generally, receive the maximum reward, namely,
the promotion of thirty numbers; and for lesser exploits fewer
numbers. I endeavored to distinguish the difference in degree of
merit by the number of points for which I recommended each
officer.
Very respectfully yours,
W. T. SAMPSON
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
1 Daniel Delehanty (1845-1918).




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I900
THEODORE ROOSEVELT TO SECRETARY LONG
ALBANY
January 4, I900
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I thank you for yours of the second instant with copy of testimony. I have not the vaguest remembrance of Mr. Creecey's name
or of ever seeing him, of course; I saw so many hundreds of people
that I could not keep any one in mind. I remember nothing about
the telephonic or telegraphic messages. I do remember that I heard
from various naval officers, even before the Rodgers Board 1 was
organized, that the Luckenback ocean-going tugs were vessels
which should be immediately secured for the auxiliary navy, and I
know we tried to secure one or more of them. But the details have
wholly slipped my mind, save that I have a dim remembrance that
we had a quarrel over the price which deferred the purchase for
some little time - but this may have been in reference to some
entirely different vessels.
I suppose that it is unnecessary for me to say that it never occurred
to me that Mr. Howell or any one else in the office had the least
interest in any vessel, or any man trying to sell a vessel.
Faithfully yours,
THEODORE ROOSEVELT
To Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
REAR-ADMIRAL SAMPSON TO SECRETARY LONG
BOSTON NAVY YARD
January 17, 1900
DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I have heard, with much pleasure, that the superintendent of
the Naval Academy has recommended that Swordmaster Corbesier,
at the Naval Academy, may be retired; and I beg to be allowed
to express an earnest hope that the department may see fit to urge
this action upon Congress.
During several tours of duty at the Naval Academy, including
the superintendency of that institution for four years, I became
1 A board of inspection and survey, of which Rear-Admiral Frederick Rodgers
was president.




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thoroughly acquainted with Mr. Corbesier's manner of performing
his duties: a higher sense of duty, and a more thorough devotion
thereto, it has never been my good fortune to witness. This was
demonstrated by his work in the regular classes that he was required
to conduct, no less than by his custom of organizing and drilling
special classes purely on his own initiative, and with no possible
compensation except the sense of good work performed in the
interest of the academy. He has spent thirty-five years continuously at the academy, and I have been in a position to observe his
work, at more or less regular periods, almost from the beginning.
I know nothing of his antecedents, but he always impressed me as
being a gentleman born and bred. His conduct toward the cadets
has invariably been courteous, kindly, and dignified, even under
aggravating circumstances. The efficiency of his department, the
welfare of the cadets and of the school, seem to have been his
principal care for this long term of years, for he was willing and
eager to sacrifice his leisure hours in instructing a class or an individual in something new or in something in which the individual
might be deficient. The last that I knew of him he was still as
faithful and ambitious in his work. He must be at least sixty-five
years old - too old to be much longer able to perform the arduous
duties of his position. I know of no more deserving individual employed by the government in any capacity than Mr. Corbesier, and
I hope that the department may see fit to urge such legislation as
may be necessary for his retirement at an early date.
Very respectfully yours,
W. T. SAMPSON
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
RICHARD HENRY DANA TO SECRETARY LONG
53 State Street
BOSTON
January I7, 1900
DEAR MR. LONG:
I have yours of January 15 with two extracts from my speech
at the annual meeting of the Boston Civil Service Reform Association.
The Herald had a full copy of the speech, but left out, as they




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often do in condensing, some important matters. I went on to say
regarding the evidence that has come to us of improper changes
in the navy yard (which, by the way, is the navy yard at Kittery),
that a report was about to be made to you, and that undoubtedly
these matters would be rectified.
We learned of the state of affairs, of which we complain, some
time ago from very reliable sources. Mr. McAneny 1 said something
to you about them, as I recollect; but at all events, we sent down
the assistant secretary of the national league, with a lawyer who
is acquainted with people in the neighborhood, and, with the help
of thoroughly non-partisan people who are fully acquainted with
the affairs that had been going on in the navy yard, direct evidence
was taken down from witnesses as to the details, fully substantiating all that I said, and a great deal more. The last witness only
gave his testimony on January 6. This has all been sent on to
New York to the national league's office, and it is proposed to
submit this to you very soon.
You say: "I can not help thinking that if any instance of the
sort had occurred, some intimation of it would have come to me,
which is not the case." I am not at all sure of this. I went through
some experience regarding this same navy yard during President
Harrison's administration. Stories came to me, supported by evidence of eye-witnesses, of misdoings under Secretary Tracy in
that same navy yard. I stated them in great detail, and Secretary
Tracy officially denied them, making statements of reports regarding that navy yard which certainly officially contradicted the statements I had made. The Boston Advertiser came down on me, and
required that I should retract all that I had stated. I felt confident
from the character of the witnesses that I was right. I made further
investigation, and found out in what methods the official reports
had been treated before being sent to Washington, in order to
cover up the actual facts, so that even the pay-rolls did not tell the
true story. I then wrote that to General Tracy, and still he would
not believe that I was right. He came to Boston later, and I had an
interview with him, and he then went and made a personal investigation, and found out that I was right. I have never seen him
since, but as it was almost immediately after this that he announced
his intention of adopting rules for the employment of persons in
the navy yard, and put them into operation, I am very much in1 George McAneny, secretary of the National Civil Service Reform League.




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dined to believe that the very fact of his being deceived by his
own subordinates was one of the most convincing arguments to
induce him to adopt such rules. I trust, therefore, that in any investigation that you will make it will be done in an absolutely
thorough manner. We can furnish you with the names of a good
many witnesses who are unwilling to testify to us, but who would
testify if compelled to do so.
You ask me to tell you what places have been "taken out of
the civil service rules and put under rules to be adopted by the
navy." I reply: "All persons at navy yards, etc." (see Executive
Order May 29, 1899, amendment of rule iii, section 8, clause m,
I5th Report of Civil Service Commission, 50 and 52-54). For the
war department, see clauses g, h, i, j, and k. In the war department
the places are under " regulations to be issued by the secretary of war
and approved by the President." The places in the navy department,
taken out from the civil service commission's control, are under
" paragraphs 74 to 83 of Navy Yard Order No. 23 revised." These
paragraphs are of course subject to revision, and I understand and
believe were actually revised, though I have not got the exact authority for that, as only a statement is made in the official report that
they have been or may be revised.
It seems to me, and to us generally, that the civil service commission with its experience and machinery and freedom from political
influence, is better adapted for regulating these appointments than,
for example, the war department, where many of the appointing
officers at the heads of large bureaus entrusted with the carrying
out of the rules to prevent themselves from making political appointments, are themselves appointed for political reasons and subject
to political pressure. Past experience in the United States has
shown that rules in the nature of civil service rules, left to the
departments to carry out, have in the long run failed of their object. It was only when a civil service commission was appointed
and controlled the execution of its rules that any real good was
effected. But of course you know all this. Your department, as
we have frequently stated in our reports, under your personal guidance has been particularly free from any such influences; but the
system now established may have to be dealt with by others who
would not personally have the same qualities and the same regard
for purer politics that you have, and it is the systems that I am
interested in; the officials at the heads of the departments to-day




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whether favorable or unfavorable to the general cause, are of less
importance from the point of view of permanent reform.
One other instance of getting around the rules in effect, at the
Kittery Yard, which might not come to your attention is, according
to the evidence, about as follows: A recommendation is sent on to
have certain offices abolished; and then to have new ones afterwards, or soon afterwards, established under different titles. As
soon as the old offices are abolished, the holders of the positions are
removed, and then, before the new ones are established, a few
political followers are given a " tip," and they then apply for positions under the newly entitled offices which are about to be established. No one else knowing of the new titles, the names of these
few favored applicants are the only ones registered when the new
positions first become established. Appointments are then immediately made, and in this way they get rid of former employees, and
get their particular friends into position. The actual work done
under the new titles is exactly the same, certainly in some instances,
as was done under the abolished positions. The exact dates, and
names, etc., will be sent you probably early in February. I return
the slips, and I would be glad to give you, if you should desire it,
the original of my remarks, as far as they cover these points.
Believe me,
Very truly yours,
R. H. DANA 2
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Navy Department
WASHINGTON, D. C.
CAPTAIN DAVIS TO SECRETARY LONG
United States Naval Observatory
WASHINGTON, D. C.
January i8, i900
DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
Your note of the seventeenth received. I will be very glad to consider the matter of a naval monument in the national park at Vicksburg. Something could undoubtedly be done with old guns, but I
suppose the character of the work would depend to some extent on
the amount of the appropriation for it, and a tablet or column
2 Richard Henry Dana (1851-193i), Harvard College '74. Other letters on
this subject are dated January 25 (two letters), 29, February 2, 8, and April 21.




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might be combined with guns and an anchor, or something of the
kind. I will take the subject into serious consideration. I like the
idea immensely because it has always seemed to me that the success of the navy in the Civil War on the western waters, far from
its natural field of action, and with improvised ships and crews,
has never been fully appreciated: and furthermore it is a good
thing to keep the navy before the western people.
Very respectfully,
C. H. DAVIS
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
REAR-ADMIRAL SAMPSON TO SECRETARY LONG
Strictly confidential                       BOSTON NAVY YARD
W. T. S.                                  January 19, I900
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I have just been told that you are considering a change in the
command of the Naval Academy, and that Captain Chadwick has
been mentioned for that duty. I feel embarrassed in this matter;
for though I earnestly wish to see Chadwick receive this appointment and believe that no other officer is so well fitted for it, because
of temperament, attainments, and high principle - I have already
put myself six months ago on record as favoring Captain Goodrich
for that place when it should become vacant.
If Captain Chadwick is chosen, I shall, believe me, feel that I have
myself received a personal favor; and I know the academy would
attain its best standard, under his command.
Another consideration which seems to me of no little importance
in the question is the influence which Mrs. Chadwick would exert,
in a place where it unquestionably makes the greatest difference
what family a commanding officer takes with him. Indeed I have
sometimes thought that had I the matter to decide, I would never
order an officer to any duty at the Naval Academy without first
learning that his wife was likely to carry with her an atmosphere of
peace as well as of high principle. The commanding officer's wife
is of course the leader in all social matters, and the cadets follow
where they are led. In re-reading my letter I perceive that it is
subject, perhaps, to misconstruction. I am certainly not making
any comparisons between the wives of any officers who might be
eligible for the command at the Naval Academy. Since Captain




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Taylor does not wish to go, I feel that Captain Chadwick would
fill the place better than any other man; and incidentally would
carry with him an excellent influence to supplement, and never
overthrow his own.
Yours sincerely,
W. T. SAMPSON'
COMMANDER KIMBALL TO SECRETARY LONG
Ordnance Office, Navy Yard
Personal                                    NORFOLK, VIRGINIA
I9 January, I900
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
Your most kind personal letter of yesterday has just been received. In regard to Sigsbee's request, the conversation was, in effect
if not in exact words, as follows:
Sigsbee said he was to go to [the office of naval] intelligence and
wished to have a commander as assistant. I said I supposed he meant
me; that I had thought of intelligence only as a possible billet for me
as chief; but that since it was to be raised to a captain's billet, and
since he was to be chief, I would like to serve under him. He said that
was what he wished and that he would ask Admiral Crowninshield
for my services. I said I would make an official application - which I
did.
I had no intention of giving you the impression that the original
suggestion, as I understood it, did not come from Sigsbee. When
you told me that it was not true that Sigsbee had asked for me, I was
naturally embarrassed; could not dispute your direct statement,
comprehended that you had been given a point of view very different from mine, and so was unable to make my position clear.
The reply to my official request was that it could not be granted
because my cruise was not finished; and there was no intimation
that there was any other reason for not granting it. Accordingly
I went ahead to try and get the Vixen ready for sea, with the expectation of leaving for the South early in December; and a few
days later, I was detached from her and ordered to immediate duty
at this yard.
Meantime, the captain of this yard had been in the bureau of
ordnance and there learned that Mr. Hunker had asked Admiral
O'Neil if he would have me here in his department, that the ad1 Written by Mrs. Sampson and signed by the admiral.




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miral had been good enough to say he would, and that accordingly I was to be sent here. The same day, the captain of the yard
spoke of my detail to the chief of bureau of navigation, who told
him I was not to leave the Vixen, because my cruise was not
finished. These existing facts made it apparent to me, that either
my case had not been considered by superior authority, or that
there was some adverse influence at work to my detriment. In
either case, I felt justified in bringing the matter to your attention,
and in putting it as fairly as possible.
I am exceedingly sorry if anything I have done, under the indefinite but exceedingly difficult conditions in which I was placed,
has caused you annoyance. It was as far as possible from any intention of mine. While I feel very confident that you have been
given an incorrect impression in regard to my attitude toward intelligence duty, and more so in regard to the duty itself, the question is not one for me to discuss, since you find I am not needed for
that duty. In relieving me here and sending me to the Washington
yard, without quarters, you will add a large increase to the load
of obligation I am carrying; for while the duty there will not allow
the professional interest and improvement I had hoped for, it will
relieve me of much personal expense, and give me many professional opportunities that do not exist in my present surroundings.
Very gratefully yours,
W. W. KIMBALL
LIEUTENANT KNAPP TO SECRETARY LONG
United States Navy Yard
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETrrS
January 22, i900
SIR:
i. In obedience to orders dated the twentieth instant, I called on
Mr. R. H. Dana this morning in connection with alleged violations
of the civil service rules at the Kittery Navy Yard. I explained
" to him, as far as practicable, the workings of the rules of the
board of labor employment," in particular such rules as referred
to the addition of trades to the authorized schedule of any yard,
and called his attention to the fact that no such change in the trade
schedule could be made unless approved by the secretary of the
navy, after recommendation by the head of the department, and
the approval of the commandant.




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2. Mr. Dana stated that objections had been made to the changes
authorized by the President in his order of last May, in which certain offices in the navy yards were taken out of the classified list,
and to reinstatements and transfers authorized by the said order.
I informed him that I was not authorized to consider this matter,
but was directed to look into the alleged violations of labor regulations referred to by him in that part of his speech which was
quoted in your letter of the zoth instant. He said he had received
his information from a stenographic report of an investigation
made by a lawyer in Kittery and in Boston. This stenographic
report, he informed me, had been forwarded to Mr. George
McAneny, secretary of the National Civil Service Reform League,
54 William Street, New York.
3. I was informed that the above referred to investigation was
made in consequence of personal statements of a professor at Harvard. From this investigation it appeared to Mr. Dana that changes
had been made in the schedule of trades, and that those favored
by a party faction said to be running the Kittery yard received the
advantage of these changes in ratings in the manner referred to in
his speech. I requested Mr. Dana to give me such definite information as would enable me to investigate the matter, but he declined
to do so, stating that he preferred that the matter should reach you
directly from the National Civil Service Reform League, and he
did not think, pending its action, that it would be well for him to
give me any further details. He dictated a letter in my presence to
Mr. McAneny, requesting him to forward you at once, if practicable, the above referred to report.
4. I again urged Mr. Dana to inform me who the lawyer was
that made the investigation, and to furnish me with further particulars, but he courteously declined, saying he preferred that you
should have the whole matter presented to you through the civil
service commission, as he deemed that you then, having all the evidence before you, could take such steps as might be necessary to
ascertain the full facts in the matter.
5. I can proceed to the navy yard, Portsmouth, New Hampshire,
at any time, but in order that further directions may be given me
by you, if so desired, I will defer my departure until Thursday
morning.
6. In the event of a formal investigation being ordered, I request
that orders be given to Charles T. Ogle, clerk (on duty at this




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yard under me), to accompany me to Portsmouth, in order that
he may keep a stenographic record of the investigation; and further,
that I be directed to administer to witnesses the oath authorized
by section 183 of the revised statutes of the United States.
Very respectfully,
JOHN J. KNAPP1
The Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
THOMAS L. LIVERMORE TO SECRETARY               LONG
12 Ashburton Place
BOSTON
January 23, 1900
MY DEAR GOVERNOR:
Will you do the favor for Henry L. Higginson, Quincy A.
Shaw, Jr.,' and myself to request a letter for us from the President or
secretary of state, to introduce us to President Diaz 2 of Mexico.
We are to leave for Mexico [on] February Io to visit a mine in
the state of Durango which Q. A. Shaw, Alexander Agassiz, H. L.
Higginson, and I are opening, and we expect that it will be desirable
for us to continue our journey to the city of Mexico to obtain the
personal intercession of the President with the officials near our
property to ensure the enforcement of the laws for our protection
and for the peace of the region where we are operating.
We have been at work there over three years and the magnitude
of our interests makes it desirable for us to be vouched for with
the President of Mexico. Anything you may feel at liberty to do
for us in this behalf will receive our sincere thanks.
Yours faithfully,
THOMAS L. LIVERMORE 3
REAR-ADMIRAL SAMPSON TO SECRETARY LONG
BOSTON NAVY YARD
January 24, I900
SIR:
I would be greatly pleased if you could make a short visit to
this yard. You are probably more or less familiar with its present
1 John Joseph Knapp (1857-1915).
1 Quincy Adams Shaw, Jr. (b. I869), Harvard College '9i.
2 Jose de la Cruz Porfirio Diaz (I830-1915).
3 Colonel Thomas Leonard Livermore (1844-I918).




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condition: I know, however, how important it is to a more complete understanding of the situation of affairs to have your knowledge renewed occasionally, and even to have its needs pointed out
to you. May I be pardoned for mentioning that you are expected
to take a special interest in the navy yard so near your home. This
yard has been closed for all ordinary work for such a long time,
that it has gone backward in a serious manner as a result. The whole
establishment is suffering from the disuse, lack of care, and false
economy which has so long prevailed. I feel confident that if you
would come here quietly for a careful inspection, and see things
as I see them, it would do us a world of good. As work is starting
up again, I am anxious that the yard should be prepared for the
change.
As your house at Hingham is probably closed, it would give me
pleasure to entertain you here; and if Mrs. Long and your daughter
would also come, Mrs. Sampson, as well as myself, would give them
our most heartfelt welcome.
Sincerely yours,
W. T. SAMPSON
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
JAMES BRADLEY       THAYER TO SECRETARY LONG
CAMBRIDGE
January 24, 1900
DEAR GOVERNOR LONG:
No, I am too old a dog for new tricks. I wish heartily that I
could go, for I feel much honored by the suggestion.' But there
are quite insuperable difficulties in the way, with the nature of
which I need not trouble you.
But let me suggest A. L. Lowell - Lawrence Lowell, as we call
him. Perhaps you saw his article on this general subject; a very
good one. He is a very able man, of forty or over, who has studied
political questions carefully, whose work has attracted the favorable attention and comment of foreigners and who, I feel quite sure,
is in sympathy with the administration in regard to these colonial
problems. Perhaps you know all about him. He is Augustus Low1 Professor Thayer had presumably been suggested as a member of the Philippine Commission.




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ell's son, and a graduate of Harvard in 1877 and the law school in
i880, a brilliant man in both places. I talked with him lately on
these questions with almost entire agreement.
I thank you heartily for suggesting my name for so honorable a
place (for I presume that you did), and will beg you to communicate to the President my great regret that I can not be of service to
him in his great and patriotic task.
Always with great respect,
J. B. THAYER
SENATOR LODGE TO SECRETARY LONG
United States Senate
WASHINGTON, D. C.
January 26, [1900]
DEAR GOVERNOR LONG:
Mrs. Lodge has just given me your message. Lawrence Lowell
would be a most admirable man. He is a trained lawyer and a
specialist on constitutions and systems of jurisprudence. He is deeply
interested [in] the question of our new possessions and their government and has written a good deal on the subject and very well.
I regard him as a very able man and just fitted for such work as this.
If you think it worth while, I should be very glad to have you show
this note to the President.
Sincerely yours,
H. C. LODGE
CAPTAIN TAYLOR TO SECRETARY LONG
NEWPORT, [RHODE ISLAND]
3o January, I900oo
DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
Your note of January 25 only reached me last night owing to
some delay in transmission. I am sincerely grateful to you, Sir,
for your kindness upon this as upon many other occasions during
your administration, and I shall always remember that a chief of
whom the navy is proud has thought well of me.
Feeling thus it appears even to myself to be stupid and ungrateful
to decline an honor1 offered me by one for whom I have such high
1 See preceding letter, January 24, and below, February 9, note.
1 Superintendency of the Naval Academy.




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respect; but with my convictions, based as they are, not upon
visionary fancies, but upon long study and practical experience,
I would not be doing my best for you, Mr. Secretary, and for the
service if I left the work which has for many years engaged my
thoughts - and for which I can as yet find no colleague or successor, - and should engross myself entirely in the Naval Academy
to the exclusion of all else, as I can not help doing if I undertake it.
On board the Vermont       where you have authorized my going
in March, my duties will not be so engrossing and such leisure as
I may have can be given to these questions of a general staff 3 or to
any others which you might do me the honor to entrust to me. I
send you this week the mem[orandum] of a general staff, which
you spoke of my drafting for you when I was in Washington - and
I beg you, Sir, to wait till you have read it before counting me
either foolish or ungrateful in definitely and decidedly declining
with most earnest thanks, your kind offer of the Naval Academy.
I am, Sir, with great respect,
Very sincerely yours,
H. C. TAYLOR
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
CAPTAIN MAHAN TO SECRETARY LONG
I60 West Eighty-Sixth Street
NEW YORK
January 3I, I900
MY DEAR MR. LONG:
It is hard to keep my excellent intentions of withdrawing wholly
from discussions of to-day's naval matters. The report I see, that
the construction board1 has decided upon battleships of fourteen
2 Receiving ship at New York.
3 The need of a general staff of the navy was urged after the Spanish War.
"Its duties include the collection of information respecting foreign navies, their
bases in time of war, and the theater of action in which they will move....
The department did not see its way clear to go further than to organize what is
designated as the General Board, with the admiral of the navy as its president, and
the whole thing under the direct supervision of the Secretary." Long, The New
American Navy, I, 122-124 and II, I83-I86.
1 The board on construction, constituted by Secretary Tracy in 1889, consisted
of the chiefs of the five bureaus of yards and docks, ordnance, equipment, construction and repair, and steam engineering, and had general supervision over the
design, construction, and equipment of ships. See Long, The New American Navy,
I, 121.




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thousand tons, prompts me now to offer a suggestion which I had
in fact drawn up while in Washington during the late war.
The various difficulties inherent in the problem of a battleship
are peculiarly felt by each bureau, from which the construction
board is drawn. A ready way to get what each, and all, want, is to
increase size. It is, however, a strictly momentary expedient, analogous to meeting household difficulties, not by management but
by increased expenditure. Logically, the process may lead to ships
of twenty-five thousand tons, if harbors will admit them.
The difficulty is that, from its constitution, the construction board
necessarily tends to view the question rather from the technological
than from the military side. Unless the country - and Congress -
is prepared for practically unlimited expenditure, bigger ships
mean fewer ships. Now there are strong military reasons why numbers of ships are wanted; and in view of the steady increase in size,
due to increasing demands of each technical factor in the battleship,
the time has arrived when the military experts should be called in,
and directed to consider what the limits of size should be. This
would take two forms, viz.: what is the best normal tonnage for the
bulk of the battle-fleet, - for the mean battleship? and, further,
what exceptional battleships should be built, in number and in individual size, for the tactical purpose of strengthening certain parts
of an order of battle? This is the old question of the two-decker
and three-decker of Nelson and his times.
The military question by no means excludes consideration of
technical details, but it should dominate them. If I were submitting
it to a special board, I should pose the question before them somewhat thus:
" Having in view, on the one hand, the advisability of concentrating in the single battleship the highest offensive power, combined
with adequate armor protection, and such coal endurance as our
national strategic conditions require, together with a high and sustained, but not extreme, sea speed; and, considering on the other
hand, the necessity of having numerous ships, in order to meet the
various demands of a war, which require facility of combining and
of distributing the aggregate tonnage of the fleet, as well as the
maintenance of relief ships in reserve, in order that, through frequent exchanges, the efficiency of the vessels can be maintained, it
is desirable to establish a standard size of battleships. The board is
directed to consider and report within what limits of size, maximum




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and minimum, the average medium battleship, the type of the fleet
in general, should be kept. The board will also report if, for tactical
reasons, occasional heavier battleships are desirable; and, if so, their
size, and their numerical proportion to the fleet as a whole."
An excellent board, in my judgment, for this purpose, would be
Dewey, Sampson, and Harry Taylor; the first two for obvious
reasons, and Taylor as being one of the most maturely informed
officers in the service, on military considerations as opposed to those
which are chiefly technical.
I would like to add, for your personal information, that in my
recent book, Lessons of the War with Spain, pages 30-42, and in
the article, " Distinguishing Qualities of Ships of War," pages 257 -273, I have expressed these views at a length not suited to this letter.
I would like only to add that the serious defect of all navies, except
possibly [of] Germany, is that all these decisions are made by the
technologist rather than by the military expert. The military reasons
for which navies exist are not given the primacy they should have.
Very sincerely yours,
A. T. MAHAN
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
CAPTAIN MAHAN TO SECRETARY LONG
I60 West Eighty-Sixth Street
[NEW YORK]
February 5, I900
MY DEAR MR. LONG:
I fear I must have expressed myself badly, for you have misapprehended my meaning in two particulars.
I did not intend to advocate a permanent board of three, although
I think that the distinctly military element is inadequately represented by a board of bureau chiefs. What I hoped was that a decision might now be reached, through a board such as suggested,
as to how the battleship tonnage of the navy was to be allotted: to
very big ships, or to a determined medium size, which would allow
a greater number.
Again, I certainly meant to criticize the decision to build ships
of fourteen thousand tons, because, in my opinion, they are larger
than needed, and likely to result in too few ships. I believe that I
know that one bureau wants increased size, to attain a speed which
I consider extravagant; and that another wants size, in order to [? ] a




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coal endurance which I believe unnecessary; and that both, for
these ends, are willing to increase size without commensurate gain
in offensive power. Both I consider distinctly contrary to sound
military principle. The navy does not exist for ships, but ships for
the navy; and correct conclusions can not be secured unless you call
in those who think first what does the navy need for war, and next
what kind of ships fulfil those needs. The technologist and bureau
man necessarily thinks first of his own specialty.
If such a board as I suggested affirm in the main the decisions of
the construction board - well; if not, a serious error may be timely
averted, before the country be seized with a parsimonious fit, and
we be left with a few monsters, instead of a number adequate to our
varied requirements.
Very truly yours,
A. T. MAHAN
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
CAPTAIN HOBSON TO SECRETARY LONG
Personal                                         HONG KONG
February 6, 1900
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
My eyes are giving me trouble and I have become supersensitive to the sun. The trouble has been progressive, being noticeable
summer before last, after a touch of fever in Santiago, and continuing during last summer, being accentuated by a touch of fever
toward the close of the heat, and a short time ago, after a touch of
the sun received on what would be called a cloudy day, my eyes
gave such trouble as to stop all reading or writing. This caused me
to consult a doctor, and he says I should clear out of the tropics
before the heat sets in.
I reported the matter to Admiral Watson this morning and he
decided that action should be taken without delay looking to the
carrying out of the doctor's recommendation. I asked him, however,
not to make the matter official, for I feel sure that it can be made to
come about all right, as I am otherwise in robust health - and I
hate to start a medical record, having absolutely none thus far. Besides I feel that I must get some service at Manila and the two last
gun-boats require a few weeks longer here. The admiral consented
to my making the matter the subject of a personal letter to you,
directing me to inform you of his approval and of his recommenda



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tion for my detachment by the middle of April, his judgment being
the same as the doctor's that this should be the latest date.
I have had a feeling that it would be best for me to break away
and rough it in Siberia, away from books and papers, and indoor
and artificial lights, but I hardly see how this is practicable on account of the matter of expense unless my orders could help me out.
Could my orders of detachment direct me to proceed home, allowing me discretion in the way and time of getting there, placing a
limit on the expenses allowed, say four hundred and fifty dollars
(mileage and steamer coming out were about four hundred and
seventy-five dollars), giving a normal time limit after which my pay
would be as on waiting orders, that is, detachment, orders home, and
to consider myself on waiting orders after five weeks, allowing a
fixed sum for expenses.
I should be indebted if such could be arranged.
Yours sincerely,
RICHMOND PEARSON HOBSON
ROGER WOLCOTT TO SECRETARY             LONG
53 State Street
BOSTON
February 9, 900o
MY DEAR GOVERNOR:
As soon as possible after receiving your telegram I telegraphed
you that I would go to Washington in compliance with your request, being then of course entirely ignorant of the purpose for
which the President desired to see me.
Last evening I received your letter of February 7 disclosing this
purpose, and as I felt sure that I could not accept the very honorable
and responsible position 1 in connection with which you inform me
the President has done me the honor to consider my name, I thought
it better to abandon my proposed trip to Washington, fearing that
my presence there might give rise to newspaper comment which
would be undesirable.
Under other circumstances I confess this appointment might
have a strong attraction for me. It would afford the opportunity at
1 As member of the Philippine Commission. The commission as finally made up,
March 20, 1900, consisted of: Jacob Gould Schurman (b. I854), London University '77, president of Cornell University, chairman; Admiral George Dewey,
U. S. N.; Major General Elwell S. Otis, U. S. A.; Charles Denby (1830o-904); Dean
Conant Worcester (1866-1924), University of Michigan '89.




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least of wisely determining a problem of grave difficulty and of
far-reaching importance, and would bring the commissioners face
to face with scenes and conditions of romantic novelty and interest.
But after a somewhat long period of unbroken public service,
I feel the distinct need of a time of rest, and have formed plans for
a trip to Europe the coming summer with Mrs. Wolcott and our
children. My family, as you know, is a large one, and, were I to
accept this appointment, I should be reluctant either to take them
with me or to leave them behind for so long a period of absence.
I have felt at liberty to write to you thus fully, because I would
not have you suppose that I feel otherwise than deeply sensible of
the President's favorable opinion of me as shown in the suggestion
you present.
I beg that you will convey to the President my very sincere thanks
for his favorable consideration of my name in connection with this
honorable and important service, and believe me, with much respect,
Very sincerely yours,
ROGER WOLCOTT
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
CAPTAIN TAYLOR TO SECRETARY LONG
NEWPORT, RHODE ISLAND
I14 February, I 9oo
DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I forward with this note the memo [randum] of the general
staff 1 methods of which I spoke to you, and concerning which you
asked for some concrete suggestions. These are found at the end
of the memo [randum] in the shape of proposed department orders.
I hope, Sir, that you will find time among your busy hours to read
the paper with some deliberation. I have refrained from elaboration
and argument, knowing that if you found the general idea sensible
and desirable, you would wish to discuss it further and would send
for me to listen to verbal explanations - and if on the contrary the
idea did not commend itself to you, that lengthy detailed description would be only a waste of time.
I have studied this question in practice as well as theory for many
years, and I believe it now, in view of late events, to demand urgency. It can not be longer delayed now without grave injury to
1 See Captain Taylor's letter of January 30, 1900.




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the country's future. Such is my opinion at least which I submit
to you, Sir, with all proper deference and respect. Should you care
to have me go more into details I will be glad to come on to Washington when it suits your convenience. I congratulate you, Mr.
Secretary, upon having secured so excellent a superintendent for
the Naval Academy as Wainwright.
With much respect and many thanks for your kindness to me,
I am, Sir,
Yours very truly,
H. C. TAYLOR
SECRETARY LONG TO GEORGE MCANENY
Navy Department
WASHINGTON
February i6, 1900
DEAR SIR:
I have your letter of the tenth instant, stating that special committee of the National Civil Service Reform League has made inquiry concerning certain alleged violations of the rules governing
appointments and removals at the Portsmouth Navy Yard.
I shall be glad to make a thorough investigation, but it is necessary, as you will at once see, that specific charges should be stated.
Those in your letter are very general; not a date is given. If you
will make specifications, giving names, dates and circumstances, the
department will at once send a competent officer to investigate the
charges, and will, with pleasure, invite any representative of your
league to attend the hearing.
As to paragraph one, similar charges were made more than a
year ago, and were investigated in August, 1898, by LieutenantCommander B. H. Buckingham,1 who devoted a month to the investigation, heard all complaints, and reported no charges were
proven.
As to paragraph two, it is hardly within the province of the department to investigate the matter therein contained. It seems to
involve a breach of the peace, outside of the navy yard, which called
for the action of the civil authorities.
As to the charge in paragraph four, this was investigated as far
back as 1891. Stevenson, the individual referred to, was complained
of for having used government material for his own purposes. In
1 Benjamin Horr Buckingham (d. i906).




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consequence of this charge, he was not appointed to a position in
the yard for which, after a competitive examination, the examining
board had recommended him as best qualified; but I am informed
that when he was tried before a civil court, the case was dismissed.
Thereafter, he was employed in the Boston and Portsmouth navy
yards, and his superior officers reported his services in very favorable terms. Certainly a man punished for an alleged act of wrongdoing committed ten years ago, which the civil court dismissed, and
since that time has done his duty in such a way as to be approved
by his superior officers, is not subject to another investigation for
the same matter.
His reappointment to his present position was made after the
usual competitive examination before a naval board, as required by
the regulations.
I am sure you will see at once that the charges made in your
letter are either relative to matters so old that they have been disposed of, or of such a general character that the department can
not be expected to incur the cost and disturbance of its navy yard
work necessary for a thorough examination, without more specific
information.
Very respectfully,
[JOHN D. LONG]
Secretary
MR. GEORGE MCANENY, Secretary
National Civil Service Reform League
54 William Street
NEW YORK, NEW YORK
CHARLES H. CRAMP TO SECRETARY LONG
PHILADELPHIA
March 3, 1900
MY DEAR SIR:
I have just read in the newspapers an account of the hearing before the house committee on naval affairs yesterday in which you
are represented as taking strong ground against the policy of new
construction in the navy yards for the reason that the cost is vastly
more and it takes double the time to turn out the work as compared
with the contract system.
Aside from any personal interest I might have in this question,
and viewing the matter on public grounds alone, the same as any




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man having my knowledge of the facts ought to view it whether he
is a shipbuilder or not, I feel like congratulating you upon being
the first secretary of the navy to boldly and unequivocally put
these truths before the public. Some of your predecessors, notably
Mr. Whitney and General Tracy, held the same views but they did
not avow them so frankly as you have done and they also yielded
to the navy yard clamor from time to time by causing ships to be
built in them.
I do not know that this action on the part of Mr. Whitney and
General Tracy was an unmixed evil because although the Raleigh
and Cincinnati cost fifty per cent. more than we would have built
them for, according to our bid; and the Maine and Texas vastly
more than it would have cost to build them in any first-class shipyard, it is a question whether the experience that the government
gained by these operations was not, in the long run, worth the extra
cost. I think, however, that the remarks you are reported as having
made in regard to new construction in navy yards may, with even
greater force, be applied to the matter of reconstructing ships.
Take, for example, the Chicago; she was built by the late John
Roach 1 for a contract price of $889,ooo. Going into commission
in i889, she saw about seven years service. The bureau of steam
engineering then recommended that new engines and boilers be
provided for her and asked for an appropriation, as well as I can
remember, of $735,000 for that purpose and to cover the cost of
such hull work as might be incidental to the installation of the new
machinery. The Chicago was then sent to the New York Navy
Yard to be re-engined and she remained there about three years
before being ready for service again.
So far as time was concerned, I might remark that we built here,
for example, the Minneapolis, a ship fifty per cent. larger than and
more than twice as powerful as the Chicago is with her new engines
in less than the time it has taken to re-engine the latter ship at the
New York Navy Yard. I am informed that the total cost of the
work done on the Chicago in the New York Navy Yard will reach
$1,300,000 or very nearly and that it is divided about as follows:
Under the Bureau of Construction, say,. $650,000
"    "Steam Engineering  "         570,000
"    " Equipment                    75,ooo
"          Ordnance                      3,000
' John Roach (1815-1877).




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Of course it is impossible for me to obtain the exact figures in
cases of this kind, but I think you will find on examination of the
actual accounts in the department that I am not far out of the way,
certainly not more than a few thousand dollars. The footing of
the above would be $1,298,000, but I think the actual figures would
raise it above that rather than reduce it below. However, be this
as it may, it is safe to assume that the re-engining and other work
on the Chicago at the navy yard cost $1,300,000, which is $41 I,OOO
more than Mr. Roach's contract price, or nearly fifty per cent.
more than the ship cost new.
To carry the comparison a little further I might say that we
built the Newark, a new ship from truck to keel, for $1,248,000
contract price. She is a vessel of the same class as the Chicago, of
nearly equal displacement and quite equal in power as the Chicago
re-engined. I might also remark that we built the Baltimore, of the
same class and of equal displacement as the Chicago and of greater
engine power than the Chicago now is for $1,325,000 or only
$25,000 more than the cost of re-engining the Chicago in the New
York Navy Yard, and we built and delivered the Baltimore in less
time than it took to re-engine the Chicago.
It should be borne in mind in surveying these comparisons that
the Newark has in efficiency of ballistic resistance of her protective
deck as compared with that of the Chicago more than twice as
much protection to her vitals and the Baltimore about three times
the protection that the Chicago now has after $1,300,000 has been
expended in rejuvenating her. Of course you are in a position to
know these facts better than I, so far as the financial part is concerned and I assume you know to a dollar what the rejuvenating
of the Chicago cost. But it is known to many others and I presume
would cut a considerable figure in debate should the advocates of
navy yard work attempt to promote their cause in committee or
in either house of Congress.
Again congratulating you on the eminent service you have done
by the firm and logical stand you have taken in this affair, I am,
Very truly yours,
CHARLES H. CRAMP
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
Department of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.




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THEODORE ROOSEVELT TO SECRETARY              LONG
ALBANY
March 5, 1900
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
Recently in an obscure little paper published by Chapman1 and
one or two other alleged reformers who can be excused for dishonesty only on the ground that they are of unsound mind, there
appeared, as I am informed, a statement practically accusing me of
the gravest official misconduct in connection with the purchase of
the Merrimac. It also, as I am informed, reflected upon you, but
less directly.
Now, the paper in question is utterly unimportant, and unless
the matter is taken up by more serious people, I shall do nothing
with it, but I think it would be well to have a history of the case
at hand. Would it be too much trouble for you to have such a
history prepared? I remember the matter only in outline. But so
far as it goes my memory is as follows:
We were at the time straining every nerve to purchase colliers.
The Merrimac had been offered to us for that purpose, but at an
exorbitant price, so that we did not take it. Just then word was
wired showing that Cervera's fleet might be about to put to sea,
so that in consequence it became necessary that the Flying Squadron
should be in trim to leave at twenty-four hours' notice. Captain
Bradford 2 reported that no other collier but the Merrimac could
be obtained, and it was, of course, absolutely essential that some
collier should go with the squadron. To refuse on account of the
price to put the squadron in immediate shape would have been to
incur the gravest risk for the nation. Under the circumstances I
deemed, and so recommended to you, and you took the view that
the collier be purchased at once, although we were entirely aware
that advantage had been taken of the national needs to charge an
excessive price.
Can any papers that were signed in the matter be looked up, and
if possible some statement from Captain Bradford or from others
who recollect the transaction be obtained? I do not believe there
1 John Jay Chapman (i862-I933), Harvard College '84. The paper was The
Nursery (later The Political Nursery), September, 1898. The article was not written by Mr. Chapman.
2 R. B. Bradford, chief of the bureau of equipment.




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will ever be any need of using the matter, but it is always possible
that there may be such need.
Faithfully yours,
THEODORE ROOSEVELT
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
REAR-ADMIRAL CROWNINSHIELD
TO SECRETARY LONG
WASHINGTON, D. C.
March 7, 1900
Memorandum for the SECRETARY OF THE NAVY:
The bureau is compelled to call the department's attention to
the urgent necessity of restricting the duty of naval officers to
legitimate fields.
Of the officers afloat, those in the Philippine fleet, in the training
service and in the vessels of the North Atlantic, South Atlantic,
and Pacific stations, and a few others, are engaged in entirely legitimate naval duty. In addition to these, certain officers on shore duty
are, by necessity, performing duties which could not well be performed except by naval officers. There are, however, a considerable
number of officers afloat and some ashore who are either not doing
legitimate naval duty or whose places could be taken by civilians.
The bureau calls attention to the details of naval officers on board
the Albatross, on board the Scindia,' the Marcellus,' the Alexander,' the Yankton, and the Eagle, the state school-ships - St.
Mary's, Saratoga and Enterprise -, the Caesar,' the Scorpion,
branch hydrographic offices. Not one of these is properly adding
to his experience in the general duties of a naval officer. It is the
duty of the bureau to call the department's attention to any failure
to keep the fleet most efficient for use in war, and however restricted in its extent such failure may be, it is nevertheless proper
that if there is a way of putting an end to it, it should be done. In
the present instance, many of our officers are growing up without
that experience to which they are entitled, and which the country
has a right to expect they shall have. Twenty (20) torpedo boats
already constructed and thirty (30) under construction, many of
them nearing completion, are being allowed to lie idle, while for
some consideration of expediency or prestige, our officers spend
1 Colliers.




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their time freighting coal or jotting down notes as the seaman
heaves the lead. Not one of them is being trained in ordnance, nor
in the handling of vessels and of men as he should be, and as he
must be if the service is to be kept up to its proper standard.
With fifty-two (52) torpedo boats to lie idle, with this most
excellent school of training absolutely neglected, we can not honestly continue to employ officers in towing and freighting coal, in
surveying in Cuban harbors, and in collecting curiosities of marine
flora and fauna in the Pacific (there are seven officers now employed
on this latter duty aboard the Albatross). However valuable such
duty as the Albatross has done may be both to the country and -
failing better duty - to those engaged upon it as well, we should
first detail our officers for naval officers' work, i.e., going to sea
in naval vessels. Every dollar that Congress spends for vessels, guns,
or men should be put to the highest use that it can be put to. Torpedo boats should not lie idle and untried, unfamiliar things in the
service while the Scorpion plies as a passenger vessel, the Marcellus
as a coal freighter, the Potomac as a tow-boat, and so on.
The bureau would wish, for the good of the country and of
the navy, that there were officers enough to man all the vessels of
the fleet, and a surplus to get what training they might - in fault
of better-in surveying vessels or other duty afloat. We would
need them all in war time, and if they could not find places in our
fleets as constituted for peace times, we should then do right to
do the next best. To-day, however, each and every officer of the
navy could find a place aboard battleships, training vessels, cruisers
or torpedo boats, and it is there that they should go. Then, though
our officers might be few, each and every one would have all the
training that could be given him, our vessels themselves would
reach a higher efficiency, and the thoroughly trained nucleus would
approach in strength to that of a larger force which might lack
the highest training in some of its parts.
In times when employment was lacking, service and individual
ambitions have brought to us a round of outside duties which today should be lopped off. State school-ships, branch hydrographic
offices, survey duty, some inspection duty under equipment and
steam engineering, - and possibly even under ordnance - fish commission duty, isthmian canal duty, manning colliers and coal hulks,
hurt a navy that can give all its officers command of ships, men, and
guns afloat. They are excusable makeshifts in an idle navy.
The bureau urges the department to authorize the relief of every




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officer whose duty is not contributing directly to the development
of the navy as a fighting force, and to his own development as a
fighting naval officer.
The foregoing is largely based upon general considerations of
the department's duty to maintain the navy in the highest possible
state of efficiency. The department's specific duty to be prepared
at all times to make adequate naval defence is also involved. On
July i, 1897, ten months before the war with Spain, there were
in commission on the North Atlantic station  2 vessels with about
220 officers on board, whereas now there are 5 with 82 officers on
board.
The forces available for mobilization within thirty days on July I,
1897, and on January I, 900o, are compared below:
NORTH ATLANTIC     SOUTH ATLANTIC      EUROPEAN
VESSELS  OFFICERS  VESSELS  OFFICERS  VESSELS  OFFICERS
July I, I897   i2       220       2        29        3       51
January I, I900  5      82        3        51        0        O
OTHER SERVICES
(Estimated)         TOTAL
VESSELS  OFFICERS  VESSELS  OFFICERS
July i, 1897   9        I8o       26      480
January I, 1900  6       96       14      229
Six months after July I, 1897, we were straining every nerve to
add to our available North Atlantic fleet to meet the most inferior
of possible European foes: to-day, with less than half the force we
had then we should concentrate all available officers on board war
vessels afloat and in commission on the North Atlantic station.
A. S. CROWNINSHIELD
Chief of Bureau
REAR-ADMIRAL BELKNAP TO             SECRETARY LONG
Commonwealth of Massachusetts
Personal                                    Nautical Training School
BOSTON
March 15, 900o
DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I well know and appreciate how much the department dislikes
to revoke or modify its orders, but the detachment of Commander
Wise from the Enterprise, just at this time when extensive repairs
to the ship are going on under his supervision, works very much to
the disadvantage of the school and to the embarrassment of the
1 Frederick May Wise (d. 1901).




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commissioners. No other officer can at this juncture do so much
for the interest of the school as Commander Wise, and I beg to
express the hope, therefore, that if you can see your way clear to
modify his orders and extend his term so as to tide over the present
conditions of the ship, that you will do so.
With great respect, I am,
Sincerely yours,
GEORGE E. BELKNAP2
Retired
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
Navy Department
WASHINGTON, D. C.
CAPTAIN    MCCALLA TO SECRETARY LONG
U. S. S. Newark
Personal                                      Off VIGAN, LUZON
I6 March, 1900
DEAR GOVERNOR LONG:
Yesterday a cablegram from my wife gave me the glad news
that your kindness to me, which began with your entry into the
navy department, had culminated in restoring me to my original
position on the active list. The brief cable message which I sent
to Manila yesterday, for transmission to Washington, could have
given you but a very faint impression of the gratitude which I feel
for the action you have taken in removing what we consider to be
a badge of disgrace in the service; and I therefore ask you to accept
my very sincere and heartfelt thanks for giving my wife, my children and myself great joy.
I beg you to believe that I appreciate very highly the interest
and confidence which you have so often shown that you have in
me, by personal expression and official act; and I pray that I may
yet have many opportunities to show you that your confidence is
not undeserved, by conduct which may bring credit to your administration of the navy department, as well as personal satisfaction
that in giving this happiness to us all, you have made no mistake.
I have the honor to be,
Very sincerely,
B. H. MCCALLA
The Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
2 George Eugene Belknap (I832-1903).




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W. MURRAY CRANE TO SECRETARY LONG
Commonwealth of Massachusetts
Executive Department
BOSTON
March 22, 1900
SIR:
I am in receipt of the accompanying letter from Rear-Admiral
George E. Belknap, chairman of the board of commissioners of
the Massachusetts Nautical Training School, presenting reasons,
which appear to be worthy of careful consideration, for the continuance of Commander Frederick M. Wise as commander of the
training ship Enterprise. In the circumstances, I feel that it would
be in the interest of the commonwealth if Commander Wise could
continue his service on the Enterprise until the repairs on the ship
are, at least, completed. If this request can be granted without detriment to the naval service, the commonwealth will appreciate the
favor.
Very truly yours,
W. MURRAY CRANE1
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
REAR-ADMIRAL BELKNAP TO GOVERNOR CRANE
Commonwealth of Massachusetts
Nautical Training School
BOSTON
March 22, I900
SIR:
The commissioners of the Massachusetts Nautical Training
School would respectfully present to your Excellency the following reasons for desiring the retention of Commander Frederick M.
Wise, United States Navy, as commander of the training ship
Enterprise and as superintendent of the school. The extensive repairs upon the ship, lately begun under the appropriation of $15,000
granted for that purpose by act of the legislature, approved by
your excellency, require the constant oversight of a responsible
person familiar with the ship and with the needed repairs. Commander Wise last spring conducted the repairs then made and con1 Winthrop Murray Crane (0853-I920).




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sequently knows exactly where that work stopped and how much
more requires to be done.
The work now in progress is being carried on by a shipwright
and requires the same intelligent supervision that would be given
it by a naval constructor, if it were being done at a navy yard. Of
the officers now attached to the ship, other than Captain Wise,
none was present when the work last spring was carried on. Commander Wise having had several years' duty at the United States
Naval Academy at Annapolis has been enabled by'that experience
to materially raise the standard of instruction in the Massachusetts
Nautical Training School, a fact of which the commissioners have
had ample evidence.
If from the exigencies of the service Commander Wise can not
be allowed to complete the full term hitherto allowed to officers
detailed as superintendents of this school, the commissioners at
least request that his term of duty may be extended until the beginning of the next fall term. An additional reason for making this
request is that at the time Commanders John M. Hawley and A. P.
Nazro,2 both natives of Massachusetts, and now at sea, will most
probably be available for the superintendency, and either of these
officers would be very acceptable to this board.
For the above reasons the commissioners urge that Commander
Wise's superintendency may be extended, as above, as they believe
his detachment at the present time would be detrimental to the
better interests of the school.
Very respectfully,
GEORGE E. BELKNAP
Chairman Board of Commissioners
His Excellency W. MURRAY CRANE
Governor of Massachusetts
State House
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS
REAR-ADMIRAL CROWNINSHIELD
TO SECRETARY LONG
WASHINGTON, D. C.
April 13, I900
Memorandum for the SECRETARY OF THE NAVY:
Referring to the great demand for officers for sea service and
to the difficulty in supplying this demand, it is deemed necessary
1 John Mitchell Hawley (I846-I925).
2 Arthur Phillips Nazro (d. I9i ).




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to bring to the attention of the department the fact that the bureau
of navigation is very frequently extremely embarrassed in the assignment of officers, on account of the numerous, and, at times,
the unreasonable requests for retention of officers by the heads
of the different departments or divisions under which they are
serving, and the strenuous protests which are often filed when the
bureau details an officer for certain duty required by the exigencies
of the service. This hampering of the bureau in the performance
of the duties devolving upon it, as required by regulations, is instanced by such interference as has recently been made in the cases
of Lieutenant-Commander Sidney A. Staunton, U. S. N., whose detachment from his present duty with the Isthmian Canal Commission was strongly objected to by Rear-Admiral John G. Walker,
U. S. N., retired, the president of the commission; LieutenantCommander John C. Fremont,- U. S. N., whose retention as the supervisor of the harbor of New York was requested by the honorable secretary of war; Lieutenant-Commander John T. Newton,2
U. S. N., whose detachment was opposed by the chief of the bureau
of equipment; Lieutenant-Commander Walter McLean,' U. S. N.,
whose assignment to duty as executive officer of the U. S. S. Prairie
was objected to by the bureau of ordnance; Lieutenant-Commander
Asher C. Baker,4 U. S. N., whose retention on duty in connection
with the Paris Exposition Commission has been urged by the commissioner-general; Lieutenant John J. Knapp, U. S. N., who has
been retained on duty other than that to which he was assigned in
the regular routine of naval details.
The employment of officers on board school-ships, vessels of
the coast and geodetic survey and fish commission and as supervisor of the harbor of New York is authorized by law and custom;
while the employment of Lieutenant-Commander Staunton in a
civil clerical capacity and as the disbursing officer of the Isthmian
Canal Commission, is not authorized or warranted under the law.
In this connection, I beg leave to invite the department's attention
to a communication from Rear-Admiral Watson, dated February 24,
forwarding a roster of the line officers on the Asiatic station. Admiral Watson states as follows:
On January I, I9go00, (date of the last complete returns) the fleet
was short 487 men of the regular complements, but with an excess of
377, chiefly of inferior ratings, leaving in actual numbers a net shortage
1 John Charles Fremont, Jr., (I849-I9II). 3 Walter McLean (I855-I930).
2 John Thomas Newton (b. I855).  4 Asher Carter Baker (I850-I926).




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of iio. From these short complements the crews of twelve (I2) gunboats have to be supplied. The times of many expire in the near future,
the Helena alone losing forty (40) men between April 5 and June 30,
which practically lays her up unless the men are retained overtime.
In view of these facts, I beg to recommend that at least fifty (50)
line officers and four hundred (400) men, exclusive of apprentices, be
sent to this station to arrive not later than July I.
Thanks to the foresight of this bureau, the department is in a
position to supply the four hundred men asked for by Admiral
Watson, as there are that number of landsmen under training for
seamen now on board of the Dixie. This ship is now in the Mediterranean, and as the men referred to have already received several
months' training, she has been ordered to proceed to the Asiatic
station direct, where she should arrive in about two months' time.
In regard to furnishing the fifty officers called for, that is a much
more difficult matter, in fact, it is quite impossible to send that
number of officers to the Asiatic station unless the whole system
that has been in force for many years, of having certain duties at
our naval stations and in the navy department performed by line
officers, is abolished. This, however, I do not recommend doing,
as I believe that the best interests of the naval service require that
our officers should be associated with the duty of inspecting, manufacturing, and installing of the ordnance, equipment, engineering
outfit, etc., of our ships of war.
In order, therefore, that we may get along with the number of
officers at present allowed, I beg leave to make the following recommendations:
First, that all officers employed in state school-ships, and fish
commission, be recalled to perform purely naval duties;
Second, that all colliers and such auxiliaries as can be spared from
the Asiatic squadron be placed out of commission;
Third, That a reduction be made in the number of vessels in the
Asiatic squadron;
Fourth, that no more vessels be commissioned for surveying.
It is desirable that the training of the personnel of the navy, both
as regards enlisted men and officers, be carried on with the utmost
vigor, and in this connection a squadron of torpedo boats should
be kept in commission in order that the officers and men of the
navy may be properly trained in their use. This, I regret to say,




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with our present force of officers, is impossible to carry out, for,
while the bureau recognizes how very desirable it is that this should
be done, the small number of officers and men disposable will not
permit it.
A. S. CROWNINSHIELD
Chief of Bureau
CHARLES H. ALLEN TO SECRETARY LONG
Executive Mansion
Personal                                           PORTO Rico
June 4, I900
MY DEAR GOVERNOR:
I am awaiting the arrival now of Judge Hunt,' with a sort of
feverish anxiety. It will be good to have somebody here to consult
with. For while General Davis 2 has been very pleasant, he still
has his own affairs, and naturally does not take the same keen interest in the civil government. But all things considered it is going
well, and I have a hope I am gaining the confidence of the people.
I can seem to see this in many little ways.
If it were not for the financial cloud all over us I should feel
easier. Still I am full of confidence, and believe some way will be
worked out. The military government spent between four and
five millions this year, and left the civil government two hundred
and eighty-five thousand dollars in the treasury and enough outstanding obligations to about swamp it.
To think of starting housekeeping on such a basis, and to contrast
it with the free hand with which the army has scattered its money,
is rather depressing. We shall try to " pay as we go," that is make the
island self-supporting, and we shall be able to do so easily, after a
while, for the country is rich enough, - but this year will be a hard
struggle. Still we have the two million fund to fall back on, if necessary - for of course the President will not have permitted the army
to loot that. It is not good business to use that money for current
expenses. But the trouble is these people don't understand taxes.
They simply won't levy or if they do, won't collect any taxes except what they call the " consumo " tax on beans, rice, and codfish,
which the poor people have to pay. If instead of squandering money
1 William Henry Hunt (b. 1857).
2 George Whitefield Davis (1839-I918).




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on rations (I don't mean this offensively) a little time had been
taken to revise and modify the internal taxes, an available income
could have been secured. Now that can only be done by the " harumscarum" legislature when it comes together. And thinking of that
body, I'm quite sure their first effort in legislating will be to authorize a ten million loan. They are all talking about that. The San
Juan News this morning gives a list of men agreed upon in W[ashington] yesterday for the various offices here. It does not speak of
either com[missioners] of interior or education, but as I shall of
course be officially notified when the nominations are actually
made, I can wait for that.
I'm sure it will be a great relief to you all in Washington when
these offices are all filled, - but I can tell you it will be a comfort
to me. Judge Hunt is due here to-morrow. I shall take him right in
with me, here, and do my best to make him comfortable and contented. I hope he is a level-headed man of good judgment, and
willing to work.
I've been quite ill: taken Friday night and was sick in bed until
Monday and not quite right since. The regular thing here, bowel
trouble with little fever. I think it more than likely from the heat
and care. Didn't say anything about it to Mrs. Allen or she would
have started right back.
Things are going better all the time, I hope. I do hope you are
to be nominated for vice-president. I'm sure the people will be glad
to have you there, and the position will be congenial to you, - of
that I'm sure.
I intend to return, to go to Lowell and attend to my affairs, and
hope to be able to leave here about the twentieth instant. I shall
come directly to W[ashington] and remain there a few days. Logan3 will come with me. I wish you would order him to the Mayflower. He speaks Spanish, and has been more useful to me than
I can ever tell you. Next to the straw-hat you gave me, your loaning
him to me, has been great. And it helps the civil government here,
too.
My best love to Helen, Mrs. Long, - and indeed to you all.
Sincerely yours,
CHARLES H. ALLEN
P. S. Friday, June 9, 1900. Judge Hunt came this A.M. I was delighted to see him. Took him right in with me, and shall do my
best to make him happy and contented. Have any other nominations
3 Lieutenant George Wood Logan (I868-I915).




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been made? I haven't heard of any since Judge Hunt (May 19).
Has the state department forgotten me?
Yours truly,
C. H. A.
I hope before this can be answered I shall hear of your nomination for Vice-President.
EDWARD EVERETT HALE TO SECRETARY LONG
39 Highland Street
ROXBURY, MASSACHUSETTS
June I5, 1900
MY DEAR GOVERNOR LONG:
Pray come to the Phi Beta dinner at Cambridge on the twentyeighth of June. I preside, for my sins. But if you will come, all
will be well. I have asked Senator Dawes 1 and our friend Hoar, and
to you privately, I will say, that I rather like to show the Cambridge
people that there are a few Republicans left who enjoy life in the
deserts of Mugwumpry.
You know the merit of a Phi Beta dinner is that there are no
reporters so that we can all say just what we like to; just what we
blank choose.
My eccentric but amiable cousin, Will Everett,2 has the oration,
and is sure to give up some good texts.
Always truly yours,
EDWARD EVERETT HALE
EVERETT C. BUMPUS TO SECRETARY LONG
73 Tremont Street
BOSTON
June 26, 1900
MY DEAR GOVERNOR:
Brooks Adams,' who has always been a personal friend of mine,
called upon me Sunday and said that if Bryan was nominated upon
the Chicago platform, he should certainly vote and do everything
he could to elect the Republican ticket. He really wants to become a
Republican and is more than three quarters. He also is very anxious
that he should be asked to do some campaign speaking, and I am
sure that while we sometimes think he is a bit cranky that he would
1 Henry Laurens Dawes (1816-1903), Yale '39, U. S. senator from Massachusetts I875-1892.
2 William Everett (I839-1910), Harvard College '59.
1 Brooks Adams (1848-1927), Harvard College '70,




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be of great assistance, particularly in the West or in the Middle
States. He would like to do it, and really wants to pull himself
out of the life that he has been leading, writing a little literature here
and there, and going forward and taking his part in the active things
of this life. He was frank enough to say to me that he would be
glad to have me, as a personal friend, say this to you or to any
one else that I thought of, and I am sure such a recruit as this
would be of decided advantage to our side of the question. Please
consider and favor it if you think well of it as I hope you will.
Judging from what already appears in this locality, there isn't
going to be a tremendous amount of enthusiasm evoked in this
campaign. There are a lot of men here who ought to be ashamed
of themselves, who think that we have got to stand in the same
condition we were in fifty years ago. I was talking to even as good
a man as Judge Knowlton 2 the other day and he said he looked
upon this American movement with a great deal of foreboding.
I said to him that no nation was immortal, and it was best for the
world that the Americans should move forward; that I was glad
of it and I believed the time would come when he would be. There
is, however, a sort of a namby-pamby, idiotic condition with us
in New England, particularly through this section. So few people
here really know the West and South. However, I will not bother
you with my chestnuts, but turn again to the Adams proposition
with the hope that it may be of benefit.
The very kind letter that you wrote to me from Hingham I appreciate. We all wanted you to have that place, but certainly
your present position must be a great deal more satisfactory. I
wonder if when you come this way in the fall we could not get
up some sort of a stirabout that should not emanate from any club,
but be the action of men, your Republican friends. On such an occasion as that, published abroad all over the country, a public man
like yourself meets with a good deal more attention than in any
other way. Meantime I will talk to you more about it, and believe me,
Very sincerely yours,
E. C. BuMPUS 4
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
WASHINGTON, D. C.
2 Marcus Perrin Knowlton (I839-I918), Yale '6o, chief-justice supreme judicial
court of Massachusetts.
3 The Republican nomination for Vice-President in i900.
4 Everett Cephas Bumpus (b. i844).




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SENATOR SPOONER TO SECRETARY LONG
MADISON, WISCONSIN
June 29, 1900
DEAR SECRETARY LONG:
I have your telegram of the twenty-eighth, relative to young
Fairchild. Your letter not yet received, but, as I must go away in
the morning, I do not wait for it to arrive before expressing my
thanks to you for your kindness in this matter.
I was in Philadelphia during the convention, and I can see no
reason to doubt that if Roosevelt had stayed away from the convention, or maintained after he arrived there the position which he
had so long ago taken, with the firmness one would expect as a
result of a " strenuous life," you would easily have been the nominee of the convention for vice-president. As it was, all things considered, it looked to me like an impossibility, and I thought you did
the right thing to take yourself out of it.
Some odd things happened there, concerning which I want, when
we meet, a ten minutes' chat.
In great haste,
Yours sincerely,
JOHN C. SPOONER'
The Honorable
JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
CAPTAIN HOBSON TO SECRETARY LONG
United States Naval Hospital
Personal                                     YOKOHAMA, JAPAN
June 29, 1900
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I am making by this mail, an official request to return home by
way of Siberia, when treatment is completed, having been forbidden to do further service in the tropics - taking this route accords with the views of the board of survey and with those of the
surgeon in charge of the hospital, as it keeps me in northerly latitudes during the heat and reduces the exposure to the glare of
water, and to ship lights, which coming through air ports and other
small apertures are to be particularly avoided.
I am anxious to complete my visits to shipyards out here and to
places that are most likely to influence the general situation in the
1 John Coit Spooner (0843-1919), U. S. senator from Wisconsin.




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Far East. These visits can be advantageously made en route. I have
become deeply impressed with the industrial capacity of these
populations, which gives to the Far East a vast importance all its
own. The action to be taken by our country in the near future will
have far-reaching consequences and additions to the meagre stock
of information would have special value at this juncture. My application therefore requests additional authority and facility to make
investigations on the general situation.
Particular interest attaches to the methods and results of the
efforts of the Germans at Kiao-chau, of the British in organizing the
Chinese regiment at Weihaiwei and of the Russians in their handling of the Chinese populations in Manchuria. It is difficult to
estimate exactly how much time may be required for these investigations, and I hope you may see fit to send the requested orders
and instructions by cable upon the receipt of the letter.
Very sincerely,
RICHMOND PEARSON HOBSON
P. S. Perhaps it may be well to let you know of the circumstances that lead me to cable you direct for permission to serve
with the marines at Taku. When the Solace 1 arrived, the immediate situation looked gloomy and Major Waller2 and I were convinced that serious importance might attach to getting as much
artillery as possible for the small force of marines in presence of
such large numbers of Chinese, and the major wished me to organize and take charge of all the artillery in reach and I was working up the question of mounting rapid-fire ship guns for use in the
field. He made official application for me to Admiral Kempff,3 and
the admiral refused. Then I appealed to the admiral, and he would
not listen to my representations, seeing only an incongruity and
saying if I were a line officer he might consider the matter, but
as it was I need not say a word, his mind was made up. The matter
did not seem to me to be one to be treated lightly, and I asked for
permission to remain at Taku while it was referred to the navy
department. This was denied and I was directed to remain on the
Solace, which was upon the point of leaving. I then requested that
my application be cabled with a request for an answer to be sent
1 Hospital ship.
2 Littleton Waller Tazewell Waller (b. I856), U. S. M. C., who was promoted
for gallantry in the Boxer Rebellion.
3 Louis Kempff (1841-1920).




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to Nagasaki. The answer came from Admiral Remey and was such
that I inferred that the matter had been referred to him only, and
that he did not at all grasp the situation or the whole purport of
the request. Then I applied to the commanding officer of the
Solace as senior officer present to forward a cable request to the
navy department. This he said he did not feel he could do under
the circumstances. So I cabled you direct. I thought the cardinal
points were the possibility for usefulness, Major Waller's request -
and my willingness.
R. P. H.
The Honorable J. D. LONG
WASHINGTON, D. C.
LIEUTENANT-COMMANDER SOUTHERLAND
TO SECRETARY LONG
U. S. S. Dolphin
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS
July 2, I900
DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
Yours to hand this morning, and I will be ready for Mr. Hackett
on the eleventh instant, and will make all arrangements with him beforehand. The man " Stuart " never came back, and I am inclined to
believe that he found the life too disagreeable. He was a good boy,
had been in no trouble, and was liked by the officers. He got very
seasick, however, and that alone may have decided him to give
up the life. We lost two bright Indian boys, who had been educated
at the Carlisle School, for the same reason.
In response to a pleasant letter from Mr. Foss 2 of the naval committee, I spent yesterday at Cohasset, where I was entertained
by his brother,3 a very wealthy man, president of the Sturtevant
Blower Works, and husband of the daughter of the gentleman4
who gave that building to the Hebron Academy,5 which you were
expected to help dedicate on the nineteenth of last month. They
entertained me most charmingly, and the elder Mr. Foss spoke of
1 Frank Warren Hackett (1841-1926), Harvard College '6i, successor to Charles
H. Allen as assistant secretary of the navy.
2 George Edmund Foss (b. i863), Harvard College '85, M. C. from Illinois.
3 Eugene Noble Foss (b. I858), M. C. I90o-I9II, and governor of Massachusetts
I91I-I9I3.
4 Benjamin Franklin Sturtevant (1833-I890).
5 Hebron Academy, Hebron, Maine, where Secretary Long was fitted for college.




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you in a way which won my heart. He is evidently not only one
of your friends, but also one of that set who do not believe any
honor too great for you. I will repeat his conversation when I see
you next.
The naval Mr. Foss expects to visit the Portsmouth Navy Yard
with Mr. Hackett, and will visit this yard, unofficially and quietly,
some day when he comes over to lunch with me; he is very much
interested in the national naval reserve bill, and assures me that he
hopes to pass it. Senator Hale has asked him to come to Maine, and
make a speech for him, but he did not tell me whether he would
do so or not.
Apropos of him, I enclose an official communication from Admiral Bradford, and a copy of my reply thereto. If I know exactly
what Admiral Bradford wants done, we can make that survey at
the least possible cost to the government. If my own surmise as
to the place is correct, I believe it can be done well within the time
assigned, and at a cost equal to only the wear and tear of the instruments placed on board for the purpose; if this is so, it would
not be a bad idea for Mr. Foss to know it. If Admiral Bradford
thinks the matter of enough importance, and you agree with him,
and will order me on, I can spend the time between the ship's going
out of dock to-morrow, and the tenth instant, in Washington, looking up the survey matter.
Mr. Cole is gone and I never saw any one so delighted to get
away; unless you send Mr. Logan back,6 I would be more than
pleased to have Watts,7 now at the torpedo station, with me again.
Outside of Mr. Watts, I know only two young officers well enough
to recommend. These are Ensign T. C. Hart,8 now on the Hartford
at this yard, and Ensign J. H. Roys 9 now on the Kearsarge.
I saw Mrs. Long Thursday afternoon; she was really looking
very well, but complained of a little fatigue from household duties.
Work on the ship is going along finely: it keeps me fully occupied.
If I should be compelled to stay here long enough, I could easily
qualify for a naval constructor.
With all hearty good wishes for yourself, believe me,
Very sincerely,
W. H. H. SOUTHERLAND
6 Lieutenant G. W. Logan.
7 Ensign William Carleton Watts (b. i880).
8 Thomas Charles Hart (b. I877).
9 John H. Roys (b. I877).




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SENATOR HALE TO SECRETARY LONG
ELLSWORTH, MAINE
July 19, I900
MY DEAR GOVERNOR:
Before anything is done in filling the place of superintendent of
the coast survey, I hope you will see that the President appreciates
the importance of having some man in the place who is not hostile
to the United States Navy. I have no man in mind for the place,
but it would be much more comfortable for all of us, if there is a
good man in, who will cooperate with us, and not be working
against us.
I can not say too much in approval of the course which the administration is taking on the Chinese matter. If there ever was a
time when things should be kept on an even keel, it is now, and if
we are drawn into another war with the assumption that it is with
British influence, we shall be very much hurt. I have no doubt your
head is entirely level in the matter.
I wish you were here in Maine, where it is cool, instead of in
Washington, where it is HVery truly yours,
EUGENE HALE
BRIGADIER-GENERAL HEYWOOD
TO SECRETARY LONG
Headquarters U. S. Marine Corps
WASHINGTON, D. C.
July 23, 1900
SIR:
i. A battalion of marines, consisting of 14 officers and 50I enlisted men, left this city yesterday afternoon at 3.15 for San Francisco, over the Chesapeake & Ohio and Sante Fe routes, to sail in
the army transport Hancock for China.
2. This battalion is under command of Major Randolph Dickins,' U. S. M. C., and one additional officer will join in San Francisco.
The battalion is composed of healthy young men of excellent physique, is fully equipped for field service, and I feel confident that the
1 Randolph Dickins (I853-1914).




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officers and men will render a good account of themselves in case
they are called into action in China.
Very respectfully,
CHARLES HEYWOOD
Commandant
The Secretary of the Navy
CAPTAIN    MCCALLA TO SECRETARY          LONG
U. S. Flagship Newark
Personal                                           KURE, JAPAN
August 8, I900
DEAR GOVERNOR LONG:
I am taking the liberty of sending to you for your official information, my views of the probable seriousness of the situation
which must soon be developed in northern China; whether a partition of the country be actually consummated or the nominal integrity of a Chinese government be maintained. I hope that you
may have the time to read the official confidential letter, regarding
our American concessions in China which should go forward by
this same mail, as well as the official report at length of the effort
of Admiral Seymour's1 column to relieve the legations at Peking,
in which the officers and men from the Newark gained great credit
from the representatives of the other powers acting concurrently.
This report should reach the department about the middle of
August.
I hope very much that the rewards which I have recommended
for certain officers and men, in accordance with law, may meet
with your approval for they are, in my opinion, well deserved.
Trusting that you are quite well and enjoying a pleasant summer, with my kindest remembrances to Mrs. Long and your
daughters,
Believe me,
Very sincerely,
B. H. MCCALLA
The Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
1 Sir Edward Hobart Seymour (I840-I929), in command of international forces
during the Boxer Rebellion.




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SAMUEL L. GRACEY TO SECRETARY LONG
Consular Service, United States of America
Confidential                         FUCHAU (FOOCHOW), CHINA
August 8, 900oo
MY DEAR FRIEND:
I have many times determined to write you, but remembering
how overwhelmed you must be with care, responsibility, and work,
I have desisted. I was disappointed that the late Rep[ublican] convention did not nominate you for Vice-President with Mr. McKinley. Sometimes geography plays the mischief with our hopes and
plans. I suppose if Speaker Reed had lived in New York or Ohio,
he would have been the nominee of our party for President before
this - possibly?
We have fallen upon treacherous and evil times in China. Although the actual terrors are more manifest in the northern provinces, we feel here that we are living on the hot crust of a very
active volcano, and know not what a day may bring forth. I am
fortunate in being at a provincial capital, where I have frequent
intercourse with their excellencies Hsi and Shan, the viceroy and
Tartar general of two provinces, the "Minche," that is Fohkien
and Chekiang, containing as is supposed fifty-six million people.
We are favored by having two very excellent men over us. These
with H. E. Chang Chitung, whom I regard as one of the very ablest
men in China, and H. E. Lin, of Nanking, are standing like a wall
of fire between the insurrection led by Prince Tuan in the north
and all the central and southern provinces. Had they obeyed his
edicts (Tuan's) we should all have been driven out from here
before this. We are praying and longing for an advance and victory
on the part of the allied forces speedily, or I fear even these determined men will be unable to hold the people in check. Li Hung
Chang is a cunning crafty fox, or something worse and not to be
trusted. He has many times succeeded in playing off the powers
one against another and worked his own selfish ends. He [Tuan?]
and Chang are great rivals. I do not know that we will get out of
this alive. Nearly all my nationals have fled to Japan or America,
but I am glad to be in a position where I can best serve my God
and my country. I am content whatever may come. If needed for




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service by my government in any other way than as consul here,
you may nominate to Mr. McKinley for anything needed.
Very truly yours,
SAMUEL L. GRACEY1
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary, etc.
CHARLES W. ELIOT TO SECRETARY LONG
ASTICOU, MAINE
August 21, I900
DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I heard when in Cambridge last week that the position of director
of the coast and geodetic survey, vacated by Mr. Pritchett,' had
not yet been filled. Will you allow me to mention a very good
man for the place, which is, of course, an important one for the
science of the country? We have at Cambridge an associate professor of astronomy, Solon Irving Bailey,2 who is not only recognized as an able astronomer, but is also an experienced administrator, having been for some years at the head of our astronomical
station at Arequipa, Peru. He is not only an astronomer but a
meteorologist, having established and maintained meteorological
stations crossing the Andes at great elevations. I should think him
about forty-one or forty-two years of age. He is able-bodied, goodlooking, and alert, and has pleasant manners. Mrs. Bailey is an agreeable woman, and he has some nice children. He gets work done by
subordinates, but without making himself disagreeable to them.
Altogether, Professor Bailey is a first-rate candidate for the place.
We should be very sorry indeed to lose him from our observatory;
but the superintendency of the coast survey would mean a considerable promotion for him as regards salary and influence, and
I think he would like it. He is a graduate of Boston University in
88I; but in 888 he took an A. M. at Harvard.
Very truly yours,
CHARLES W. ELIOT
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
1 Reverend Samuel Lewis Gracey (1835-191), U. S. consul.
1 Henry Smith Pritchett (b. 1857).
2 Solon Irving Bailey (i854-193i).




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ROGER WOLCOTT TO SECRETARY LONG
Hotel zu den vier Jahreszeiten
Personal and confidential                          MiNCHEN
August 22, 1900
DEAR GOVERNOR LONG:
With some hesitation I have finally determined to write to you
regarding a matter which for nearly three weeks has been causing
me a certain degree of embarrassment.
Before we left Paris on the fifth instant the papers announced
that I had been appointed ambassador to Italy, and this report was
shortly followed by the positive statement that I had accepted the
offer, but would return to America for a brief period before taking up my official residence at Rome.
At first I supposed that this was a mere newspaper error: later
I thought the appointee was probably Senator Wolcott of Colorado.
Although I have not seen an American newspaper for some time
owing to our rather rapid travelling, and have received letters from
home only at rare intervals, so many references to the supposed appointment have been made in a large batch of letters received at
this place this A.M. that I can not longer entirely ignore the report
as I have done up to this time.
I have not received either directly or indirectly a single word
officially regarding the matter from Washington or elsewhere, and
as, if a misunderstanding exists, a longer continuance of it is likely
only to increase the resulting embarrassment, I take the liberty of
writing frankly to you regarding it.
If it be true that the President has done me the honor of thinking
of me in connection with this most important and in many respects
attractive appointment, I beg that you will express to him my grateful appreciation of his consideration. Under other circumstances I
might gladly accept such an appointment if it were tendered me:
but I have a large family of young sons and I should at present
be equally unwilling to have them educated out of our own country
and to be separated from them by the ocean. I should therefore now
be unable to accept the appointment, and it is this feeling which
has prompted me to write to you rather than to wait longer for
further developments by mail.
If the whole matter is without foundation, you will, I am sure,
understand the motive which has prompted me to write this letter
and excuse my mistake. If otherwise, and you deem any public




338        PAPERS OF JOHN DAVIS LONG                   [1900
statement necessary, I should be glad to have it said " that for family
and other reasons I felt obliged," etc., etc.
Pray forgive my troubling you with so purely personal an affair,
and believe me, with much respect,
Very sincerely yours,
ROGER WOLCOTT
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
WASHINGTON, D. C.
ROGER WOLCOTT TO SECRETARY            LONG
LAUSANNE
September 6, 1900
DEAR GOVERNOR LONG:
The enclosed letter was written by me at Munich fifteen days
ago, but I finally decided not to send it at that time as I heard
nothing further from any source regarding the matter referred to,
and feared to place myself in a false position. I now regret that I did
not forward it when written. Late last evening I received a letter
from General Horace Porter1 enclosing the following telegram
undated.
PORTER, Ambassador, Paris.
Communicate following to Wolcott. Dean diplomatic corps Rome
suggests to embassy there propriety your not arriving more than
eight days before reception by King who is not expected to return
before late October or first November.
ADEE,2 Acting
This is absolutely the first official communication of any sort that
I have received concerning the appointment, and this plainly regards it and my acceptance as faits accomplis. Except on the assumption that other communications have miscarried, I can not understand how the mistake can have arisen.
I regret extremely that the papers should have announced my acceptance, as it makes my position appear one of vacillation. For,
however deeply I may feel the honor of the appointment, and however agreeable on many accounts a residence in Rome might prove,
I nevertheless feel unable to accept the position for the reasons which
I gave in the enclosed note.
1 Horace Porter (1837-1921), ambassador to France.
2 Alvey Augustus Adee (i842-I924), third assistant secretary of state.




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I have to-day cabled the state department, and have also written
to Secretary Hay to the above effect. If you can do anything to
see that the papers state the matter aright: i.e., that the appointment
was never accepted by me, etc., I should esteem it a great favor. I
must beg once more that you will convey to the President my grateful sense of his confidence and my sincere regret that any embarrassment should have arisen from his generous purpose regarding me.
I beg also that you will excuse me for troubling you with my personal affairs, and remain, with cordial regard,
Very truly yours,
ROGER WOLCOTT
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
WASHINGTON, D. C.
CAPTAIN    CLARK TO SECRETARY LONG
Navy Yard
LEAGUE ISLAND, PENNSYLVANIA
September I, I900
MY DEAR SIR:
When I met you at the Naval Academy last June, you were so
kind as to say that if I ever wished for any duty I should apply to
you, and this without any suggestion on my part. Now I do not
care for anything at present for myself as I can retire on the twentyninth of this month on which date I shall have completed forty years'
service and it is my present intention to retire as soon as you may
be ready to dispense with my services as a member of the general
board. Certainly my preference would be to retire, though I confess that there are officers who have aroused in me a little of the
dog in the manger feeling. But I am going to ask what would be
a great and highly appreciated favor, and that is the revocation of
the orders of my son-in-law, Lieutenant S. S. Robison,l to the
Atlanta and that orders for him to the Alabama be issued. I asked
Admiral Crowninshield about August 29 that he be ordered to the
Alabama, but he answered that it was probably too late, that the
request should have been made before. On or about the eighth
instant Lieutenant Robison made an official application, which
was strongly endorsed by the Commandant, Admiral Casey,2 asking that the request be granted because of his, Robison's, excellent
record. Now if it will turn out an officer already ordered I could
1 Samuel Shelbume Robison (b. 1867).
2 Silas Casey (1841-1913).




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not think of asking this but I can hardly think that is the case.
Another and a good reason why Lieutenant Robison should not
go to the Atlanta is that he has never had duty in a modem twinscrew ship and now he is again ordered to a single-screw vessel.
If the Alabama's detail is complete, I hope you will see that he is
ordered to one of the battleships on this station.
Mrs. Clark joins with me in kindest regards and best wishes for
Mrs. Long and yourself, I am,
Very sincerely yours,
C. E. CLARK
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
GEORGE FRISBIE HOAR TO SECRETARY LONG
WORCESTER, MASSACHUSETTS
September 12, I900
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
The Worcester people are to mark the spot where George Bancroft was born with a tablet on the one-hundredth anniversary
of his birth, which will be October third. In addition to his great
fame as an historian, he is entitled to honor as an eminent secretary of
the navy, and especially as the founder and originator of the naval
school at Annapolis.
The gentlemen who are promoting the enterprise will be very
much gratified and honored if you can be present on the occasion.
There will be a few informal speeches, not more than five minutes
apiece, in general. You will, however, in the matter of speechmaking be master of the occasion. If you wish to speak only five
minutes that will be entirely sufficient for the absolute necessities
of the occasion; and if you would speak ten times as long, the
audience would like it so much the better.
I am, with high regard, faithfully yours,
GEORGE F. HOAR
The Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy, etc., etc., etc.




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--


REAR-ADMIRAL SAMPSON TO SECRETARY LONG
Navy Yard
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS
September 13, I900
DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I have just received your letter of the 2th instant, with enclosure
from General Bancroft.' I am of the opinion that the original plan
to have the gate at Water Street is to be preferred. One objection
would be that the traffic on Chelsea Street is heavy - I suppose that
fully two hundred cars an hour pass the yard at that point, in addition to the great number of teams - and because of the fact that
the street is very narrow, the large number of teams that would
pass in and out of the yard at that point would be sure at times
to cause congestion at the gate and interrupt traffic both by our
own teams, other teams and the street cars. Beside this, the street
is for nearly the whole distance along Chelsea Street several feet
higher than the navy yard property, and such a gate would require
considerable grading inside the yard, with consequent increase of
expense and loss of ground which will probably be needed at no
remote date for building purposes. As you doubtless know, the
land is already well covered with buildings, and the locality is such
as to make an extension of the yard difficult, if not impossible. It
seems to me that the growth of the navy will demand an increase
in the facilities of the navy yards, and economy in the expenditure
of territory for a site for the new gate is a consideration of importance.
Having two gates, as General Bancroft suggests, would be a
disadvantage to us, as it would require an appreciable increase in
the number of sentries and gate-keepers. The gate on Chelsea Street
would necessarily be somewhere on the brow of a rather steep hill,
which all teams would have to ascend before entering the yard,
and then they would have to ascend a considerable grade inside
before leaving the yard. This is an item worthy of note when you
consider the amount of heavy traffic that would pass through the
gate. This is entirely obviated at the present site.
What General Bancroft says about the greater number of people
that would view the gate on Chelsea Street, is perfectly true, and
if more practical considerations were equal, his argument would
have more weight. Erecting the gate on Chelsea Street would in1 William Amos Bancroft (1855-1922), Harvard College '78.




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volve the preparation of a complete set of new plans - another
item of expense. Of course, you know that the contract has already been advertised, and that the bids are to be opened Saturday,
the fifteenth instant; so that if any change is contemplated, I suppose
that steps should be taken in the matter at once. You are the best
judge of the difficulties that would arise at this stage in withdrawing proposals that have already been sent out to prospective bidders.
I return General Bancroft's letter herewith.
With much respect, I am,
Very truly yours,
W. T. SAMPSON
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
HINGHAM, MASSACHUSETTS
A. BUSHNELL HART TO SECRETARY LONG
15 Appian Way
CAMBRIDGE
September 28, i900
DEAR SECRETARY LONG:
After the death of Mr. John C. Ropes I was designated to act as his
successor in providing speakers for the meetings of the Massachusetts Military Historical Society. Like all that Mr. Ropes did, nobody
can equal or imitate him, but I venture to appeal to you as interested
in the work of the society to suggest some military man who has
taken part in the operations in the Philippines, and who could give
an idea of the actual nature of the hostilities out there. General Otis
is, of course, the man whom we should most wish to hear from,
and perhaps, if you will use your powerful influence, we can secure him. Of course the society is unable to offer a fee, but will
bear all travelling expenses. It has seemed to me desirable to approach General Otis thus through a third party, because of the
state of his health, which may altogether prevent his accepting.
If General Otis be out of the question, can you help us with any
other suggestion? I am told that Captain Sladen  (if I read my
memorandum right) was chief-of-staff to General Otis, and may
perhaps be secured.
The date of the next meeting is November 6, but there will be
other meetings through the winter.
Sincerely yours,
ALBERT BUSHNELL HART
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
1 Fred Winchester Sladen (b. 1867).




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CHARLES G. WASHBURN TO SECRETARY LONG
314 Main Street
WORCESTER, MASSACHUSETTS
October i6, i900
DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
As you perhaps know, I am a candidate for Congress in this
district which is now represented by a Democrat, and we are making great efforts to redeem the district, and it is generally regarded
as rather important that we should do so in view of the very close
division in Congress.
I write to inquire if it would be possible for you to make a speech
here. I presume that you will come home to vote, and it occurred
to me that you might be able to arrange it. I write directly to you
in order that I may know as early as possible what can be done in
this direction. There is to be a rally in Mechanic's Hall [on] October 25 at which Congressman Moody will speak, and we would
like very much to have you here on that date. I should not think
of basing this request on personal grounds but really feel that you
would be doing a genuine service to the party by coming.
Yours sincerely,
C. G. WASHBURN'
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
MAJOR-GENERAL MERRITT TO SECRETARY LONG
Union Club
[NEW YORK]
October 23, 1900
DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I regret exceedingly to decline any request favored by you, but
the conditions are such at this time that it is not possible for me to
address the Historical Society of Massachusetts on the subject suggested. In the first place I have an engagement in Chicago about the
time mentioned, but more to the point is the fact that I have had
no experience as a lecturer and would hesitate very much to appear in that capacity before a Massachusetts audience.
1 Charles Grenfill Washburn (1857-1928), Harvard College '8o, M. C. from
Massachusetts i906-i9II.




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Will you kindly assure the society of my regret on being obliged
to decline the honor so graciously offered.
With great respect,
Very truly yours,
WESLEY MERRITT
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
If it is permissible I would suggest General Francis V. Greene
of this city, my ablest lieutenant in the Philippines, as being the
fittest man for the work intended.
W. M.
CURTIS GUILD, JR., TO SECRETARY LONG
Commercial Bulletin
BOSTON
November 13, 1900
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I sincerely trust that you will reconsider your determination,
if the newspapers report you correctly, to leave the Cabinet.
We are all proud of you and the President would have far to seek to
find another New Englander who would so combine personal popularity with administrative success. I am sure that all New England
hopes that her member of the Cabinet may be John D. Long indefinitely.
With high regard, I am as ever,
Cordially yours,
CURTIS GUILD, JR.1
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
CURTIS GUILD, JR., TO SECRETARY LONG
Commercial Bulletin
Private                                                  BOSTON
December I, I9oo
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
Thanks for your letter of yesterday in regard to Clough. I imagined it would be difficult, but these applicants will not believe me;
so I have to confront them with an official signature. The Boston
1 Curtis Guild, Jr. (I860-I915), Harvard College '81, governor of Massachusetts
1906-1909, ambassador to Russia 1911-1913.




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newspapers have added very largely to my trials by printing in
the kindness of their hearts statements that I am to be "called to
the army portfolio" and that the "administration can deny Guild
nothing after his etc., etc."
You know at least that I have not advocated Republicanism for
my own advancement or to control patronage. I may add that I
still wear hats of the old size. It would be a national misfortune to
have the Cabinet changed at this crisis even to make room for
persons of very much greater importance and weight than your
humble servant. You can guess however that I actually have to
hide to escape the youth of Massachusetts, all eager for commissions
and as eager to give their lives for the administration as our misguided friend McCall is to give his vote against it.
Cordially and gratefully,
CURTIS GUILD, JR.
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
A. BUSHNELL HART TO SECRETARY              LONG
15 Appian Way
CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS
December 17, 1900
DEAR SECRETARY LONG:
You may remember that I called on you a few weeks ago and
that you kindly presented me to the President with reference to
a plan for collecting, excerpting, and publishing the most cogent
material on the Philippine question. As the President said, we were
able to find nearly the whole material in print; we had gathered it
together and were about to prepare a small volume. The members of the committee had been quietly increased throughout the
country.
A few days ago there appeared the announcement of a society
in Boston for the same purpose, and at the same time one 2 of the
people in Boston who had been most interested in this enterprise
and had made large promises of financial aid, by a change of front,
Samuel W. McCall, Republican representative from the Eighth Massachusetts District I893-I913, was one of the six members of the House who voted
against the resolution that led directly to the Spanish-American War.
1 Philippine Information Society. See Boston Daily Advertiser, December 14,
1900.
2 Not identified.




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came out as a public anti-imperialist and anti-administrationist.
Under those circumstances the committee thought itself bound to
cut loose from that connection; we should have made a new financial arrangement and have proceeded in our work, but that it was
evident that the public would inevitably confuse our work and its
results with those of this other organization having its headquarters
so near by. As that organization contains several people who have
taken a very strong public stand against the retention of the Philippines on any terms, and includes Dr. Emerson,3 the recent antiimperialist candidate for elector, we feel convinced that we can
not place our results before the public in such a way as to secure
the desired effect of an impartial, colorless statement of the cogent
facts as they are developed. We have therefore dissolved the committee, and if necessary shall say so in public.
I write to you because you showed so much kindness and so
much interest in what really seemed a very hopeful plan; one of
the reasons for giving up our enterprise is that it was published far
and wide that the administration had offered facilities to the committee, and we feel sure that the attempt would be made to use that
fact against the administration unless the first committee made it
evident that the second society was an entirely different body.
For two bodies to publish two reports which could hardly have
had the same point of view, seemed likely to add to the public
confusion.
Examination of the material so far as we have gone does not bear
out the allegations freely and widely made that the administration
has held back or concealed information necessary to form a judgment.
Perhaps you may find an opportunity to say to the President
that the members of the committee thank him sincerely for his
good will toward their enterprise, and that they have withdrawn
from it only because they feel that under the circumstances it would
be impossible to separate their work from that of persons who
seem to approach the subject with a very distinct bias and animus.
With many thanks for your courtesy, I am,
Very truly yours,
ALBERT BUSHNELL HART
3 Edward Waldo Emerson, M. D. (I844-I930), Harvard College '66, was nominated in i900 by the National party of Massachusetts for presidential elector-atlarge.




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1901
CAPTAIN TAYLOR TO SECRETARY LONG
U. S. Relief Ship Vermont
Personal                                         NEw YORK
January 6, I90O
DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I have followed your directions, and have written to no one
else than Senator Elkins concerning the vice-admiral's place, and
have also suggested to Chadwick and Evans that they do not move
in the matter.
For two years past Sampson's friends have listened to me when
I have urged them not to move until the presidential election was
over. It has sometimes been difficult for them to overcome, at my
suggestion, their earnest wish to be doing something, and I have
always promised them and myself that during the winter following
the presidential election I would encourage all active work, if they
would agree that it should not be accompanied by a " brass band."
The first step in this activity was the letter to the President which
you kindly approved, and letters to prominent senators and representatives were to constitute the second step. In this I am checked
by your disapproval of the letter-writing, and I submit cheerfully
to your wise judgment in the matter. I only wanted to say, Sir,
that from all I have been able to gather, the bill creating a vice-admiral will not go through this session without some such quiet movement, although it may be promised in both houses. I do not say
that this is a fact, for you, Sir, know much more about it than I
do, but only that it appears so to me with my imperfect knowledge of the situation.
I hope, Mr. Secretary, that if anything should occur to change
your views in this matter and to cause you to doubt [the] final result,
you will let me know in time, if you should think it advisable to
grant permission for a few of us to proceed very quietly in this
case.
Thanking you, Sir, for the many kindnesses you have shown
me, I am, with much respect,
Yours very truly,
H. C. TAYLOR
The Secretary of the Navy




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HENRY S. PRITCHETT TO SECRETARY LONG
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Personal                                             BOSTON
January 7, 1901
DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I have since last Monday been in the throes of a most wicked
attack of the " grippe," else had I written you sooner to thank you
for your visit here, and for your address, and lastly for your kind
words about myself. Your coming has helped us in more ways than
one, and we heartily thank you for what you have done. Meantime your kind letter has been received, and my secretary has already written you with regard to the disposition of the manuscript
we are anxious to use. The Technology Review, which will publish it, is a dignified production, and I will see that you have a proof
to correct.
You doubtless are right in regard to your recollection of the
matter of the superintendency of the coast survey. I only remember talking it over in a general way with the members of the
committee of appointments, chiefly Mr. Cannon,1 and his saying
that during the last days of Mr. Hilgard's 2 administration, when
the committee felt that all was not well with the survey, you, as
a member of the committee, had taken an interest in the investigation, and my recollection was that some President, I thought it
was Harrison, had asked you to take the place; doubtless it was
Arthur. At all events I know that the committee expressed its
wish that you should undertake the work.
The whole mode of government scientific work needs recasting,
inasmuch as it has grown up in a desultory way; and the time will
doubtless come when its growing developments may be brought
together in one department, at a great saving, and to the betterment of science as well. I think it surprising that so much has been
done as has been done, considering the almost complete lack of
supervision which such departments have had. I have sometimes
wondered whether the President and Cabinet ever found time to
talk over together the administration of existing departments so
as to deal with the difficulties of administration. I suppose the " piping times" of the past three years have been too full of other
matters. I hope before your next four years are passed you may
1 Joseph Gurney Cannon (i836-I926), M. C. from Illinois.
2 Julius Erasmus Hilgard (1825-1891), superintendent of the U. S. coast survey
I88I-I885.




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see your way clear to a solution of the small problem of which we
were speaking on Saturday night.
I thank you for reminding me that it was the AEneid and not
the Iliad that you translated. This was a careless slip of the tongue
on my part, as I have known the book almost from its publication,
which occurred soon after I left college, although I did not know
until a few months ago that the Mr. Long who translated the
ZEneid was the former governor and present secretary of the
navy. You of course did not know that during my college life I
devoted myself principally to the classics, and went into a scientific
education later. At one time I was much interested in all translations of the better known classics, having attempted a metrical
translation of the (Edipus Tyrranus myself, which however, fortunately never saw the light. In saying what I did the other night
regarding your translation I was not attempting to give my own
opinion, which is of no value in such matters, but was simply repeating the statement made to me by one of the best known literary
men in New England, who said that he considered your translation the most helpful one of the Eneid in the language by reason
of the fact that it gave the real sense of the author.
I was a little disposed to feel, when I first read your translation
that the rendering of the first line, " I sing of war," was something
of a departure from the meaning of the original; but it was, perhaps,
because I had in my memory the first two lines of Dryden's well
known verse.
Thanking you again most heartily for your coming, and with
best wishes for your every success, I am,
Sincerely yours,
HENRY S. PRITCHETT
President
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
CAPTAIN BOWLES TO SECRETARY LONG
Navy Yard
BROOKLYN
January 13, 1901
DEAR MR. LONG:
The "testimonial" under way for me is a set of resolutions a
draft of which is enclosed. Unknown to me the men of the construction and repair department held a meeting last week outside




350        PAPERS OF JOHN DAVIS LONG                 [1901
the yard and apart from the foremen who were not invited. They
decided to present a set of resolutions and appointed a committee
consisting of their own foremen to draft them. The method of
presenting was considered and after the meeting I was asked if
I would meet the men " with their coats on " outside the yard and
I agreed to do so after I was detached but not otherwise. I did
not know any contributions were being taken up and I will stop
it at once, but if such a thing is going on it is only for the purpose
indicated.
Yours very respectfully,
FRANCIS T. BOWLES
[Enclosure]
A TESTIMONIAL   TO FRANCIS T. BOWLES
NAVAL CONSTRUCTOR, UNITED STATES NAVY
We, the employees of the construction and repair department
of the New York Navy Yard, in convention assembled and by
a perfect unanimity of thought and action, have formulated a
token of our regard in this declaration of our sentiments, expressive
of approbation, to our chief, Francis T. Bowles, who having been
called to a higher post of duty, will shortly leave us.
We believe that by his energy, resolution, determination and indomitable perseverance the department which he represents has
become in point of discipline, effectiveness and general improvement a criterion for the United States Navy, and that the appreciation of his worth in the possession of the qualities that have raised
this department to its present standard of excellence, has constrained
his selection for promotion to chief of bureau of construction and
repair of the United States Navy. We believe also that his characteristic steadfastness, together with his unswerving business methods, has permeated the entire naval department, thereby inspiring and developing a spirit of emulation which has done much
toward making the United States Navy in its growth, power and
influence, second to none in the world.
We commend him for the establishment of a superior construction plant embodying many improvements with the latest and best
inventions in labor-saving machinery, that enables the department
to excel in its working ability and efficiency, thereby necessitating
1 Presented to Captain Bowles upon his detachment from the New York Navy
Yard, where he had been on duty since I895. He had been appointed chief constructor of the navy, with the rank of rear-admiral, and assumed that office March
4, I901.




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the sending of work requiring excellence and despatch to the
New York Navy Yard. We commend him especially for his action in caring for his employees by installing an improved system
of cleaning, lighting, heating and ventilating which with the arrangements made for the workmen, with all the facilities for their
comfort and cleanliness, renders their labors less onerous and their
general condition agreeable and pleasant. We admire his possession
of a sterling and unimpeachable integrity exemplified by the exact
justice exercised in his decisions in the performance of his duties
in the department, by which he is preeminently fitted for the control of men and qualified in the highest degree to be the executive
head of the exalted position to which he has been called in recognition of his worth and the appreciation of past services. We are
pleased by the selection of Francis T. Bowles to the highest rank
in the construction and repair department, as it affords, in the
wider scope of his duties, a better opportunity for the development of his plans and designs in his aspiration to raise the construction and repair department and the navy generally to that highest plane of excellence and perfection which ever has been his aim
and purpose. We are also pleased because it demonstrates the exalted opinion entertained by the authorities at Washington, in selecting the youngest man ever called to fill the office of chief of
the bureau of the navy. While his management of the New York
department has greatly benefited the employees and the station
generally, we have no desire to have him retained and have no
regrets to offer at his coming departure, feeling that it would be
expressive of selfishness, but rather we are glad of the honor conferred upon him, believing that the change is but a removal of
residence and that the same hand which has made the New York
department a credit to the navy and to the whole country, will
still, with greater power and influence, continue to exercise the
same watchful care in keeping it up to its present condition of
superiority.
GEORGE FRISBIE HOAR TO SECRETARY LONG
United States Senate
WASHINGTON, D. C.
January 21, I901
MY DEAR GOVERNOR LONG:
I have been in bed for a little more than a week, except for a few
hours last Monday morning. Otherwise I should have come to ex



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press to you in person my deep and most grateful sense of the kind
words you have lately spoken and of the great disinterestedness
you have manifested on this as well as on previous occasions when
Massachusetts was about to choose a senator. There is no doubt in
my mind that, with the slightest encouragement from you, the
desire of a very large number of the people that you should represent the commonwealth in the Senate would have found expression.
And this would have been highly reasonable and natural under ordinary circumstances, and especially would have been highly reasonable and natural under the conditions that actually existed. While I
have owed so much to the kindness of the people of the commonwealth at large, I owe an especial debt to the kindness of men my
superiors in capacity for public service who would naturally have
been my competitors, and among the men of whom this is true, I
owe more to you than to any other. I hope your life may be for the
future full of public honor, and that health and prosperity may
dwell in your household.
I am, with high regard,
Faithfully yours,
GEORGE F. HOAR
The Honorable
JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
THEODORE ROOSEVELT TO SECRETARY LONG
COLORADO SPRINGS, COLORADO
February 17, 1901
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
Just a line to say that I saw Miss Helen and Peirce' to-day. They
have had the grippe, but are getting nicely over it. Tell your sporting
colleague, the secretary of war,2 that I got twelve mountain lionseight with the rifle and four with the knife. I am now on my way
home to get my top hat and frock coat and prepare to be a most
decorous Vice-President.
Pray present my warmest respects to the President.
Faithfully yours,
THEODORE ROOSEVELT
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Navy Department
WASHINGTON, D. C.
1 Secretary Long's children.       2 Elihu Root.




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REAR-ADMIRAL FARQUHAR TO SECRETARY LONG
U. S. Flagship Kearsarge
Dictated                                   PENSACOLA, FLORIDA
February 20, I90I
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I enclose a telegram which I beg you will send to the navy department with orders to give it to the press for publication on account of the publicity given to the recent coaling of the English
battleship Mars, 204 tons an hour. This coaling record, 218 tons
an hour, is one of the episodes of your visit to Pensacola and to the
North Atlantic Squadron. This beats all known performances of
any navy in the world - the only one that approaches it was that
of the English battleship Mars, which was 204 tons an hour and
was telegraphed all over the world. A personal interest on your part
will create an excellent spirit of emulation throughout the service
in this most important subject which, as you know, is under serious
consideration and study by all naval administrations.
Sincerely yours,
N. H. FARQUHAR
SECRETARY LONG TO SENATOR MCMILLAN
Navy Department
WASHINGTON
February 26, I90oi
DEAR SENATOR:
In view of your suggestion this morning with regard to the Texas,
I have asked Naval Constructor Taylor to give me the facts. He
has done so, and has prepared a memorandum, which I send you
by him. I wish you would not only look at it, but confer with
Mr. Taylor, who is very familiar with the whole matter, and I am
sure there is nothing in the matter of the Texas that should raise
any doubt as to the admirable fitness of Naval Constructor Bowles
for the place to which he has been nominated. I can frankly say
that in my judgment there is no man in the corps better or so well
fit for the position, and that is the opinion of every member of the
corps whom I have seen in the matter.
Mr. Taylor will call your attention to the fact that Naval Constructor Capps,1 now on duty in Washington, had charge of the
1 Norman von Heldreich Farquhar (I840-1907).
1 Washington Lee Capps (I864-I935).




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docking of the Oregon at Puget Sound, and troubles similar to
those which occurred on the Texas would have then occurred on
the Oregon but for the most unusual precautions. The Oregon
was immediately thereafter fitted with docking keels, thus showing
that the alleged defect on the Texas was one which could only
properly have been developed by experience, the Oregon having
been designed several years after the Texas's plans were submitted
but before the Texas herself had been built and docked. I should
not write you in this matter, as I believe in sticking to my own
department and leaving every independent body to its own judgment, if you had not yourself spoken of the matter this morning.
Very respectfully,
JOHN D. LONG
Honorable JAMES MCMILLAN 2
UNITED STATES SENATE
ADMIRAL DEWEY TO SECRETARY LONG
1747 Rhode Island Avenue
WASHINGTON
February 26, I90o
SIR:
I have the honor to inform you that I have received appeals in
the interest of a number of officers who served under me while I
was in command of the Asiatic station, and who desire that their
cases be brought before the board now considering the matter of
rewards to officers. Some of those concerned are Lieutenant-Commander Fiske1 and Lieutenants Ellicott,2 Niblack, and Winship.'
I understand that the scope of the board's duties is restricted to a
more recent period than that in which the officers of whom I speak
rendered conspicuous service; but if it is possible to authorize the
board to inquire into special acts of gallantry performed between
the date of the engagement in Manila Bay, May I, 1898, and the
time I left the station, it seems to me that a number of deserving
cases which came to my notice, and concerning which reports were
made to the department, may then be suitably recognized.
Very respectfully,
GEORGE DEWEY
The Secretary of the Navy
2 James McMillan (I838-I902), U. S. senator from Michigan.
1Bradley Allen Fiske (b. I854).
2 John Morris Ellicott (b. 1859).
3 Emory Winship (b. 1872).




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ASSISTANT SECRETARY HACKETT
TO SECRETARY LONG
Navy Department
Personal and confidential                      March 22, 1901
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
My attention has just been called to an article in the Baltimore
American of February [blank], i9oi, full of personal abuse of
yourself and containing toward the end this serious charge: " The
Navy Department has deliberately suppressed and falsified official
documents in order to discredit Admiral Schley and advantage
Admiral Sampson." As the head of this department you have done
nothing to indicate a knowledge that this charge has been circulated
by a newspaper of the respectable standing that the American enjoys. Perhaps you regard it as akin to " political abuse," and therefore think it wise not to take notice of it.
As an official of the department next in rank to yourself, I feel
that I have the right to take notice of it and I write this letter of
my own accord hoping that you will lay it before the President.
I write it personally and confidentially, in my own hand so that
nobody shall see it until I hand it to you in person. I want to speak
plainly, and as I believe in the interests of the service. My long acquaintance with naval officers (from my boyhood) has given me
a chance to understand something of the service - something of
that esprit de corps which lies at the very foundation of success in
naval affairs. The officers of the navy feel it as a stain on their
good name that a charge such as this just recited should be allowed
to go in silence. There is a profound feeling in the service that
the unhappy condition of things, growing out of the attempt to
promote Rear-Admiral Sampson and Rear-Admiral Schley at the
same time-should be permitted to continue.
I recall a remark that you made to me just before the close of
the session of Congress - after the names of these two officers had
been sent to the Senate. It was to the effect that if the Senate did
not act upon the nominations, you would consider that responsibility for failure was not upon the department and you should favor
a court of inquiry to get at the truth and let it be known to the
public. I desire to point to a fresh illustration of the trouble that
is caused by this unsettled condition of things - a portion of the
press maligning the department, and a large part of the officers
restless and disturbed because the commanding officer at Santiago




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is deprived most unjustly of his reward for faithful and invaluable
services.
You have referred to the board of awards of which I am chairman the subject of bronze medals to be given to officers and men
of the North Atlantic squadron who participated in engagements
in West Indian waters, or on the shore of Cuba. Items like the following are appearing in the press: "Rear Admiral Sampson's profile will probably not be placed upon the medal to be awarded to
the officers who served in the Santiago battle. The board of awards,
of which Assistant Secretary Hackett is chairman, will consider the
design to be adopted. As Admiral Dewey's head is placed in basrelief upon the Manila medal, Admiral Sampson's friends have
urged that he be similarly recognized. The board is not expected,
however, to take such action."
It is true that the question of placing the head of Admiral Sampson on the medal is a very important one; and it is going to tax the
wisdom of the board very severely. The Manila Bay medal, besides
bearing the head of Dewey, has this inscription: "The gift of the
people of the United States to the officers and men of the Asiatic
Squadron, under the command of Commodore George Dewey."
The question of the head of Sampson may be a question of artistic
appropriateness, but nobody, you would conceive, would think
of sending out a medal and making no mention of the name of the
commanding officer at Santiago.1
Yet just this plan is advocated by some persons: others think
that the medal should bear the inscription "under the command
of Rear-Admiral Schley." Is it not plain that there should be an
official settlement once for all of the question of not only who
commanded, but to whom is the honor justly due for the victory?
Permit me to say that your instinct and prevision were exactly right
that led you to say that a court of inquiry ought to go to the bottom of this matter. I am creditably informed, so deep is the feeling,
that fully one-half of the officers of the navy will not speak to
Admiral Schley; and all who commanded at Santiago feel that Admiral Sampson is unjustly treated. I only hope that this latter officer
will live to see the wrong righted under which he now suffers.
It is not for me to suggest a remedy any further than to express
my hearty approval of what you yourself believe to be the right
thing to do. I believe the President can not but agree that sooner
1 The medal finally issued bears the head of Sampson.




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or later a court must get at the facts, and let the people know just
what the facts are - no matter how much it may provoke newspaper
attack and crimination. I believe that three retired rear-admirals
can sit as a court, giving publicity to each day's proceedings; and
that their work will reach the people in a manner, dignified and
orderly, that will carry a persuasive influence that they are developing the truth and nothing but the truth.
At least the duty is, I have the honor to say, with you as secretary
to defend the department against the gross charge of falsifying its
records; and it is the duty of the President to require an official
examination into the acts and operations of the naval campaign on
the coast of Cuba. The American people like fair play: they like
an honest attempt to get at the truth; and the investigation, while
unpopular at the start, would in the end purify the atmosphere
that now envelopes the service, and strengthen the administration
as the fearless defender of the right.
I remain your attached friend,
FRANK W. HACKETT
LEBARON R. BRIGGS TO SECRETARY LONG
Harvard College, CAMBRIDGE
March 25, 1901
MY DEAR SIR:
For the last few years the college has printed in the university
catalogue in alphabetical order the names of its very highest undergraduate scholars, irrespective of class, and has called those scholars,
" Scholars of the First Group." Some have scholarships in money;
some have what we call " John Harvard Scholarships " -the titles
without money: but the names of both kinds are printed together.
We have been trying to show these fellows that the college appreciates their work. Every year some one in Boston has given a reception
for them. Barrett Wendell' began; Mr. Henry L. Higginson followed; then Judge F. C. Lowell;2 then Dr. Arthur Cabot; and
lastly Mr. Higginson again. Year before last, we had a meeting in
honor of these highest scholars, and invited to the meeting the president and fellows, the overseers, all the living winners of Bowdoin
prizes, the headmasters of the schools which had sent us the scholars
1 Barrett Wendell (1855-I92I), Harvard College '77.
2 Francis Cabot Lowell (I855-I9II), Harvard College '76.
8 Arthur Tracy Cabot (I852-1912), Harvard College '72.




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of our first group, and divers other persons. At the meeting we had
a little speaking, presented the deturs, and announced the award of
certain prizes. We also distributed a pamphlet, containing a list of
winners of Bowdoin prizes since the foundation of these prizes, a
list of winners of all sorts of prizes in the foregoing academic year,
and a list of scholars of the first and second groups. Last year (that
is, last December) we had a meeting in Sanders Theatre, opened it
to the public, and had an address from Senator Hoar. This year we
earnestly hope we may have an address from you. The meeting will
be held preferably between Thanksgiving and the Christmas recess;
but we can probably arrange it for almost any day between the
middle of October and the twentieth of December. In general,
Saturday is not a good day. The same may be said of the days of the
two great football games, and the days immediately preceding them;
but I know no other exceptions.
I recognize fully the fact that we are asking a great deal of you
for which we have nothing to offer but the opportunity of helping
the college. This is a meeting in honor of scholarly work done by
the young men; and we wish to make it in every way as good as we
can make it. We mean the occasion to be one of the most important
events in the college year.
Believing that you will at least pardon us for asking you to come,
I am,
Yours very truly,
LEBARON RUSSELL BRIGGS 4
Dean
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
REAR-ADMIRAL TAYLOR TO SECRETARY LONG
Hotel St. George
BROOKLYN
28 March, I 90 I
DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
Referring to your kind wish to give me the orders I desired as
second in command of the Home Squadron, I have written Crowninshield that I realized as you and he do, that for the moment, the
squadron was scarcely large enough to justify a second in command,
and that I had no wish to presume too much on your kind disposition in the matter, but would quite willingly wait the few months
4 LeBaron Russell Briggs (i855-1934), Harvard College '75.




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needed to get the Illinois, Olympia, Cincinnati, Montgomery and
other vessels added to the squadron- continuing meantime my
work for the general board,1 whose importance at the present time
can not be overestimated.
My hope has been that, if you were willing to restore this Home
Squadron to the condition of a " Squadron of Evolution," which it
has held for some years, until a year ago, I might in such case do
much in my place as second in command to assist Admiral Higginson in creating and developing some foundation of a tactical
system, such as I spoke of last week when I was calling upon you
at the Portland. I think Higginson feels as I do about this, and
knows he can count upon my loyal assistance.
Crowninshield, who has been very kind in this matter, fears that
a lack of officers may prevent your commissioning many vessels,
but I hope to convince him, as well as yourself, Sir, of the importance of keeping up this squadron for tactical training - and that
the coming pacification of the Philippines must soon release many
officers from that region. I have given much time both afloat and
ashore to tactics and would be glad if now I could make it of some
practical use to the service. Admiral Dewey expresses himself as
anxious that I should go on with my general staff work for his
board-but I could do a good part of it in connection with my
squadron work afloat, and these tactical questions ought not to
go longer untouched.
I wouldn't weary you, Sir, with these matters if they were only
personal, but many larger things than self are concerned - and the
"Squadron of Evolution " is at this moment most essential to efficiency.
With much respect,
Sincerely yours,
H. C. TAYLOR
ARTHUR LORD TO SECRETARY LONG
53 State Street
BOSTON
April 4, 1901
MY DEAR GOVERNOR:
I notice by the papers that you have been somewhat burdened
by letters of inquiry and application relating to the President's
1 See Captain Taylor's letter of January 30, 1900.




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visit, and fear that I am somewhat remiss in not having called to your
attention the fact that Plymouth would be glad to receive a visit
from the President.
I write merely to say now that I should be glad to arrange for
the President's coming to Plymouth, in whatever way would be
agreeable to him, or would commend itself to you. I suppose it is
far too early to make any formal notifications or requests. I write
merely to say that I will see that a committee of citizens be appointed, or, if the President would prefer to come more quietly
with the purpose of seeing the town rather than the people, and the
past rather than the present, I should be very glad, as president,
or in behalf of the trustees, of the Pilgrim Society, to entertain him
and to see that all the places and objects of interest are shown him.
At any time I should value very much a suggestion from you in
this matter, and am,
00        Very truly yours,
ARTHUR LoRD
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
CAPTAIN SIGSBEE TO SECRETARY LONG
Office of Naval Intelligence
WASHINGTON
April 2o, 1901
DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I am considering the question of applying for orders to command
the new battleship Maine.' When the matter comes before you, will
you not take favorable action, if practicable? I admit that I have
much sentiment in my wish, but no feeling of self-exploitation whatever. Through retirements for age alone I could not expect promotion to flag rank for two years and eight months. Orders to the Maine
would mean on my part a good deal of sacrifice in one direction
and another, both officially and privately, and would bring upon
me, of course, the great responsibility of commanding an enormous
battleship; but in respect to this I desire to say that I have never
considered my private wishes as taking precedence of either my
official duty or my official pride.
During the visit of the North Atlantic squadron to the waters
of the state of Maine in I 899, when the Texas did much independ1 Captain Sigsbee did not command the new Maine. Not long after she went
into commission he was promoted to rear-admiral.




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ent cruising in those waters, I was introduced to thousands of the
people of that state. The wish among these people was very general and very outspoken that I should command the new Maine;
I have no knowledge as to whether it will take form of action or be
entirely disregarded.
This application is made entirely of my own volition, excepting
that Admiral Higginson, who is to command the North Atlantic
squadron, has expressed himself very warmly, even urgently, in
favor of my making this request. I do not desire to ask you to
do impracticable things for me. I shall be greatly gratified if my request can be granted.
About the time that I left the Texas, - and covering a period
when I was on shore ill, - certain defects were reported on board
the Texas for which I was held responsible. In this way a ship,
which has been beautifully clean, well drilled, and which has done
extraordinary and entirely successful cruising while under my
command, was made to appear for a moment as varying from her
well established reputation. This was one of those cases which
sometimes happens in the service, in which circumstances conspire
most unjustly to injure reputations. There was almost no ground
whatever as against me for those reports, and I was able, about the
time of the departure of Governor Allen, to actually disprove by
documentary evidence nearly every allegation contained in the
ground-work of those reports. Governor Allen left for Porto Rico;
so I withheld my letters in the case. I do not now desire to submit
them, but shall bring them forward when I come up for promotion
for flag rank, in the event that any adverse statement is made against
my command of the Texas. I shall only go so far as to say here that,
when the Texas finished her repairs, she was almost immediately
after inspected by the commander-in-chief, and that she passed a
fine examination. Moreover, that the certain defects charged against
me, which were supposed to be remedied thereafter during the
course of repairs, were again reported as faulty, the difficulty being as in my case inherently faulty construction.
Officers feel these things very much, because an officer of high
spirit and love for the service prizes his record above all things of
a personal official character.
Very respectfully,
CHARLES D. SIGSBEE
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.




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CAPTAIN MAHAN TO SECRETARY LONG
i60 West Eighty-Sixth Street
[NEW YORK]
April 25, 1901
MY DEAR MR. LONG:
You will perhaps remember my writing you eighteen months
ago, towards the end of the summer of 1899, concerning the claim
made by General Alger,' - as stated in the press, - to have been
the originator of the proposition under which the Spaniards evacuated Santiago. I reminded you that it was I who had made the suggestion, and that I had taken the precaution to fix the fact in your
memory, by asking you in your office, a week after the occurrence,
whether you recalled then who broached the idea. Your reply then
was that I had done it.2
In reply to my letter, you expressed your purpose to have the
matter put straight on your return to Washington from Hingham.
Nothing has been done, nor have I again troubled you; presuming
some consideration of expediency intervened. My attention has been
again called to the subject, by seeing in the Army and Navy
Register of last Saturday, April 20, (page 304) allusion to General
Alger as the author of the proposition, which in 1898 received a
degree of applause that I confess surprised me.
The credit, such as it is, belongs to me, and yet more than to me,
to the navy, which shares at large in whatever good thing its members do. To you, as head of the navy, I therefore recall the matter,
without, however, pressing you for action. You can scarcely fail
to remember the perplexity of that day's council, under the discouraging news from the generals at the front, and their recommendations as to the terms to be granted. The way out was found
through this suggestion, and it appears to me monstrous that it
should stand to the credit of a man who, as far as I could judge
him, was a monument of incapacity.
As head of the navy, you may also be interested to know that
it was to the intervention of a naval officer that was owing the
drawing up of the declaration, attached to the signatures of the
United States delegates at The Hague; which was the only part of
the proceedings of the conference that the President quoted in his
message of I899. It was only on July 22 - a bare week before final
1 Secretary of war.
2 See Captain Mahan's letter of August 21, 1899.




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adjournment-that I detected in a proposition, which had then
passed the full committee to whom it belonged, - but of which I
was not a member,- a stipulation which all our members agreed
(when pointed out) contravened the Monroe Doctrine. The declaration was none of my begetting, it was not the way I would have
chosen; but that the necessity was recognized and the declaration
framed to meet it, was due wholly to my intervention.
In this case, as in the other instance, I said nothing - save to a very
few intimates. I was content the matter should go in to the general
results. But here again I find another claiming my work, though it
is only just to say that he not only disclaims any such intention, but
denies that his language implies such claim. I think, however, that
any one who will read Mr. Holls's 8 - the secretary to our delegation
-book on The Peace Conference of The Hague, pages 268-271,
will agree with me that the natural and primary impression conveyed by his language is that the declaration was the consequence
of a reservation previously made by him. He assures me that a
number of persons, whose opinion he has asked, do not so construe
his words; but I am satisfied that, whatever secondary sense may be
wrung from them as equivocal, - like the old oracles, - the impression of the reader will be that Holls did it.
My easy acquiescence in silence for over a year after each event
will I trust be assurance that I am not over-greedy of credit; but I
own that on finding the credit, whatever it be, grasped by others,
has stirred a moderate amount of feeling.
Sincerely yours,
A. T. MAHAN
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
GEORGE FRISBIE HOAR TO SECRETARY LONG
WORCESTER, MASSACHUSETTS
May 13, I901
MY DEAR GOVERNOR LONG:
An invitation has gone, or will go very soon, to the President
from the people of Quincy, asking him to visit Quincy when he is
in that neighborhood.
Mr. Charles Francis Adams informs me that his family are quite
anxious that the President should be their guest at the old house
occupied by John Adams and John Quincy, and where John Adams
died. I hope that may be accomplished. I think it would give the
3 George F. W. Holls. See Captain Mahan's letter of June 7, I899.




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President great pleasure to see those interesting houses and their
very interesting contents.
You would take pleasure, I am sure, in complying with Mr.
Adams's request if you had heard his brief speech in the overseers'
meeting on the question of the degree.' I think I never fully understood before the capacity of the race for fiery speech.
Adams said, whether he was a supporter of McKinley, he had not
stopped to consider; he was an American gentleman first of all. I
think our three Mugwump friends 2 were very much inclined to
put their tails between their legs on that occasion.
I am, with high regard,
Faithfully yours,
GEORGE F. HOAR
Honorable JoHN D. LONG
REAR-ADMIRAL CROWNINSHIELD
TO SECRETARY LONG
Bureau of Navigation
WASHINGTON, D. C.
May i6, I90o
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I have not written to you because I did not want to bother you
with bureau matters, though I shall have several things to bring
to your attention when you return. I wish now to express my
sympathy for you, in what the papers tell us is the harassed illness
of your daughter; both Mrs. Crowninshield and I hope that these
reports are exaggerated, and that her case is not as serious as has
been stated.
Admiral Remey, who went with the Brooklyn to Melbourne to
attend the opening of the Australian Parliament, has been ordered
by the department to extend his visit to New Zealand. I did not
agree with the assistant secretary in the orders for Admiral Remey
to make this visit to New Zealand, as I believe there are good reasons
why he should return from Melbourne direct to Manila. In such
a large fleet as he has under his command there must certainly
arise questions which can much better be decided by the com1 President McKinley was contemplating a visit to Massachusetts and it was
proposed that Harvard should give him an honorary degree. This was opposed by
certain anti-imperialists.
2 See Senator Hoar's letter of June zo, 9goI.




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mander-in-chief than by a subordinate. Admiral Kempff, who was
left in charge at Cavite, has referred matters to the department,
which he should, in my opinion, have settled himself; and besides
this, Admiral Rodgers 1 is soon to reach Cavite, and as he ranks
Admiral Kempff, it seems to me that Admiral Remey should be
there to assign to Rodgers his future work.
Two days ago we ordered three vessels in the Asiatic squadron
to return to the United States; which, with the Bennington, Newark, and Oregon already ordered home, will much relieve the situation in the matter of keeping up the personnel on that station. The
lease on my house having expired on the first of May, I have stored
my furniture and we have all moved out to Chevy Chase for the
summer, where we find ourselves delightfully situated, having
rooms in the house formerly occupied by Secretary Gage. The
appointment of my son Caspar 2 as consular agent at Castellamare
has all been completed, and he leaves for his post about the first
of June.
With kind regards to yourself and daughters, in which Mrs.
Crowninshield joins me, I remain,
Yours very sincerely,
A. S. CROWNINSHIELD
P. S.
In regard to the establishment of a squadron in the Mediterranean, I have the matter in hand, and upon your return to Washington, I shall lay a plan before you, which I hope will receive
your approval.
The Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
SENATOR LODGE TO SECRETARY LONG
Personal                                   United States Senate
Private                                     WASHINGTON, D. C.
June I, g19o
DEAR GOVERNOR:
I was in hopes that I should see you before I left, as there were
one or two matters I wanted to speak to you about, but as I hear
that you are not to return until next week and as I leave tomorrow,
I am obliged to trouble you with a letter.
I have been very much disturbed over the evident efforts of


I Frederick Rodgers.


2 Caspar Schuyler Crowninshield (1871-1910).




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Germany to get possession of the Margarita Islands 1 and have had
a long talk with Lieutenant-Commander Sargent 2 in regard to it.
You have no doubt read his report. From what he tells me it appears
that Germans have had a large cruiser there and were surveying the
islands for three months; that they were acting under the immediate
personal orders of the Emperor, and the universal belief is in Venezuela that when the Congress meets in September they will lease or
sell the islands to Germany. This intention has been disavowed to
our state department, but I do not think the secretary is at all satisfied with the nature of the disavowal. If Germany should step in
there and get possession of these islands, it would put us in a very
embarrassing position and might easily lead to war. If, on the other
hand, she sees that we are on the alert, and have made it plain to
Venezuela that if the islands are to be sold or leased to any one it
must be to us, she will not make a move, and all danger of trouble
will be avoided. For these reasons it seems to me of the utmost importance that we should have a powerful cruiser, accompanied also
by a gunboat, at La Guaira.3 In my opinion there is no place in the
world at this moment where it is so important that we should have
a war vessel as La Guaira and the coast of Venezuela. The mere
presence of one of our ships there would, I think, be sufficient to
prevent trouble. It seems to me that it is infinitely more important
to send one of our ships there than to have it on a cruise with the
North Atlantic squadron this summer.
I write you thus fully and urgently because I have been following the matter for some time, and have been made extremely anxious
by the developments which I think are going on there. I sincerely
hope you will take the matter up and arrange to have a ship sent
there.
Just before you left I sent a memorandum to you through your
secretary in regard to my brother-in-law, Captain Davis.4 He is very
anxious to have an opportunity to show what he can do at the
observatory under the present arrangement and to remain there
until the board of visitors has reported. I am very anxious myself
that he should have a year more, and I hope that then he can be
assigned to command of the Maine,5 for which he has applied. This,
1 Off the northern coast of Venezuela.
2 Nathan Sargent (d. 1907), commanding the gunboat Scorpion.
3 The port of Caracas, capital of Venezuela.
4 Charles Henry Davis (1845-I921).
5 The new battleship Maine. Captain Davis was not assigned to her.




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as you will readily understand, is a personal matter and one which is
very near to me. I should regard it as a great personal favor if you
could oblige me in this respect.
I hope, too, that you will bear young Wynne 6 in mind. His claim
for recognition seems to me complete on the report of Colonel
Meade.7 A brevet means a great deal to him and I think he has earned
it and I hope you will bear him in mind. I do not know whether
there is any hesitation about it in the board; there certainly ought
not to be, and if you say a word to them I am sure there will
not be.
It has been to Mrs. Lodge and myself a very real sorrow to hear
that you had such unfavorable news from your daughter while you
were in the West. I trust that when you got to Denver you found
her better, and in this anxiety and trouble you will believe that you
have our deepest sympathy.
With kindest regards,
Sincerely yours,
H. C. LODGE
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
REAR-ADMIRAL TAYLOR TO SECRETARY LONG
WILTON, NEW YORK
June 8, I90I
DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I hear that Sampson's bombardment of San Juan de Porto Rico
is not to have a " clasp," as being a regular battle. I know the " medal
board " 2 is most able and impartial, and I only write as having been
present and eye witness. It was not a casual encounter, incident to
blockade duty, as some of those were which we had at Santiago,
but an " action " deliberately undertaken by our great commanderin-chief, in order that his reconnaissance in force should leave no
doubt and that we should know when he finished whether Cervera
was or was not in San Juan. I hope, Sir, if this matter has not been
finally decided, that it may have further consideration.
I was very glad to learn from Crowninshield that you were in6 Captain Robert Francis Wynne, U. S. M. C., in China during the Boxer
Rebellion.
7 Colonel Robert Leamy Meade (I841-I910), U. S. M. C.
1 May I2, 1898. See Admiral Sampson's letter of July 19, i9oI.
2 The board of awards. See letter of Assistant Secretary Hackett, March 22,
190I.




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terested in the letter about the Monroe Doctrine, and approved
it. The limitations of naval possibilities bear so close a relation to
national policy in this instance, that the need seemed urgent that
those limitations should be clearly shown to those above us. I hope
this and other work we do may dispose you, Sir, to obtain the sanction of Congress to the permanence of the board. It has had a good
testing in the last eighteen months. I think, too, that it would be
desirable if the President made some brief mention of the general
board in his annual message to Congress- and I believe, subject
to your better knowledge of this, that he would be pleased to
make such mention, if you favored it. I hope the idea will commend
itself to you, and if it should happen that you cared for some written argument I would be glad to submit briefly the reasons for
such action. I am confident, Sir, that you need have no fear of controversies between the general board and any of the bureaus.
When, as at present in the case of [the] equipment bureau and the
Dry Tortugas, some friction threatens, a timely conference will
arrange matters - and for the rest, the field hitherto untouched, of
war plans and general staff work, shows busy occupation for a
generation to come without encroaching on any one's domain.
Admiral Dewey and others think I should remain on the general
board, and not go to sea for some time yet, but when the North
Atlantic Squadron is increased sufficiently to justify a flag officer
as second in command, I believe I can do good service in that position and hope that you will continue to favor me for this assignment. The squadron will not have grown large enough before
midwinter or spring and by that time I see no reason why I should
not take my turn at sea - if in this Home Squadron. I will be available much of the time, if the general board wants my counselbut it will not. Some day when you have time, I would like to
describe to you the principles underlying our war plans, and the
reasoning by which we reach the conclusions indicated in the
Monroe Doctrine letter.
With much respect, Sir,
Sincerely yours,
H. C. TAYLOR
3 See Admiral Taylor's letter of January 30, 900oo.




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CAPTAIN MAHAN TO SECRETARY LONG
QUOGUE, NEW YORK
June 17, I901
DEAR MR. LONG:
Circumstances that have occurred since the close of the war
with Spain lead me to ask you whether the following statement of
certain facts, connected with an incident of the war, agrees with
your own recollection.' At the opening of negotiations before Santiago, between the commanders of the contending armies, for the
surrender of the place, the Spaniards demanded as their conditions
that the garrison should be allowed to march out, not as prisoners
of war, and to rejoin their forces elsewhere. Our own generals,
both General Shafter and General Miles, in telegraphing these
terms, recommended the acceptance of them, on account of the
existing conditions. These telegrams are doubtless on record, and
the fact therefore not dependent on memory. In consequence, the
naval war board was summoned to the White House, where were
met the President and Cabinet, with representatives of the army;
and in this assemblage the Spanish propositions were discussed. I
can not speak positively to the opinion of any one person there,
except that of the President and my own; but my impression is
that the general sense of those present favored acceptance. I personally did, and said so clearly, on the ground that officers of the
position of our generals, on the spot, could judge better of the exigencies of the situation, as regarding the defences of the place and
the actual effects of the climate on the health of our troops, than
we could. The kernel of the matter - especially from a naval point
of view - was to get the harbor and release our ships to other duties;
Cervera's squadron having been already destroyed.
The President, on the other hand, took very strong ground
against acceptance; expressing himself not only vigorously, but
with a certain vehemence very foreign to his usual manner. He
argued that the impression at home, and to an extreme degree
abroad, would be most unfavorable to us, would tend to foreign
complications and to prolong the war; for it would be assumed that
such terms were extorted only from our sense of weakness. As
decision rested absolutely with him, the rest of us being purely
advisory, the matter hung thus in suspense for a time, during which
1 See letters of Captain Mahan dated August 21, I899, and April 25, 1901.




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there was desultory discussion; and in the course of this the thought
occurred to me, and was by me submitted, that our government
should present as its terms the capitulation of the place and of the
garrison, and the stipulation that the latter should be carried to
Spain, with their arms, at our expense.
That these were, in substance, the terms of the surrender is
sufficiently known. I was somewhat surprised to find them so
warmly applauded as they were by a portion of our people, as a
happy solution of a painful and embarrassing situation; but this
fact led me to go to your office about a week after the occurrence,
and ask if you remembered from whom the suggestion came. You
reflected for a moment, and then replied, "Yes I do; it was from
you." I had then no idea of publicity; but a year later, while I was
a delegate at the Hague Conference, a paragraph went the round
of the press that another member of the assemblage at the White
House had claimed the credit of originating the proposal. Within
the last three months I have seen the claim again asserted for that
person. I will ask, therefore, whether you will favor me with your
own recollection of the matter, and whether you will permit me
to publish the correspondence, if, in my judgment, due occasion
arises.
I have the honor to be, with much respect,
Your obedient servant,
A. T. MAHAN
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
WASHINGTON, D. C.
BLISS PERRY TO SECRETARY LONG
4 Park Street
BOSTON
June i8, 1901
MY DEAR SIR:
I have just received your courteous note of June 15. I trust you
will not think the Atlantic too persistent if I say that some general
comments by you upon "The Mayflower and Her Log," in case
you can persuade yourself by and by to do the Atlantic this service,
would be far more acceptable to us than any review by a special
student of pilgrim history. The Atlantic reviews very few books
nowadays, and whenever it does contain a paper suggested by a
new book we ask the author of the article to emphasize the more




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general human interest of the book rather than its importance to
the expert. What we hoped, and still hope, that you may feel inclined to write for the Atlantic, is simply any generalizations or
suggestions that may occur to you after reading the book, and not
in any sense a formal or exhaustive review of Dr. Ames's 1 work.
Will you not give us at least the benefit of the doubt for a few
weeks longer? We should be glad to wait for several months if
necessary in case you can give us a " lively hope."
Very truly yours,
BLISS PERRY
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
GEORGE FRISBIE HOAR TO SECRETARY LONG
WORCESTER, MASSACHUSEwTS
June 20, 1901
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I received a letter from the secretary of state ' a fortnight ago to
the same effect with that I have just received from you. I communicated it to President Eliot in confidence, without intimating any
opinion of my own.
President Eliot answered that a degree in absentia was a matter
in which very little interest was taken anywhere. It had become
contrary to the custom of the college to give it, and that he should
not think it would be regarded as much of an honor, and thought it
should be a matter which should stand until next year, when they
hoped they should have the great honor and pleasure of a visit from
the President.
After President Eliot had expressed his opinion, I told him that
I entirely agreed with him. I had already replied to the secretary of
state something to the same effect. In addition to these reasons, the
vote to confer a degree now always is, " provided the person be at
commencement." Now, to waive this would require a new vote of
the corporation, which could easily be had. But it would also require a new vote of the overseers. The only meeting that the overseers could have is a very brief one, usually lasting only a few minutes, on commencement morning at Cambridge. This meeting is
generally called at 9 o'clock, and they usually make up the pro

1- Azel Ames (i845-19W8.


1 John Hay.




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cession at 9:45. So it would be in the power of any Mugwump, by
talking, or perhaps by raising the question of a quorum, to defeat
the whole matter. That would be an exceedingly bad thing to have
happen, if it were known, as it probably would be. I suppose that
Moorfield Story [Storey]would be entirely capable of such a performance. I do not think that Professor Norton 2 or William Everett
would be. I do not know about Mr. Bonaparte.3 Mr. Everett approved giving the degree when he was consulted in the first place,
but declined to vote when it came up, on the ground that he thought
the alumni ought to be heard before conferring it. So there were but
three objectors. One was Norton, who put his objection solely on
the ground that it should be conferred on scholars only, and should
not be had merely by reason of distinction in public life. Mr. Bonaparte thought there should be no objection on that ground, but
thought the President an unworthy person. Mr. Storey put his objection on both grounds.
This matter is, of course, to be treated as highly confidential.
But whether any particular reason is good or bad, it is impracticable now to do anything but wait until next year. I hope that the
President will understand that the college and everybody here
sympathises with him profoundly in his reason for his absence, and
hopes to see him here later.4
There never has been a President of the United States since Washington, even if it were true of him, while he was in office, who has
had the earnest affection of the people of the United States to the extent that President McKinley has it. This is as true of the people who
differ with him politically as it is of those who agree with him. An
old, hide-bound, dyed-in-the-wool Democrat, here in Worcester,
a lawyer, and a man formerly of large influence in his party, spoke
to me about him the other day most enthusiastically. He never spoke
to me in that way of Grant, or of any other Republican President
since.
There is very little sympathy in Massachusetts for the administration, even among Republicans, in regard to the Philippine Islands
matter, except among the active and noisy men, who in many parts
of the commonwealth manage political meetings and caucuses. I
do not undervalue that class of men, who are intelligent, honest, and
2 Charles Eliot Norton (I827-1908), Harvard College '46.
3 Charles Joseph Bonaparte (I851-192I), Harvard College '71, secretary of the
navy a few years later.
4 Mrs. McKinley's illness prevented the proposed visit to Massachusetts.




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sensible and bear the burden and the heat of the day. But in general
I believe that our people think the whole thing a great mistake, and
that we should have done with the Philippines just what we did
with Cuba. They believe it will come to the same thing in the end,
and that we could have done it without the loss of life and the overthrow of our old doctrines of republican liberty.
Every member of the corporation voted heartily for the degree.
Every one of them, I believe, agrees with me as to the Philippine
Islands matter. Every member of the board of overseers, so far as
I know, with one exception, is opposed to the Philippine Islands
policy. Yet every one favored giving the President his degree, except the men whom I have named. All of which, as we say in petitions, is respectfully submitted.
I am, with high regard, faithfully yours,
GEORGE F. HOAR
P. S. It is quite possible that conditions may exist next year which
would make it peculiarly agreeable to you to have the President
at commencement then.
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
COMMANDER WAINWRIGHT TO SECRETARY LONG
United States Naval Academy
ANNAPOLIS, MARYLAND
June 25, I901
SIR:
In reply to the department's letter in regard to the cost of the
new chapel of the Naval Academy, I have the honor to state that
I do not believe $400,000 to be extravagant when the circumstances
surrounding the case are taken into consideration.
2. The chapel is designed to be the dominating architectural feature of the whole group of new buildings, and is intended to bear the
same relation to this group that the dome of the capitol bears to that
building.
3. A short time ago, the park commission at Washington, consisting of Messrs. Burnham,' McKim,2 and Olmsted,3 visited the
Naval Academy and I showed them various views and plans of the
intended building. They expressed a strong approval of the plan
1 Daniel Hudson Burnham (I846-I912).
2 Charles Follen McKim (1847-1909).
3 Frederick Law Olmsted (b. 1870), Harvard College '94.




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as a whole, and particularly impressed upon me the importance of
the chapel as an architectural feature, stating that Mr. Flagg4
should be allowed to make that as prominent as possible.
4. The seating capacity of the old chapel is far less than our
present needs, and in designing the new buildings the architect was
directed to provide for an increased number of naval cadets. At
present the seating capacity is about 450. The new chapel will have
a seating capacity of oo000.
5. The chapel is necessarily used not only for religious services,
but also as a lecture hall. During the graduating ceremonies of this
year a large number of those desiring to be present in the chapel,
among them being relatives and friends of the cadets, were necessarily excluded owing to the limited space.
6. There are officers resident in Annapolis, not attached to the
academy, to whom it is impossible to assign seats for these services,
and the new chapel will be none too large for the probable needs
of the academy.
7. The present chapel contains many memorials of the dead,
either of graduates of the academy or of those who have seen long
service here as instructors. The space that can be properly devoted
to such memorials is now greatly overcrowded.
8. The cost of the various buildings, as designed, was somewhat
increased by the requirements of Congress directing that the armory
and boat house should be constructed of granite. The remaining
buildings, while not built entirely of granite, must have a large
amount of granite trimmings to keep them in harmony with those
now in the process of erection. This adds somewhat to the cost,
but would seem to show the desire of Congress that beauty and elegance should be considered in the design of the buildings.
9. I believe that when the department considers the uses of this
building as an auditorium and memorial hall, and its position,
carrying the dome in the central portion of the plan, the sum as
approved, for the cost of this building, will not appear too large.
Very respectfully,
RICHARD WAINWRIGHT
Superintendent
Honorable Secretary of the Navy
Navy Department
WASHINGTON, D. C.
4 Ernest Flagg (b. 1857).




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REAR-ADMIRAL SAMPSON TO SECRETARY LONG
Navy Yard
BOSTON, MASSACHUSErrS
June 28, i901
DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
Referring to your letter of June 25, with enclosure from Commander Clover: I received several months ago a letter from Mr.
Kane 1 as follows:
Gainsborough House
Aldine Street, Uxbridge Road
LONDON, W.
Easter Eve, I901
DEAR SIR AND COMPANION:
While traveling on the Continent a few weeks ago, I read the cabled
items respecting your letter about Gunner Morgan,2 in the Paris edition
of the New York Herald; and, having a little curiosity, I wrote to a
friend of mine asking him whether in his opinion a certain officer of
the navy was not in some way or other responsible, either directly or
indirectly, for its publication. I have just received his answer, and it is
to the effect that the officer referred to was undoubtedly mixed up
in the matter.
My informant, a naval veteran, holds a quasi-civil appointment under
the navy department, the salary of which, I believe, does not exceed
$1400 a year. He would not care to divulge his name and authority
unless some protection and assurance were given him, as otherwise
he might incur the enmity of the officer in question, who is very vindictive, malicious, and unscrupulous, and exercising some political influence. My friend might feel the effect of this man's enmity and possibly
lose his place. He has no private means other than his salary; he has a
wife and daughter dependent upon him for support; and being a man
endowed with a liberal education, he must exercise caution in a contingency of this kind.
About ten years ago, I held a responsible position (quasi-naval) under the control of the navy department, which I voluntarily relin1 Aloysius Jose Gordon Kane.
2 Charles Morgan (b. i865) wished to take the examination for promotion to
ensign. Admiral Sampson forwarded his letter to the navy department with an
endorsement, which should not have been published, expressing disapproval of the
promotion of enlisted men to commissioned rank. Morgan was subsequently given
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quished by resignation in 1891, and it was by reason of this service
that I came into possession of certain facts respecting the officer referred to, and I was amazed at the abnormal capacity for mischiefmaking which this officer exhibited on several occasions. I have no
doubt but what it will come as a very great surprise to you, as you will
doubtless fail to see a motive for the mischief this man has created.
Should you care to investigate the matter further, I will arrange it
for you upon your assurance, either by yourself or some responsible
officer acting on your behalf, to place you in communication with my
friend, who will place all the facts before you provided that you will
protect him. I desire absolutely nothing in return for this service -
office or employment, or anything that you can offer. My brother,
Chaplain Kane,3 of the navy, has often told me that he owed his original
entry in the navy as a master's mate, in I86I, to Admiral Powell,4 and
his further advancement in the service to Admirals Farragut and Porter,5
but that to you, for instruction, drill, discipline, and advice he owed
more, while personally serving under you, without which he never
could have achieved the success that he did. You doubtless can remember whether these are facts or not. I served in the navy as master's
mate (by transfer from the coast survey) from March 14, 186I; acting ensign September 20, 1864, to March 21, 1871; lieutenant-colonel
three months in volunteer army, January, 1865; rank, pay, pension, and
service confirmed by the act of congress approved February 24, 1897;
and lieutenant-colonel, national guard, state of Washington, retired
list. I was wounded twice in action during the war; am a graduate (with
LL. B.) from Harvard, 187I; and am a companion Military Order Loyal
Legion, first class, by service. I merely mention these facts as a prelude
to my introduction in this note, and you can rely upon my honor as a
companion that I am only prompted to this to assist you to find the guilty
party. I have no other motive but friendly feelings to a comrade and
companion.
Very sincerely and fraternally yours,
A. J. G. KANE
Lieutenant-Colonel
Rear-Admiral SAMPSON
To this, I replied as follows:
3 James Johnson Kane (1837-1921).
4 Levin M. Powell (d. 1885).
5 David Dixon Porter (i813-1891).




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Navy Yard
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS
April 22, I901
MY DEAR SIR:
I have your courteous letter of recent date, and beg to thank you
for the interest you have taken in the matter. Unfortunately, I am not
in position where I could guarantee the protection of your friend, even
if he were of the greatest service in the matter. This could be done
only through the good offices of the secretary of the navy. Consequently, I am not in a position to make use of the information that
you have offered, unless you will permit me to send your letter to
the secretary and ask him what he thinks best to be done in the matter,
and intimating that this clerk's interests must be protected if he is of
service in bringing the offender to light. I do not feel at liberty to do
this without your permission.
Again thanking you, I am,
Yours sincerely,
W. T. SAMPSON
I received his answer in return as follows:
The Cliftonville Hotel
MARGATE
28 May, I901
DEAR SIR AND COMPANION:
I had delayed answering your note until I had a reply from my friend
in America. To be brief, he dreads the apparent notoriety that he may
achieve by the fact of his name being coupled with court-martial proceedings, and points out other difficulties which may present themselves if the honorable secretary of the navy should cause an investigation to be instituted. However, I propose, upon my return to London
in a day or two, to see our naval attache, Commander Clover, U. S. N.,
upon the subject, and ascertain, if possible, a way out of the difficulty,
and will then communicate direct with you.
My address in London for communications is my brother's chambers
(as before) Gainsborough House, Aldine Street, Shepherd's Bush,
London, W.
Very truly yours,
A. J. G. KANE
Rear-Admiral W. T. SAMPSON
UNITED STATES NAVY




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As these letters were personal, I preferred to have his consent
before laying the matter before you for such action as you deemed
proper; but as no names are mentioned, I suppose that there is no
harm in doing so. There are two points which I will mention: First,
that, as will be seen from Mr. Kane's second letter, his conference
with Commander Clover was his own suggestion, and not mine, as
he appears to have told Commander Clover. Second, that Commander Clover seems to have gathered from what Mr. Kane told
him that the clerk who is possessed of this information is at the
Boston yard; whereas, you will see from Mr. Kane's first letter
he states that the clerk is at the navy department. I return Commander Clover's letter herewith.
With great respect, I am,            Yours most truly,
W. T. SAMPSON
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
GEORGE FRISBIE HOAR TO SECRETARY LONG
WORCESTER, MASSACHUSETTS
June 28, i90I
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I congratulate you upon your election to the highly honorable
office of president of the alumni of Harvard.
Will you be kind enough to say to the President from me that
this unanimous choice, by the alumni who were present at the
meeting, of a person whom they believe to be one of his closest
and most trusted counsellors, while, it is unnecessary to state, it
was a mark of high regard for you which would have been manifested in this way at some time, was inspired at this time by a desire
to testify to their respect for him, and in the hope that this selection
would make it especially agreeable to him to visit the university
next year.
I enclose two copies of the report in the Boston Globe of what
I said at the dinner. Perhaps you will be kind enough to see that
the President receives one of them, and at some time, when it shall
seem to be proper, will communicate the other to Mr. Secretary
Hay.
I am, with high regard,             Faithfully yours,
GEORGE F. HOAR
The Honorable JOHN D. LONG




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CAPTAIN    BROWNSON TO SECRETARY LONG
U. S. Battleship Alabama
Personal                               Off NEWPORT, RHODE ISLAND
June 29, 190I
DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
Referring to the articles in the New York and Newport papers
some days ago, stating that the Alabama had remained at sea to
prevent being in company with the Kearsarge on the nineteenth of
June,1 I wish to tell you, with some little mortification that my memory and knowledge of history did not connect, either on that day,
or on any day prior to our leaving New York. I write you this
that you may know that no one on board of this ship was thinking
of the subject, one way or the other.
It occurs to me that, in order to convince those abroad, as well
as at home, that the day has passed when the events of i861 to i865
cause any uneasiness in their official action to officers of the government, that it might be well, in case it was contemplated to send
any vessels abroad on such an occasion, for instance, as the coronation of Edward VII to select the Alabama and Kearsarge to serve
as an object lesson in this respect.
Trusting that I may have the pleasure of seeing you on board
of the Alabama some time during the summer, I am,
Very truly yours,
WILLARD H. BROWNSON
The Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
CAPTAIN    CROWNINSHIELD       TO SECRETARY LONG
"Oakhill"
PEABODY, MASSACHUSETTS
July 3, I90o
DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
The enclosed statement as to how the despatch to Dewey was
written by me has been hastily written as I am anxious you should
be put in possession of the facts about it at as early a moment as
possible. It is curious that we have never talked it over!
In haste, believe me,
Yours very truly,
A. S. CROWNINSHIELD
To the Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
HINGHAM, MASSACHUSETTS
[Enclosure]
1 The anniversary of the batde of the Kearsarge and Alabama in 1864.




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DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I have experienced so much surprise at the published statement
made by you yesterday at the meeting of the Massachusetts Club 1
regarding the authorship of the despatch 2 to Dewey that I hasten
to write you that the despatch in question was composed and
written by myself at the White House under the following circumstances. It was on a Sunday. I went over to Arlington in the
forenoon with my son and his cousin to see them play a round of
golf. While there you and Mrs. Long drove by on your way out
to the country.
I recall your stopping and my speaking to you. I returned to
Washington between twelve and one o'clock. Soon after my return home Whittlesey' brought me the despatch from Dewey
from Hong Kong informing the department that the Governor
of Hong Kong had notified him that he must leave that port within
forty-eight hours and requesting instructions. I at once took it to
[the] White House and laid it before the President telling him how
very important it was that Dewey should have a reply. The President directed me to go and find you and Judge Day4 and bring
you both to the White House. I stopped at the Portland, but you
had not returned: I then drove to the residence of Secretary Day
and returned with him to the White House, I going to the department, Secretary Day telling me to remain near the telephone as
he should probably send for me in a short time. In fifteen or twenty
minutes he telephoned for me to come over, which I at once did.
I joined the party with the President in the western end of the
upper hall. There were present, besides the President, Secretary
Day, Attorney-General Griggs,5 Senator Hale, and, I believe, one
other person: Senator Davis 6 came in later.
The question of what reply should be sent to Dewey was discussed. In a short time the President directed Attorney-General
Griggs to write a despatch for Dewey to proceed to Manila and
attack the Spanish fleet. General Griggs turned to me and said,
1 Governor Long addressed the Massachusetts Club at Nantasket, July 2, 1901.
2 On April 24, I898, the following cable despatch was sent to Commodore
Dewey: "War has commenced between the United States and Spain. Proceed at
once to Philippine Islands. Begin operations at once, particularly against the Spanish
fleet. You must capture vessels or destroy. Use utmost endeavors. Long."
S Lieutenant Humes Houston Whittlesey (b. i86I).
4 Secretary of state.
5 John William Griggs (I849-i927).
6 Cushman Kellogg Davis (I838-I900), U. S. senator from Minnesota.




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"Captain you know better than I do how to word such a despatch
-you go and write it." I left the party, went into the Cabinet room
where young Hayes (who was staying with the President), gave
me a large yellow telegraph blank. I sat down, alone, and wrote
the whole despatch and took it back to General Griggs, who first
read it and said it was all right; then he passed it to the President.
Only one word was added - either the word " capture " or the
word " destroy." No other change was made in the despatch. The
President then directed that it should not be sent until your return
to the city as he said he wished you to see it before it went. I told
him I would hold it, but pending your return I would have the despatch put into cipher. This plan was approved by the President. I
then took the despatch over to my office and directed Lieutenant
Whittlesey to put it in cipher and to take it to the Portland, which
he did about six o'clock, or possibly a little later, that evening.
General Griggs and myself have often had our joke over this
despatch to Dewey -for we have seldom met during the past
three years but one or the other would call out, " capture or destroy"!! So many events rapidly followed the sending of this
despatch that you and I never seem to have talked the matter over.
It has been a great source of regret to me that Lieutenant Whittlesey after copying the despatch and putting it into cipher, should
have destroyed the original.
Sincerely yours,
A. S. CROWNINSHIELD
To the Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
HINGHAM, MASSACHUSETTS
JOSEPH E. CHAMBERLIN TO SECRETARY LONG
203 Broadway
NEw YORK
July 5, 1901
DEAR GOVERNOR LONG:
In a private conversation which I recently had with Ex-AttorneyGeneral Griggs, he told me that he wrote the celebrated order to
Admiral Dewey to proceed to Manila and " capture or destroy the
Spanish fleet." " I was the only Cabinet officer present at the time,"
Mr. Griggs said to me, " and I was asked to write out an order to
Dewey. I wrote the dispatch exactly as it was sent, and it went in




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Secretary Long's name." Mr. Griggs told me this some six weeks
ago. He pledged me to secrecy about it only so far as newspaper
publication was concerned. Now that the matter is under discussion
again, apropos of your declaration which I find this morning in
the New York Sun, I had hoped that Mr. Griggs would authorize
the publication of the story, but he says that "if it comes out it
will have to come out through some one else; I shall not make the
statement." I don't fancy that he would be at all displeased if you
said publicly, or authorized the statement, that you had heard that
Mr. Griggs wrote the dispatch. Would you be willing to say so?
I will assure you that I shall not make public any note you write
me on the subject unless you authorize it.
Doubtless you will remember me as the old Transcript "Listener"; I left that paper in February, and for most of the time
since have been editorially connected with this good administration paper.'
Very sincerely yours,
J. E. CHAMBERLIN 2
REAR-ADMIRAL SAMPSON TO SECRETARY               LONG
Navy Yard
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS
July 19, I90I
DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I have been informed that no medal nor bar is to be given in
recognition of the bombardment of San Juan.' If this information
is correct, I would like to ask your earnest reconsideration of the
matter. The engagement was, with the exception of the naval battle
of Santiago, the most spirited of any of the engagements in the
Atlantic, and the conduct of all the vessels engaged was beyond
criticism. The action of the Detroit 2 in this engagement was especially meritorious, and it would seem most unfortunate if her
complement should be deprived of recognition - and unfortunately
the Detroit will not share in the distribution of medals for any
other engagement. In my opinion, the action of the Detroit in maintaining her position close up to a much superior battery, and driving
the enemy from his guns and keeping him driven away until the
Detroit was ordered out of her position, was one of the most gallant
1 The New York Mail and Express.
2 Joseph Edgar Chamberlin (b. 1851).
1 See Admiral Taylor's letter of June 8, 190o. For Admiral Sampson's report,
see Long, The New American Navy, II, 225.
2 The unprotected cruiser Detroit, Commander James Henry Dayton (b. 1846).




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and effective acts performed by any vessel during the war. Even
if in your opinion the participants as a whole are not worthy of
recognition, I would suggest that it would be better that all should
be recognized in order that the Detroit might be included. I consider the conduct of that vessel on this occasion comparable with
and equally meritorious to that of the Gloucester on the third of
July; and if you choose to ask the opinion of the conservative
officers (taking, perhaps, those who will receive medals for other
engagements, thus feeling confident that their opinions will be
without personal bias) I am confident that you will find that they
quite agree in the opinion that I have expressed.
Very respectfully yours,
W. T. SAMPSON
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
[Memorandum] Show Hackett and be sure to refer to board on awards.
Considered by Board. No recommendation.
JOSEPH    E. CHAMBERLIN     TO SECRETARY LONG
203 Broadway
NEW YORK
July 20, 1901
DEAR GOVERNOR LONG:
I thank you most heartily for your kind and full letter to me
of the eighth, on the subject of the famous despatch to Dewey. I enclose to you a portion of the Mail and Express of yesterday, containing a paragraph which I wrote. You will see that it presents
the view that the credit for the despatch belongs wholly to the
President and yourself. Mr. Griggs has written to me that Admiral
Crowninshield's statement " is correct in the main, but in error as
to some minor details." He certainly told me some little time since,
before this controversy began, that he wrote the despatch himself,
but he has declined to make any public statement about it.
Very sincerely yours,
J. E. CHAMBERLIN
CAPTAIN CHADWICK TO SECRETARY LONG
Naval War College
July 2zI, 190 I
DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I was in Boston yesterday and was with Admiral and Mrs. Sampson several hours.




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My conversation, however, as to the admiral's health, plans,
suggestions, etc., was, apart from incidental talk with the admiral,
only with Mrs. Sampson.
She thinks, and I believe that she is right, that the thing which
has done most for the admiral in the last two years has been the
fact that he has had responsible duty; that if they had carried out
the idea which she herself had had of quiet retirement to Glenridge
that he would not have lived, and that any thing looking to his
detachment before the time they have fixed upon for leaving the
yard, would have a very injurious effect upon him. The time so
set is about November i.
Until the Fourth of July, the admiral had had no illness for nine
weeks. He then underwent a trying day in attending an affair at
Jamaica Plain, of which Hobson was the center. He thought it his
duty to go and went. Given this idea, he is inflexible.
His physical condition is evidently improving; he is very considerably heavier than for some years. When he came north in 898
he weighed 131 pounds; he now weighs about I50; a fair normal
weight for his type. He has an excellent appetite and digestion and
sleeps perfectly. He has perfect heart action. He was examined but
a short time since by an eminent Boston physician who stated to
Mrs. Sampson that he is organically in perfect condition. His eye
is bright and clear. His one difficulty, apparently, is the obscure
nervous trouble which suddenly under any strain of fatigue produces a nervous collapse, deprives him of memory for names and
causes extreme slowness of cerebration and of speech. I do not
think his judgment in any material degree whatever is impaired.
This opinion was corroborated by Commander Pillsbury 1 in company with whom I returned to Newport, and whom I questioned
fully. I have great repose in his judgment. He agrees with Mrs.
Sampson that (using his own words) " the best thing possible for
the admiral is to remain right where he is." I, also, think this is beyond question.
Mrs. Sampson spoke of the possibility of their going on leave
for a time which I strongly advocated; but it would be difficult
to find a place where the admiral would be so comfortable as in
his own quarters. He has never suffered anywhere in hot weather.
This is due, I think, to his equable and unfretting temperament.
That he has been weakened as he has been, and particularly so
much through the mental pain to which he has been so unright1 John E. Pillsbury.




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eously subjected, is an inexpressible sadness to so many who love
him. We are all of us eager that he should be spared as long as
possible, and all are agreed with yourself that he should be saved
every pain; and any hint of a change, for any reason, before the
time he has set, would I think be painful to him.
Very truly yours,
F. E. CHADWICK
To the Honorable JOHN D. LONG
CAPTAIN CHADWICK TO SECRETARY LONG
Naval War College
NEWPORT
4 August, I90I
DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
It must be acknowledged, of course, that if Admiral Sampson
goes on the sick list, there will be a good deal of comment to face.
But if he does not do so, there is the chance of a fatal outcome of
an effort to appear before the court. Every thing the admiral does
is so cruelly misunderstood and so cruelly criticized, that one is
in a painful dilemma in attempting to advise.
In suggesting that he go on the list, I am taking for granted that
his appearance before the court is a necessity. Mr. Bennett,1 his
former flag lieutenant, and now with him, and who knows the situation best, is most earnest in the opinion that he can not undergo
this: that it is impossible for him to undergo an extended examination with any justice to himself, apart from the danger of complete
breakdown.
Might it be possible to await the time of his being called, and
if he shall then be as he is now, have the surgeon report his condition to the court? One thing at least seems to be certain: that his
appearance there is not to be thought of.
Very truly yours,
F. E. CHADWICK
SURGEON BEYER TO SECRETARY LONG
384 Cumberland Street
PORTLAND, MAINE
August 9, 1901
DEAR MR. LONG:
I am impelled to write to you from a sense of duty which I feel
towards Admiral Sampson in my capacity of medical adviser. The
1 Ernest Linwood Bennett (b. I87I).




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question is one of professional privacy and, outside of Mrs. Sampson, with whose permission I write, no one knows the real character of the admiral's troubles. But, in view of the coming court of
inquiry in which the admiral would appear as a most important
witness, I can not spare you the information of what must influence
the results of the findings of the court seriously and, perhaps, adversely to the interests of both the service and the admiral personally.
Of course, every one knows by this time that he is an invalid;
that his race is run; that, in coming out ahead, h  a  oebyn
the normal range of his physical endurance and, consequently,
never again will be the man he was before. It has been only with
the greatest precautions and never flagging care that his life has
so far been spared but even in spite of all these, any unusual exertion over and above the mere routine duties, is almost invariably
followed by a mental depression, the most constant symptom of
which is a certain form of aphasia, characterized by his mixing up
words.
To give you but one of a number of examples which might be
cited: 'We will suppose it to be dinner time, and the family is sitting in the library. Dinner being announced ready, the admiral
will tell his wife that he wants to go to bed; she, thereupon, takes
him by the arm, wishing to help him upstairs and conducting him
in that direction; but this he strongly resists, making for his place
at the dinner-table, sitting down and proceeding with his dinner
as usual. Now, he did what he intended to say he would do, but
said quite another thing, much to the alarm of his wife. To a physician, this is a not infrequent form of aphasia but has nothing at
all to do with mental aberration.
Imagine, if you please, the admiral before the court of inquiry,
in a similar condition and you will at once realize what the consequences might be. The peculiar circumstances surrounding such
a court, the necessary preliminary work to be done before his arrival on the spot, are bound to be attended by a certain amount of
fatigue and exertion which, so far as my observations with him
go, have always been followed by that condition.
If, therefore, he would be ordered before that court, the chances
are that he would arrive either altogether unable to speak, or in
such a state as to cause him to say one thing while meaning quite
another. You will see at once what consequences that might have.




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I would, therefore, very strongly suggest, if in any way possible,
that the admiral be spared that trial.
Very respectfully,
H. G. BEYER1
REAR-ADMIRAL TAYLOR TO SECRETARY LONG
Naval War College
NEXWPORT
August I, 1901
DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
Permit me to suggest that some steps be taken to ensure that
the evidence in the coming court of enquiry be transmitted fully
and impartially throughout the country. I am sure that the people
generally will arrive at a just decision if only the case is presented
to them without suppression or distortion. It appears to me that
nothing more is needed than that to ensure the court and the
country coming to the same conclusion.
For this reason it would seem to be of the highest importance
to ensure the transmission of the evidence fully and without reserve; and I venture therefore to submit this view to you.
I was very sorry, Sir, that you should not think well of establishing the general board 1 by congressional action - and that no
opportunity has arisen during the summer to submit my views
further to you on the subject. Some further evolution is necessary
if this board is to be, as originally contemplated, the nucleus of a
great general staff; and something more than an advisory council.
It need not be action by Congress but the department could itself
proceed with the evolution. Something, however, must be done,
or the good that has been begun will fade before fruition.
With much respect, Sir,
Sincerely yours,
H. C. TAYLOR
CAPTAIN LEMLY TO SECRETARY LONG
Hotel Carleton
Personal                               CAPE VINCENT, NEW YORK
August 21, I901
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
Developments at Washington in the preparation for the Schley
inquiry have determined me to cut short my vacation by a few days
1 Henry Gustav Beyer (I85o-1918).  1 See letter of January 30, I9oo.




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and return to my work on Friday, the twenty-third, instead of
Monday, twenty-sixth instant. I have concurred with the acting secretary in the propriety of having some one to assist me
in the case provided that it be a man of such attainments as
will enable him to cope with Judge Wilson1 on the points of law
which may arise during the investigation. He, you know, is a very
able lawyer,- exceptionally so, as also I suppose is Mr. Rayner 2
of Baltimore. Captain Parker,3 I do not fear, but from actual experience in two cases which I prosecuted, he defending, I know
that he is a man to be watched.
I learn that Mr. Hackett has conferred with the attorney-general concerning counsel to assist the judge-advocate, suggesting
Assistant Attorney-General Hoyt,4 who would be eminently satisfactory to me, but Mr. Knox5 fears the further cry of persecution if
an officer of his department is detailed for the duty, and prefers the
employment of some one not in the service of the government. If this
be done, it must be through the department of justice, as the navy department has no fund out of which services of this character can be
compensated. I desire to get back for this and other reasons which
appear from the information I have received to make my presence
necessary, - or at least important. The meeting of the court at the
navy yard instead of at the department, is, I think, for many reasons
a very good move, but I think it would be well to obtain Admiral
Dewey's views on this matter before reaching a final conclusion.
The principal advantage of the change would be in the removal
of the court from what is supposed to be the departmental influence against Schley.
And now, Mr. Secretary, availing myself of the encouragement
which you have always given me to speak frankly to you, I beg
that you will take the necessary steps,- a word from you to Mr.
Hackett will suffice - to have the entire matter of the Schley inquiry turned over to the court, with such assistance only from the
department as it may be requested to render. This, Mr. Secretary,
is not only proper and usual but necessary as well from my observation and knowledge in the premises, and can not be done too
soon. Mr. Hackett appears to lack confidence in me, which I trust
1 Jeremiah M. Wilson (I828-1901).
2 Isidor Rayner (1850-1912), U. S. senator from Maryland, 1905-1912.
3 William Harwar Parker (b. 1879), U. S. M. C.
4 Henry Martyn Hoyt (1856-1910).
5 Philander Chase Knox (1853-192I), attorney-general.




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you do not share. I am confident of my ability, with or without
assistance, of bringing this vexed matter to a proper conclusion
and securing a finding in accordance with the facts in the case,
which is, I know, all that you desire. The step, - the word I suggest - can not come too soon.
Do you mind telling me in confidence when you expect to return to Washington? There are several matters upon which I
would like to communicate with you in person.
Mrs. Lemly joins me in wishing that Mrs. Long and yourself
will have a pleasant vacation.
I have the honor to be,
Very sincerely,
SAM C. LEMLY 6
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
BUCKFIELD, MAINE
CAPTAIN LEMLY TO SECRETARY LONG
Navy Department
WASHINGTON
August 25, 1901
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I thank you for your respective timely and kindly letters to
Mr. Hackett and myself. The attorney-general is in Pittsburgh, and
indeed none of his assistants was here yesterday. Mr. Hackett,
however, has written him a communication asking that Mr. Assistant Attorney-General Hoyt be detailed to aid me in the prosecution of the case before the Schley inquiry. Frankly, I had about
made up my mind to go it alone, and feel rather indifferent as to
whether I have an assistant or not. It was suggested in the letter
to [the] attorney-general that if Mr. Hoyt is not available, an outside party be employed.
I do not propose to bother you with details, but would like your
advice with regard to the propriety of my running on about next
Sunday and Labor Day following to interview Admiral Sampson.
It is eminently proper that I should interview my witnesses before
putting them on the stand, and in the particular case of Sampson
it seems necessary to determine whether he is in condition to testify.
He is not an essential witness, but it is my intention to call him if
6 Lieutenant-Commander Samuel Conrad Lemly (i853-I909), judge-advocategeneral of the navy.




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practicable. I do not, however, as the newspapers evidently desire,
propose to call any witnesses for the purpose of having them baited
by Schley's counsel for the edification of the public. A word from
you in this matter will suffice.
I am, Sir,
Very sincerely,
SAM C. LEMLY
P. S. Mr. Hackett has just shown me your telegram containing
suggestion as to assistant. There can, of course, be no better man
than the one you name, if obtainable, which would necessarily be
through the attorney-general. The matter is to be taken up tomorrow.
S. C. L.
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
REAR-ADMIRAL CROWNINSHIELD
TO SECRETARY LONG
"Oakhill"
PEABODY, MASSACHUSETTS
September 3, 190I
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
From what I hear from Washington the interest in the coming
court of inquiry is very intense; in fact, before I came away the
action of the newspaper men reminded me of the days of the Spanish War. The Schley press is doing everything to discredit the
court and is making severe attacks upon Howison,l also upon
Mr. Hackett. Schley is well fortified by the support of so many
newspapers and he will go into court with a strong array of counsel.
While I feel that Lemly is perfectly able to meet them on all technical points, he should have the assistance and the support of some
man of note, and it has been proposed by Colonel Robert Thompson 2 (whom you may recall as the great friend of the Naval Academy), to furnish at his own expense as assistant counsel, either
Tom Reed3 or Wayne McVeagh.4 The Schley people are going to
fight every inch of ground and their tactics should be met by the
best talent we can produce. I am not at all worried, Mr. Secretary,
1 Rear-Admiral H. L. Howison.
2 Robert Means Thompson (1849-1930).
3 Thomas Brackett Reed.
4 Wayne McVeagh (I833-1917), Yale '53.




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about myself or about my bureau, but I am anxious about the outcome of the inquiry as it affects the American people -it is the
people we want to put straight in this matter and one of the greatest
helps towards our accomplishing this end is the employment [of]
high class counsel - men of such reputation that their mere presence
in the court will affect the public mind. I sincerely hope that you
will agree to this arrangement.
There are two or three other points I desire to talk over with you,
and so I am in hopes that I may see you in Hingham before my return to Washington. I shall remain here probably through this
week -and even longer if I thought I would be able to see you.
It seems to me that one point of importance, in connection with
this Schley court, and which should not be lost sight of is the political aspect it has been taking on. While there are two or three
Republican papers giving his case their support, the entire Democratic press stand by him - throughout the South universally so
- one or two of the Southern papers having already stated that no
matter what the findings of the court may be, except they were
favorable to Schley, they would not be accepted. The first move
of Schley after the court opens will be to challenge Howison -
and if such objection is supported by the other members, then the
department will at once have to select a new member. This should
of course all be considered before the court meets, and the name
of the new man decided upon - a matter of much importance.
I sincerely hope that you will give your approval, if you have
not already done so, to the plan of having Mr. Reed, or some other
man of great reputation, employed as assistant counsel. I also hope,
Mr. Secretary, that you will be back in Washington at the time of
the meeting of the court. Believe me, with kind regards to yourself
and Mrs. Long, in which Mrs. Crowninshield joins,
Yours very sincerely,
A. S. CROWNINSHIELD
P. S. I enclose a note just received from Cowles,5 thinking it
may interest you. Do not trouble yourself to return it.
To the Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
BUCKFIELD, MAINE
5 Commander William Sheffield Cowles (1846-i923), assistant to the bureau of
navigation.




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REAR-ADMIRAL SAMPSON TO SECRETARY LONG
Burkehaven
LAKE SUNAPEE, NEW HAMPSHIRE
September 12, 1901
MY DEAR MR. LONG:
I made on Monday a request to the navy department for a second
extension of "leave." This was done on the urgent insistence of
my physician, Dr. Beyer, who begs that I will not return to duty.
My stay here in New Hampshire has probably done me good which
I may feel later. At least he thinks it should be prolonged. According
to precedent in such matters, Mr. Secretary, I fear it will be embarrassing to the department unless I ask for my detachment. I
think I ought to ask for it; and if this seems best to you, I herewith
ask to be detached from the Boston Navy Yard October I and
ordered to Washington or "to my home," which amounts now
to the same thing. Our convenience should, I fear, not longer be
considered in this matter.
Yours respectfully,
W. T. SAMPSON1
To the Honorable SECRETARY OF THE NAVY
WASHINGTON, D. C.
CAPTAIN MCCALLA TO SECRETARY LONG
U. S. S. Kearsarge
Personal                                          FORT MONROE
I8 September, I901
DEAR GOVERNOR LONG:
I can not find words to express to you how deeply we feel the
terrible catastrophe at Buffalo.1 I should have believed, with Mr.
McKinley, that our Presidents would have been safe from the
bullet or knife of the anarchists who find liberty and homes in the
United States.
Knowing how great the loss must be to you, both as a member
of Mr. McKinley's Cabinet and as his friend, I beg that you will
accept the assurance of my most sincere sympathy, rendered even
more deep, if possible, by my sense of obligation to the late Presi1 Written by Mrs. Sampson and signed by the admiral.
1 The President was shot on September 6, I90i, and died on the fourteenth.




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dent for his kindness to my wife, and his clemency in restoring me,
at your request, to my position on the active list of the navy.
Believe me, my dear Governor,
Very sincerely,
The Honorable JOHN D. LONG                 B. H. MCCALLA
Secretary of the Navy
LIEUTENANT-COMMANDER SOUTHERLAND
TO SECRETARY LONG
U. S. S. Dolphin
GLOUCESTER, MASSACHUSETTS
September 19, I901
DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
In accordance with a request from the Gloucester city authorities,
I, in company with five officers and fourteen petty officers and enlisted men, attended the memorial services to our late lamented
President in the city hall at this place to-day. We went in uniform
and made every effort to add to the importance and impressiveness
of the solemn occasion. We were treated with the greatest courtesy
and one and all are glad that we had this opportunity to pay homage
to the memory of as fine a man as our country has ever produced.
The services were impressive and becoming. The city hall was
so crowded that overflow meetings had to be held in some of the
churches. An aged Catholic priest pronounced the benediction and
three buglers sounded taps, as a fitting end to the occasion. You
can easily imagine the general tenor of the short addresses, which
were given by each of the clergymen of the city. One, however,
went beyond the others and compared our late President with Alfred the Great, trying to prove that, in accordance with the principles of wireless telegraphy, the aims and principles, - civic, political, and religious- of the ruler of a thousand years ago, had
been transmitted to our late commander-in-chief. I only mention
this because, while I can not trace the parallel myself, it may interest you to look up the subject. Every officer on board eagerly
volunteered to attend this memorial service and the crew were not
at all behind their officers. We are all glad of the opportunity which
this ceremony afforded us of showing our love and esteem for our
late President.
I had a charming note from Mrs. Long yesterday and, feeling




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that she must be lonely with you and Peirce away from her, have
written and asked her to spend a few days on board ship with us.
I earnestly hope she will accept and will remain on board till your
return. Although I have no positive knowledge of your movements,
I am inclined to believe that you will come home about the middle
of next week, so have arranged to have the Dolphin reach the navy
yard at Boston, about Wednesday the twenty-fifth instant. This
will place me where you can reach me by telephone in case I can
be of any service in any way to you or yours.
With all good wishes, believe me,
Very sincerely yours,
W. H. H. SOUTHERLAND
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
The Portland
WASHINGTON, D. C.
CAPTAIN LEMLY TO SECRETARY LONG
Court of Inquiry, Navy Yard
WASHINGTON
September 25, I9oI
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
You have doubtless been advised of the death of Judge Wilson,
Schley's senior counsel, on account of which the court adjourned
yesterday until this morning, when we re-assemble. I regard this
in some respects as a serious loss to the court, since the Judge's
efforts, while always helpful to his client, in the one sense tended
towards pacification. It is understood, though I am not at all sure
of this, that no one will be employed to succeed him, but that
Messrs. Rayner and Parker will go ahead with the case.
Referring to the question which we discussed on the morning
before you left Washington of further assistance to the judgeadvocate, I wish to say that Mr. Hanna,' who is by me as I write,
agrees with me that none such is necessary, and we are convinced,
Mr. Secretary, that it would be impolitic, to say the least, to resort
at this late day to such a course. Any one coming into the case
now would be more of a handicap than assistance; and, despite
the tone of many of the papers, which I was prepared to discount
before we entered upon the inquiry, we are entirely satisfied with
the progress that we have so far made and with the present aspect
1 Edwin P. Hanna, solicitor, judge-advocate-general's office, navy department.




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of the matter. Mr. Hanna supplements this by saying that he is
more than satisfied.
I have the honor to be,
Very sincerely,
SAM C. LEMLY
Judge-Advocate
P. S. I am very sorry to trouble you with these matters, but in
your absence I miss the level headed counsel which you give me
when here. My sincere personal regards for yourself and family.
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
HINGHAM, MASSACHUSETTS
ROBERT M. THOMPSON TO SECRETARY LONG
NEW YORK
September 27, 1901
DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
A number of the newspapers have attacked Admiral Sampson because of the interview in which it was stated that he had examined
the proofs of Maclay's 1 History and it was assumed that he had
examined and approved of the charges of cowardice, etc., made
against Schley. It has come to my knowledge that the admiral
examined the proofs of the first half of the book, but when the
second half was put before him and he found these charges, that
he threw the proofs into the waste basket and refused to have anything to do with it.
The newspaper reporter who obtained the interview, got into
the admiral's sick room (for the admiral was sick in bed), and
asked the admiral if he had seen and examined the proofs of Maclay's History without calling his attention as to what point was in
issue. The admiral then being quite ill, replied only generally, that
he had seen the proofs, and this is the basis of fact contained in the
interview.
Many friends of the admiral think it very desirable and that
the present time is opportune, for making a true statement of the
facts. Are you willing to permit the admiral's secretary, Lieutenant
Bennett,2 the only person who could give an authoritative statement of facts, to inform me of exactly what took place, and I
will then give out an interview under my own name, not connect1 Edgar Stanton Maclay (i863-1919).  2 Ernest Linwood Bennett.




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ing any naval officer in any way with it, and being responsible for
the interview myself? I now know the facts only generally, and
would like to be accurate. Bennett does not feel at liberty to make
any statement in regard to it without your permission.
I am,
With great respect,
Honorable JOHN D. LONG                ROBERT M. THOMPSON
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
THEODORE ROOSEVELT TO SECRETARY LONG
WASHINGTON
October i, I901
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I am in receipt of your communication of this date. I shall appoint
Admiral Sampson's son, and if the appointment for his alternate has
been regularly made out, I shall appoint the alternate also. Otherwise, I shall appoint Admiral Philip's son to the position of alternate.' I can not be bound by any nominations made after the year
1902. I have the very highest regard for Dr. Mitchell, but I do not
think it fair to naval men that their sons should be passed over
even for the grandnephew of so distinguished a man as Dr. Weir
Mitchell.2
Both to Annapolis and West Point I want to see during my term
of office one or two southerners appointed, and it may be, from
the nature of the case, these will have to be the sons of men not
in the United States military or naval service; but these will be the
only exceptions.
Sincerely yours,
THEODORE ROOSEVELT
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
T. A. TOMPKINS TO SECRETARY LONG
WASHINGTON, D. C.
October 26, I901
MY DEAR SIR:
The American people have made up a verdict in the Schley case,
finding that he has been most shamefully treated by the naval de1 Ralph Earle Sampson and John Woodward Philip entered the Naval Academy in 1903.         2 Silas Weir Mitchell (I830-1914).




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partment. The general opinion is that Crowninshield is responsible.
If you do not dismiss him from the service, you will fall under
severe criticism, which can not be averted by giving him command
of the European squadron. The article in this morning's Post voices
the sentiment of the American people, and you do well to heed.
You can not afford to shield this man any longer. I sincerely
hope you will be able to escape the storm of indignation which
will demand a congressional investigation. These words are written
in your interest by a gentleman from Illinois who has rare opportunities to feel the public pulse on all great questions.
Sincerely yours,
T. A. TOMPKINS'
SECRETARY LONG TO T. A. TOMPKINS
Navy Department
WASHINGTON
October 28, i90i
SIR:
I have your letter, and appreciate the kindly spirit in which you
write. I am sure you will let me suggest that the verdict should not
be made up until the finding of the court is announced. The court,
which is everywhere recognized as an entirely fair one, will have
the best opportunity for arriving at the right result.
With regard to Admiral Crowninshield, - you know that the
American in the long run wants everybody to have a fair hearing,
and if you will specify any particular in which he has done wrong,
the department will gladly investigate it. As to a congressional investigation, - nothing would be more gratifying to this department
than that one should be had. If there is any respect in which this
department has been at fault, it ought to be called to account; and
if, on the other hand, it is unjustly accused, there could be nothing
better for it than to have that fact appear.
Very truly yours,
JOHN D. LONG'
Secretary
MR. T. A. TOMPKINS
WASHINGTON, D. C.
1 Not identified.
1 This letter was returned from the post office, unclaimed.




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MALBON G. RICHARDSON TO SECRETARY LONG
70 State Street
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS
October 31, 1901
DEAR MR. LONG:
As you know, I am very much interested in boys' and men's
clubs, and on last Monday night I went over to the Sailors' Haven,
which is situated at number 46 Water Street, Charlestown, in close
proximity to the navy yard. I inspected the whole building and find
it an institution that is worthy of your attention. In this building
there is a club room for the men of the merchant service, club room
for the blue-jackets of the navy and the marines. In these rooms
they can read, write, smoke, play billiards and other games. They
have a concert every Monday night, and I was surprised to see
the club room filled with marines and blue-jackets from the navy
yard and warships. The superintendent, Mr. Stanton H. King,'
whom I have known for some time, and in whom I have every confidence was once an enlisted man in our navy and served two enlistments.
He knows what is needed for these men and is doing wonderfully
effective work among them, and it occurred to me that it would
help the work very much if you could send some word to the
admiral at the navy yard, endorsing the work of the Sailors' Haven,
number 46 Water Street, Charlestown, saying that it is your wish
that this institution be brought to the notice of the enlisted men.
The work of the Sailors' Haven is similar to the work done by
the Y. M. C. A., and as they have no work in Charlestown, I most
strongly feel that you can safely endorse the work of the haven.
It is very interesting to see what a man like King has come up
from and helped himself, and he has written an account of his experiences at sea and it is published in book form by Houghton
Mifflin Company, and I think that if this book was put in the
ships' libraries, it would do a great amount of good, and the title
is Dog Watches at Sea. I was very much impressed at the clean,
straightforward way that this work is being done. The night that
I was there some 275 men were present, made up of marines, bluejackets, and sailors. I write this thinking that you may be interested
and knowing that your endorsement would greatly help the work
and bring many a man to the haven to be helped and amused who
1 Stanton Henry King.




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would otherwise never go there. One thing that I like very much
about the situation is that it is right down among the bar-rooms and
it can fight them right there on their own ground. I enclose a heading which speaks for itself.
With kindest regards, I am,
Very truly yours,
Honorable JOHN D. LONG              MALBON GORE RICHARDSON
Navy Department
WASHINGTON, D. C.
[Enclosure]
SAILORS' HAVEN, CHARLESTOWN
46 Water Street
(Episcopal City Mission, Boston)
Our two sailor missions in East Boston and Charlestown are the
constant resort of seamen in port.
St. Mary's House for Sailors, I20 Marginal Street, East Boston,
is near the Cunard and Leyland wharves, while the Sailors' Haven
is near the Warren, Fumess, and Dominion Lines, and the navy
yard. Both houses provide reading and game rooms, bath and toilet
rooms, quarters for officers, for seamen and firemen, for stewards
and naval men.
Religious service every Sunday evening.
Evening prayer and temperance meeting every Friday evening.
Sailors' concerts every Monday night (from October to May).
Missionaries: Stanton H. King, Superintendent
Josephine R. Upham
THEODORE ROOSEVELT TO SECRETARY LONG
White House
Personal                                             WASHINGTON
November 5, 1901
The Secretary of the Navy:
Before making any recommendation about the naval observatory 1 and the question of its removal from the control of the navy,
1Secretary Long believed that the superintendent of the naval observatory
"should have continuity of tenure" and in his annual report for I90o he recommended that the office should not be restricted to line officers of the navy but
that the best astronomer attainable should be appointed and given a long term
of service.




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or having anything made public about it, will you please consult
me? We have enough of a fight about naval upbuilding on hand
this year to make it very unwise, in my opinion, to complicate the
matter with any side issue of any kind or sort.
THEODORE ROOSEVELT
CAPTAIN SIGSBEE TO SECRETARY LONG
Office of Naval Intelligence
WASHINGTON, D. C.
November 6, 1901
DEAR SIR:
On January 21, 1900, Miss Edith Wallace Benham,1 secretary,
on behalf of the committee of the Battleship Maine Relief Association, tendered me the transfer of the committee's documents and
the unexpended balance of the funds of the association on the occasion of my relief from sea duty and establishment as chief of the
office of naval intelligence, navy department. The members of
the association were: Mrs. John D. Long, Mrs. Edmund 0. Matthews, Mrs. Arent S. Crowninshield, Mrs. Charles O'Neil, Mrs.
Royal B. Bradford, Mrs. Edwin Stewart, Mrs. Philip Hichborn,
Mrs. Charles Heywood, Mrs. Samuel C. Lemly, Mrs. Richardson
Clover, and Miss Edith W. Benham.
After conference with the honorable secretary of the navy I
accepted the transfer on February 9, 1900. On March 5, 1900, I
received the files of the relief committee of the association from
Mrs. Richardson Clover. On March 7, 1900, I received from Mrs.
Edwin Stewart,2 treasurer of the association, the unexpended balance amounting to $1595.19; also the accounts and files of the
treasurer. The aggregate amount which had been subscribed was
$3 1,378.28. On March 8, 1900, I opened an account with the Riggs
National Bank, of Washington, D. C., on behalf of the fund, in
the name of Charles D. Sigsbee, Trustee. I deposited therein the
whole amount of the balance, and began a new series of numbers
for the checks.
The fund was exhausted on October 24, 1901o, by a payment of
$25.00 to the mother of a member of the crew who lost his life
in the Maine. When considering the propriety of making the several payments from the fund from time to time I have habitually
conferred with the secretary of the navy. I enclose a transcript of
1 Presumably the daughter of Admiral Benham.
2 Wife of the paymaster-general of the navy.




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my accounts, with the request that the department have them
audited and give instructions as to the disposition of the files now
in my possession. These files occupy considerable space.
It gives me pleasure to acknowledge the great help that I have
received from the admirably kept files and accounts transferred
to me by the ladies' association. The amount of work done by the
association was immense and beyond comparison with the small
amount of work required of me; in which, moreover, I had the
labors of the ladies' association for reference and guidance. In
nearly every payment made by me it was necessary only to refer
to the files of the association in order to identify individuals.
Greatly needed relief has been afforded to distressed relatives
of the Maine's dead by this fund contributed by the generosity of
the patriotic and sympathetic people of the country. It is pleasant
to be able to report that whereas the applications for assistance
for a long time after the loss of the Maine were both frequent and
pressing they so fell off during my administration of the fund that
it became necessary to publish from time to time, through the
courtesy of the Associated Press, notification of the fact that there
was still a balance of the fund. These conditions show apparently
that where there was much destitution about the time the fund was
contributed it was relieved so largely and opportunely by the fund
as to enable beneficiaries to manage their own affairs without further assistance.
I beg to thank the honorable secretary of the navy for his patient
and kindly interest in the disbursement of the fund as well as for
his suggestions and decisions in cases involving nice distinctions
of responsibility.
Very respectfully,
CHARLES D. SIGSBEE
Trustee, Battleship Maine Relief Fund
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
SECRETARY LONG TO CAPTAIN SIGSBEE
Navy Department
WASHINGTON
November 6, I901
MY DEAR CAPTAIN SIGSBEE:
I write to acknowledge the receipt of yours of this date, making
full and specific statement of the distribution of the unexpended




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balance transmitted to you January 2I, 900o, by the committee
of the Battleship Maine Relief Association and then amounting to
the sum of $1,595.19. Permit me to express my appreciation of the
valuable service which you have rendered in the work of distributing this amount to the distressed relatives of the dead of the U. S. S.
Maine. Your name will always be associated with this famous ship,
and I can well understand the pleasure you have found in this renewed association with the brave crew whose captain you were.
Very truly yours,
JOHN D. LONG
Captain CHARLES D. SIGSBEE, U. S. N.
Office of Naval Intelligence
Navy Department
HORACE N. FISHER TO SECRETARY LONG
BOSTON
November 8, I90I
MY DEAR LONG:
It is gratifying to learn by your letter of November 6 that my
paper on " Rule by Parliament" in the Transcript of November z
interested you and " raised new questions " in your mind, although
when governor you had favored giving seats on the floor of the
legislature to heads of department.
Although the heads of department in Massachusetts, at present,
have administrative rather than political functions, the plan of consolidating the fifty-odd commissions and bureaus into a few great
departments as in the United States government, would make such
grand officials class with the so-called Cabinet officers at Washington. I recognize that our Cabinet officers are not, strictly speaking,
Cabinet ministers mainly because they are not responsible to Congress; that they properly are secretaries of executive departments,
responsible to the President, through whom alone they become
indirectly responsible to Congress.
There is, however, one possible exception - the secretary of the
treasury, whose reports are addressed to the Speaker of the House.
I do not know how long this custom has existed, possibly since
the time of Hamilton, who, starting from the British parliamentary
system, may have reported to the House as then the branch of
Congress in which alone appropriation bills could be introduced.
But the secretary of treasury has no official right to a seat on the




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floor of the House, any more than any other of the secretaries, nor
can he be called upon to appear on the floor and be obliged to answer questions.
Hence, to give Cabinet officers seats on the floor of the House
would make them ministers, responsible to Congress, instead of
secretaries responsible to the President. This, in my opinion, would
openly nullify the exclusive responsibility of the President as the
sole executive created by the constitution. The Massachusetts constitution makes the governor the sole executive, and the thirtieth
article of the Massachusetts bill of rights specifically declares that
the executive power shall never be wielded by the legislature, nor
the legislative power by the executive. With this in mind I stated
in my paper that "As the State and Federal governments are organized on the same principles, the following criticism of parliamentary government is as applicable to the one as to the other."
As to Mr. Quincy's argument that the consolidation of the fiftyodd commissions and bureaus into a few great departments [sic], I
am decidedly in favor of the idea. If judiciously so done, the result
would be greater harmony and energy. Official responsibility welldefined and strictly enforced is the basis of every really effective
organized force, - be it army or navy, administrative department
of state, political machine, church, or industrial corporation. Tammany Hall, the Jesuit order, the Roman Catholic church are strong
because they are marvels of perfect organization; they are autocracies with every part in direct touch with one will, to which all
others must yield unhesitating obedience. The first element of a
perfect organization is a clearly defined responsibility of its members. For these reasons I favor the consolidation of bureaus into a
few departments, but question the policy of giving their heads
seats in the legislature.
I enclose copy of my letter of November 4 to Senator Lodge,
which is a supplement to my paper on parliamentary government.
Yours truly,
HORACE N. FISHER
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
WASHINGTON, D. C.
1 Josiah Quincy (I859-I919), Harvard College '80, Democratic candidate for
governor of Massachusetts, was advocating a parliamentary system of government
for the state.




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HORACE N. FISHER TO SECRETARY LONG
BOSTON
November i8, 190I
MY DEAR LONG:
The necessity of reciprocity treaties for the preservation of our
system of a protective tariff has long been recognized by me. The
present tariff is excessive, as shown by an average balance of trade
in our favor of $585,oooooo a year for the four full years (ending
October, 190I) since the Dingley Tariff 1 went into operation. Of
course, this has involved a drain of that amount upon the quick
capital of countries trading with us, and to it has been attributed,
in a measure, the industrial depression on the continent of Europe
and a tendency to retaliate - to a tariff war. In fact, the consensus
in governmental circles seems to be that the twentieth century will
be a period of a struggle for the existence, in Europe, of their
commerce and industries; and it behooves us to remove obstacles
to the extension of our commerce and industries by keeping and
extending our foreign markets.
As the question has heretofore been raised, and is likely to be
again, about the compatibility of reciprocity treaties with our existing treaties -especially those containing the "most favored
nation " clause, - I have practically embodied in the enclosed paper
on " Reciprocity Treaties " my argument before the Chilean minister2 of foreign relations in i88o, -at which the entire Cabinet
and professor (of international law) Huneus of [the] University
of Chile were present and seemed entirely convinced.
So far as I know, no treatise on international law has clearly
explained the inherent principles which distinguish reciprocal, most
favored nation and national treatment, and treaties respectively
based on them from reciprocity treaties. This I have endeavored
to present, accurately and clearly, in the enclosed paper; as the
result of much study of different treaties, and decisions and opinions
of jurists on the different phases of this question.
The appended memorandum of " points discussed " in the enclosed paper, presents in condensed form the distinction alluded
to and the principles upon which the several classes of treaties rest.
I enclose a number of copies of this " Reciprocity Treaties
1 See letter of W. H. Moody, M. C., dated September Io, I898.
2 Sefior Santa Maria or Sefior Valdarana. The office changed hands in i88o.




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paper and should be pleased to have you present, with my compliments, a copy to Secretary Hay with whom my acquaintance is
too brief to warrant my doing so directly, and others to the President and such members of his Cabinet as may be interested to read
it. If you think it desirable to have more copies, I will send them
to you.
This question of reciprocity treaties seems likely to occupy
much of the attention of Congress when it convenes next month;
and it may be desirable to clear away uncertainties and obstacles
to its prompt and intelligent solution.
Yours truly,
HORACE N. FISHER
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
WASHINGTON, D. C.
[Enclosure]
POINTS DISCUSSED IN COLONEL FISHER'S PAPER
ON RECIPROCITY TREATIES
(Published in the Boston Transcript of Saturday, November
i6, I90I)
As text, the following extracts from President McKinley's speech
of September 5, 1901: "We can not for ever sell everything and
buy little or nothing.... It would not be best for us or for those
with whom we deal.... Mutual exchange of commodities is
manifestly essential to the continued and healthful growth of our
export trade." These three propositions considered.
I. What is the balance of trade and its effect on national
wealth? An excessive balance of trade in our favor would
drain the quick capital of other countries and reduce their
purchasing power and thus react on our export trade, if
long continued.
II. Since the Dingley Tariff of I897, the balance of trade in our
favor has averaged $585,000,000 a year for four years: to it
is attributed, in a measure, the present industrial depression
on the continent of Europe, now attracting the serious attention of their statesmen and creating apprehension for
their industrial future. This tends to a tariff war, which
would diminish our foreign markets. The consensus of the
leading statesmen is that the twentieth century will, for




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Europe, be a struggle for existence in commerce and industry.
in. Tariffs for revenue and tariffs for revenue and protection.
The Dingley Tariff makes special provision for reciprocity
treaties and allows special discounts on imports in exchange
for equivalent concessions on our exports, to be agreed upon
in reciprocity treaties.
Iv. "Treatment" is the technical name of the mass of favors,
rights, and privileges, granted voluntarily and without compensation to commerce and navigation, to foreign ships,
merchants, citizens and public officers. Treaties are classified
according to the kind of treatment - 3 classes.
(I) Treatment of "exact and perfect reciprocity"-reciprocal treaties;
(2) "Treatment of the most favored nation";
(3) "National treatment."
v. Reciprocal Treaties provide that whatever favors, etc., one
nation may grant to the other shall be reciprocated by a
grant by the other nation of exactly the same identical favors.
But such favors are prospective and therefore conditional;
and, being voluntary and without compensation in the first
place, can be withdrawn or modified at the pleasure of the
grantor. Hence reciprocal treaties create no rights of themselves and refer only to rights which may hereafter be granted
- that is, to provisional rights in futuro. Such rights must be
exactly the same in every respect, identical for both parties.
They refer only to "navigation" rights and to the civil
status of alien residents, never directly to commerce - the
commodities imported. Exact equality is the test of the three
classes above-named.
vi. Under the " Most Favored Nation " Treatment, all favors,
etc. granted to any nation, in regard to such navigation
rights and civil status, by one of the parties to the treaty
immediately inure to the other party: being voluntary and
without compensation, they are not permanent rights created by the treaty; nor have they any direct relation to commodities imported.
vii. "National Treatment" applies only to the same class of
rights as to two previous classes- to navigation and civil
rights of aliens, not directly to commodities imported. Under this class the flags of the two countries are assimilated,




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so far as relates to foreign trade (rarely to coastwise trade):
goods imported in foreign ships pay the same duty as in
native ships, port-charges, etc., are exactly the same for both.
Differential duties are thus abolished.
viii. " Reciprocity Treaties," on the contrary, refer exclusively
to certain specified commodities imported which are to pay
customs duties less than in the regular tariff; in consideration
of which certain other specified commodities exported to
the other country shall pay a certain less rate than generally
levied. The concessions of duties thus mutually agreed upon
are not necessarily the same rate of discount; but are deemed
equivalent concessions. This is the fundamental distinction
between reciprocity treaties and the three classes already
described: equivalency instead of exact equality of concessions: direct and absolute concessions to certain specified
imported commodities, and none other, instead of conditional and revocable favors to navigation and aliens. Hence
reciprocity treaties are independent of all preexisting treaties.
Ix. The danger to our own industrial prosperity, resulting from
a long-continued excessively favorable balance of trade,
tends to commercial war on the part of other countries to
prevent us from absorbing their quick capital used in payment of our excessive exports to them; in addition to their
loss of ability to buy of us because of their impoverishment.
This would diminish our foreign market and throw upon
our home market a mass of commodities beyond its capacity
to absorb. The result would be the crippling of our industries, - representing, in i 890, an investment of over six thousand millions of capital, over nine thousand millions of annual production; over four millions of operatives receiving
over two thousand millions as wages. The increase of industrial capital between I870 and I890 was 285 %, of industrial production I77%, of industrial operatives 132%,while our increase in population was only 62%. Hence the
necessity of keeping and extending our foreign markets
grows greater year by year. Heretofore we have had need
[of] protective tariffs to promote industries; now we need
reciprocity treaties to protect them and to preserve our
domestic peace and political stability.
HORACE N. FISHER




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REAR-ADMIRAL BOWLES TO SECRETARY LONG
Bureau of Construction and Repair
Personal                                     WASHINGTON, D. C.
December 6, I90I
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
Replying to your note of the fourth instant, I am in entire agreement with you that the title of rear-admiral is one that should only
be applied to an officer who exercises military command, and it
is much more fitting the head of the construction corps should
have a title distinctly designating his office. It appears to me that
this view of the matter of title applies with equal force, both in law
and logic, to all bureaus of the navy department, no matter from
what corps their chiefs are assigned or originate, because no chief
of bureau exercises military command, and the duties of all bureaus
are essentially and actually staff functions. Therefore, I consider
that the chief of the bureau of construction and repair is to-day as
fully entitled to the rank and title of rear-admiral as the chief of
the bureau of equipment or as the chief of the bureau of navigation.
The last Navy Register in failing to give my position that title, and
in giving it to the chiefs above mentioned, made an unjustifiable
discrimination.
This instance is cited to illustrate a tendency which has always
existed and now exists to grudgingly award any sort of honor or
distinction in the way of rank or position to those of the staff, who,
while shorn of opportunities of distinction and agreeable duty following from military command, are at the same time inadequately
recompensed for their necessary and arduous labor involving a high
order of technical training. There is no doubt that in the public
mind, and also in social life, the title of rear-admiral, however ill
applied, does in reality add honor and dignity to the office I occupy
and serves to class it in relation to other positions in the naval service.
No matter what his title, my experience from the Naval Academy
through the various grades of the construction corps teaches me
that the chief of the bureau of construction must have rank with
other officers; so the present question is merely one of whether or
not it is best to use the title of rear-admiral, and does not admit of
any doubt as to the matter of rank.
You have cited the case of Sir William White,' who, having no
1 Sir William Henry White (I845-1913), naval architect.




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military rank, is a civilian official at a salary of $15,000 a year and
whose title is assistant controller of the admiralty and director of
naval construction. It is not a parallel case on several important
issues. The royal corps of constructors in England are employees
of the civil service and entitled to pensions and retired pay under
the rules of that service. The constructor in each dockyard has the
title of chief constructor, and constructors and chief constructors
also serve as assistants to the admiral superintendent at the several
dockyards and are listed in the English navy list next after that
official at each dockyard. The administration of English dockyards
is on a civil basis and not on a military one such as ours or the
French, and therefore rank is not essential.
Having cleared the ground by these remarks, I am personally
not desirous of retaining the title of rear-admiral, but I consider it
my duty to see that the head of my corps, the responsible designer
of naval vessels, shall lose nothing in way of honor and distinction
by relinquishing that title and that no loss of naval rank is thereby
involved. Therefore, I should wish to carefully consider any substitute for the title and to secure at least as much pay as the rank of
rear-admiral carried with it.
Very respectfully,
F. T. BOWLES
Chief Constructor, United States Navy
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
CYRUS T. BRADY       TO   SECRETARY      LONG
Personal                                  PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA
December 17, 1901
MY DEAR SIR:
Pray do not think that I intend to inaugurate a daily correspondence with you but the more I consider this subject the more indignant I become. When I read the utterly unmerited abuse which
is being heaped upon the heads of Admirals Benham  and Ramsay,2
and the equally unmerited laudation which accompanies the persistent misunderstanding of Admiral Dewey's position, I am filled
1 Andrew Ellicott Kennedy Benham (1832-1905).
2 F. M. Ramsay. The court of inquiry in the Schley case was composed of
Admiral Dewey, president, and Rear-Admirals Benham and Ramsay.




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with scorn and contempt. If Admiral Dewey agrees with his colleagues in the major portion of their verdict, in the name of manhood and decency let him stand up and say so! It is a shame that
the persistent misunderstanding places the two admirals in one position and the third admiral in another. It seems to me that any man
with a spark of manhood would rise up in indignation and say
plainly that he concurs with the opinions which are animadverted
upon so severely, except in so far as his published statement disagrees
therefrom, and that if there is room or reason for censure, he will
take his share with the others.
Do, Mr. Secretary, in behalf of justice and fair play, give Admiral
Dewey permission to do this and perhaps you might furnish him
with a little inspiration also. Plainly the honor of the admiral, which
is in a certain sense the honor of the navy, demands that he should
take this action. Let him show some of the backbone that he exhibited at Manila and set himself right as an officer and a gentleman
with his colleagues, with the navy, and with the country. It is a
burning shame, I repeat, that he should shelter himself behind an
ambiguity. If he agrees, or disagrees, let him speak!
Very sincerely yours,
CYRUS TOWNSEND BRADY3
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
CHARLES FRANCIS ADAMS TO SECRETARY LONG
BOSTON
December i8, I90o
MY DEAR GOVERNOR:
Thanks for your letter of the sixteenth, and the criticism contained in it. Every historical analogy can easily be pushed too far;
and, still more easily, admits of differentiation in minor points. The
discussion of " what might have been " is unprofitable.
My object in preparing the paper you so kindly discuss was twofold: first, I wanted to give credit to Lee;' second, I wanted to
suggest to the gentlemen in South Africa who have pursued a differ3 Reverend Cyrus Townsend Brady (I861-1920), graduate of the Naval Academy.
1 General Robert Edward Lee (x807-1870). The paper was read before the
American Antiquarian Society, October 30, i90I.




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ent policy that there are two sides to these questions; and the fact
that, now, after thirty-six years, there can not be found one single
man in the 'whole United States, North or South, who will say that
Lee made a mistake,2 is a pretty strong piece of evidence. Absolute
unanimity as the result of thirty-six years is significant.
From either a literary or legal point of view, you will agree
with me that, when you have an object in view, the thing is to
strike at it as forcibly as you can, without dissipating your strength
by going into side issues. This I proposed to do; and the response
my paper has received shows that I was not mistaken in my judgment.
Meanwhile, I will suggest to you one little historical point. It
has been repeatedly said, - as you say, in reply to my argument, -
that for this, that, or the other reason, the Confederates could not
have done, or would not have been likely to do, what is now being
done in South Africa. On the other hand, let me suggest to you that
Mosby 3 carried on exactly the warfare De Wet 4 is now carrying
on in South Africa, for four years, within fifty miles of Washington,
and we never once succeeded in putting our hands upon him. Anything and everything that Botha,' De Wet and the Boer leaders
have done, simply is not "in it " in comparison with what Mosby
and Forrest 6 did. Mosby's men, within fifty miles of Washington,
pursued exactly the course which the Boers are pursuing; that is,
they were farmers one day and soldiers the next; and we pursued,
only to far greater extremity, the course the English are pursuing.
We devastated the country, shot our prisoners, burnt houses, and
did what is always done in irregular warfare, - and which no one
has a right to complain of when recourse is had to irregular warfare!
It is a logical sequence.
In the above, please remember that I am speaking of that which I
know from individual and personal observation. The difficulty in the
whole case is, that thirty years throw a light over what actually
has been, which entirely obliterates from the average memory what
easily might have been. After all, however, we will agree on one
2 See the short paper on Lee's mistakes by John D. Long, Proceedings, Massachusetts Historical Society, XLIV, 592.
3 John Singleton Mosby (I833-I9I6).
4 Christian Rudolf De Wet (I854-1922).
5 Louis Botha (I862-I919), South African general and statesman and first
premier of the Union of South Africa, I9Io-i9I9.
6 Nathan Bedford Forrest (I82I-I877).




412        PAPERS OF JOHN DAVIS LONG                 [1901
point, i.e., that the stenographer is a blessing. But for the stenographer and typewriter I should not have received your letter, - nor
would you have got this reply!
I have to be in Washington, to attend the meeting of the American Historical Association, of which I chance to be president, the
last of next week, and not impossibly I may take the opportunity
to drop in upon you at the naval department. Meanwhile, permit
me to offer my felicitations upon the happy state in which our
admiral has left the result of the Schley court of enquiry. I never
yet knew a court of enquiry, or a council, which was of any
service whatever. The result of this last one merely further establishes a principle already proven. What was already bad enough is
made, if possible, a little worse than it was. Dewey may be great as
an admiral, - of that I have nothing to say, - but in the ordinary
affairs of life he is not a success.
Believe me, etc.,
CHARLES F. ADAMS
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
CAPTAIN HOBSON TO SECRETARY LONG
St. Nicholas Hotel
Personal                                          CINCINNATI
December 18, 1901
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
A sensational newspaper this morning misquoted a part of an
address I made here last night on the navy, in which there was not
a word touching the controversy. Some one in the audience asked,
referring to the battle of Santiago, " Who did it? " I replied, " The
man behind the gun, or perhaps, I might better say, with Admiral
Schley, the girl behind the man behind the gun." The paper in
question, from this, makes up a sensational paragraph saying, I
said, "Schley did it."
I thought it best to let you know the facts whether or not the
matter comes to your notice.
Yours very truly,
R. P. HOBSON
The Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Navy Department
WASHINGTON, D. C.




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WINSLOW     WARREN     TO SECRETARY       LONG
39 Court Street
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS
December 23, 1901
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
Although you and I do not agree on all political matters and
perhaps because of that fact, I am impelled to write you a hearty
note of congratulation for your dignified and manly action anent
the Schley controversy and I extend the same feeling as regards
the President's action as to General Miles. I have no interest in the
matter except as a private citizen and have no wish to derogate
from the proper glory to which Admiral Schley is entitled for
what he did well, but when a man appeals to a court for justice
and fully assents to its composition it is folly to rail at its judgment.
We lawyers think it useless enough when we are compelled to go
to a court that we have not asked for nor assented to.
Whatever gust of feeling may temporarily sweep over the
country, fanned as it will be by partisan[s] who think they see
something in it for them-the thinking people are with the administration and feel confident that history will be. I sincerely
trust that this unfortunate controversy may now be buried, but
if not, that the administration will stand firm and rely upon the
people.
Iam,
Sincerely yours,
WINSLOW WARREN 1
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
CHARLES P. GREENOUGH TO SECRETARY               LONG
39 Court Street
BOSTON
December 23, 1901
DEAR SECRETARY:
Allow me very respectfully to express my admiration of your
Schley message.' Not a word wasted, not a word omitted - it was
1 Winslow Warren (1838-1930), Harvard College '58.
1 The letter of Secretary Long, in which "the findings of fact and the opinion
of the full court [of inquiry] are approved," was published December 21, 1901;
also the statement that Secretary of War Root had called upon General Miles for




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a lesson in English. Your whole management of the matter was
most delightful and unless Dewey has a hide like a rhinoceros, your
pungent words must have made some impression. That with Secretary Root's deserved rebuke to Miles has had the best effect here
and everybody I have seen entirely approves of both. Let me congratulate you most warmly. We feel here that Schley has had
justice tempered with quite enough mercy.
Yours very truly,
CHARLES P. GREENOUGH 2
SECRETARY LONG TO BENJAMIN H. TICKNOR
Navy Department
WASHINGTON
December 26, i90i
MY DEAR MR. TICKNOR:
I thank you very much for your kind letter, and I am glad that
a re-reading of my action on the Schley case leads you, though you
at first desired something more sweeping, to think that what I said
was best. I never have had the slightest personal feeling in this case. I
have acted with entire disinterestedness and as judicially as I am
capable of doing. Of course all the talk about a conspiracy, etc., etc.,
is utterly unfounded. I certainly appreciate the approval of an old
soldier like yourself - and an old friend.
Very truly yours,
[JOHN D. LONG]
MR. BENJAMIN H. TICKNOR1                           Secretary
4 Park Street
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS
an explanation of his newspaper interview commenting on the trial. For opinions
of Secretary Long and President Roosevelt on the court of inquiry, see Long's
The New American Navy, i, 283-287, and II, 195.
2 Charles Pelham Greenough (I844-I924), Harvard College '64.
1 Benjamin Holt Ticknor (0842-1914), Harvard College '62.




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I902
THEODORE ROOSEVELT TO SECRETARY LONG
White House
WASHINGTON
January 4, 1902
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
Referring to the attached memoranda, I must say that this showing makes me feel that the unfortunate Captain Clark has had a
pretty hard deal.' Why was Captain Higginson given five numbers? Ought not Captain Clark, as a simple matter of justice, really
to receive six numbers, instead of a make-believe six numbers? Can
not this be done now without prejudice to others?
Faithfully yours,
Honorable JOHN D. LONG                 THEODORE ROOSEVELT
Secretary of the Navy
THEODORE ROOSEVELT TO SECRETARY LONG
White House
Personal                                         WASHINGTON
January 9, 1902
The Secretary of the Navy:
I would like a report on this from you. It certainly seems to me
that every effort should be made to keep our officers at sea, and
that wherever possible coast fortifications should be in the hands
of the engineer department of the army. There are special reasons
why this should not be done at Culebra but elsewhere the great
object should be to release the navy officers for sea service. Am I
not right in my remembrance that the officers of the army and
navy have repeatedly complained to me as to their insufficiency
in number? If such is the fact, it seems unwise to try to do work
which could be as well done by the engineer body of the army.
THEODORE ROOSEVELT
WILLIAM    LAWRENCE TO SECRETARY LONG
I Joy Street
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS
January 27, 1902
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I have read with interest your letter of January nineteenth, which
appeared in the Boston Herald the other day, in regard to the pay
1 See Captain Clark's letter of May 2, i902, note.




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of chaplains and its proposed increase. Knowing your own personal
desire to improve the staff of chaplains and to get men worthy of
the work, I am moved to write you a few considerations which have
weighed more and more with me during the past few years. My
justification in writing you is a deep interest of several years' standing in this subject, an acquaintance with a number of navy officers
and chaplains, with whom I have talked upon the subject, and an
intimate knowledge of the conditions and salaries of the clergymen
of at least one religious body in your own state of Massachusetts.
Let me say first that of course any clergyman who, on entering
the navy, holds salary as a prime consideration is not worthy of his
calling. Let me add that there are, as you well know, other considerations more serious and difficult to adjust than that of pay
which hold many clergymen of ability from the navy. Of these I
shall speak later.
I am confident that your statement that the character of the chaplains has steadily improved in the last years is well within the mark.
The immediate question is, is the standard now satisfactory, and,
if not, how can it be further improved?
I appeal to you if, in your conversation with officers and men,
you have found their regard for the chaplains and their work what
it should be. I take it that your wide experience is the same as my
limited one,- that, while the officers agree that the chaplains are
of irreproachable character and gladly point to this or that one
whom they call exceptional in his successful work, they do not
recognize that the body of chaplains are of such force of character,
devotion, and ability as the navy should have. Officers of religious
spirit, deeply concerned for the welfare of their men, have told
me within three or four years that they would rather have no chaplain than the average chaplain of the navy. Granted that there may
have been some prejudices mixed up in this statement, still these,
I believe, are facts, and this is the general temper of the officers.
Is this satisfactory? Certainly not.
The vital question is, what can be done to get better chaplains?
I feel that, with all respect to yourself, the first obstacle to reform
is the note which you strike so strongly in your letter. When our
navy is raising the standard of education, skill, and character in its
officers; when it is taking all pains to get men of more than average
ability; and when its record under your administration has so evidently shown good results of this effort; - I protest, with all re



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spect, against "the average clergyman," " the salary of the average
clergyman," or the work of " the average clergyman," being made
the standard for the chaplaincy of the navy of this country. I believe
that the people of this country want chaplains in the navy who are
not, taking the country over and the rank and file of the ministry,
average clergymen. I believe that the people want and the navy
should have as chaplains men of far more than average force of
character, devotion, and tact, backed by such excellent education
as will give them the intellectual respect of the best trained officers
of the navy.
I am not surprised that "the department is overwhelmed with
applications for the position of chaplain." I could provide you with
another long list of applicants, all of them men of stainless character, and not one of them fitted for the delicate post of navy chaplain. My point is, is the navy under its present conditions in as good
a position to get men of such force, education, ability, and devotion
as it would be if the chaplains were in the matter of pay on an
equal footing with men of equal rank?
Allow me to give you a few facts in relation to the clergymen of
the Episcopal church in Massachusetts - for it is of them only that
I can speak with full knowledge - and the position of navy chaplain.
About a year ago, my interest in getting before the department
men whom I believed of force and character led me to make an
effort to present to you the names of one or two men who I was
confident were fitted for the position of chaplain. After a careful
study of the two hundred and sixty Episcopal clergymen of Massachusetts, I selected six, and wrote them asking whether they would
allow me to take steps towards getting their names presented to
the department for the position of chaplain. Of those six, four declined; one expressed his readiness to allow his name to be sent (I
might add that since then his work, usefulness, and salary have so
increased that, if approached now, he would decline); the other
declined to allow his name to be presented, but said that he would
yield if I insisted. In other words, out of two hundred and sixty
Episcopal clergymen in Massachusetts, most of whom have a full
college and theological education, I could find only one -and
to-day I could not find one - whom I could commend to you as a
man of such force and ability as ought to be a navy chaplain, who
would be ready to take the post, if appointed. Of course, most of




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the causes of this situation are not financial. Strong men are doing
larger work than that which they think a chaplaincy in the navy
offers. Good men who have been five years in the ministry in Massachusetts are getting salaries which enable them to live as well as
the salary of a navy chaplain provides. " The average clergyman "
may not, as you suggest, get a rise in income as he grows older; but
the strong clergyman does get an increase of salary, and it is with
him and him only that I think we are concerned. The clergyman of
whom I am speaking (and as a class such men are the most efficient
to-day) has put four years into college and three into the theological school: in other words, he has had seven years of education
beyond the high school. A large part of this education has often
been gained by his own efforts. He can not be justly compared with
skilful master-mechanics or even pay officers. Am I not right in
saying that he has put more time and money of his own into his
education than any of the officers of a battleship, whose education
has been obtained largely at the expense of the government?
There are, as I have already said, difficult conditions. Men of
force who have been in the ministry a few years and are reaching
a thousand men, women, and children, and are becoming a source
of power in the community in which they live, hesitate about
throwing their work aside in order to come into touch with perhaps
six hundred officers and men, whose characters are largely set, in
the walls of a ship. A strong man questions his ability to live happily in the necessary discipline of the ship and in the required relations between officers and men. There are other obstacles more
familiar to you than to myself. This, however, I want to emphasize:
I believe that there is a work in the navy for clergymen of force. I am
confident that the officers will welcome them and that the men
will respond to their work. Their influence will, as you well know,
extend far beyond the ship; their names and work will be known
throughout the navy, and their profession regarded. I am deeply
concerned that the strong men in the ministry should realize this
and the opportunity which, with all its limitations, a chaplaincy
offers. I believe that there is a man here and there who has discovered his power over men and who might be turned toward the
navy, but it would be difficult to pull him out of his present work.
Money and increased pay are not going to do it. The prime consideration is as to whether he can be persuaded that his life will
be devoted to a larger and more permanent service for Christ and
his fellow men than in his present position. That being his prime




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consideration, there is a secondary consideration which weighs
with men, especially such men as the navy wants as chaplains,men who are married and have children, and who have the American enthusiasm for education and for the education of their children. If such a man can be persuaded not only that there is work in
the navy for him, but also that his wife can live with reasonable
comfort and his children gain a first-rate education, he will be more
liable to respond to the call for the work of the navy.
Eighteen months ago I lunched with a mess of officers. One and
another happened to mention that his wife and family were passing
the summer at Jamestown or some northern resort. I noticed that
the chaplain said nothing. After lunch I asked him where his wife
and children were. He said that he was anxious at the time, for he
had learned that both his children were sick; that they with his
wife were at Norfolk, and that the heat was bearing hard upon
them. I asked him why he did not bring them to Jamestown, and
he said that his pay, being smaller than that of his brother officers,
did not allow that expenditure. Now that chaplain was doing his
work with less buoyancy and success because of his anxiety, due to
a smaller pay than that of his fellow officers. I think, though he
did not mention it, that there was a slight sense, I will not say of
injustice, but of misfortune in the discrimination; and I am not sure
that I should agree with you in saying that the relation of his pay
to that of his fellow officers had nothing to do with their estimate
of the importance of his work. Taking men as they go, is it not
the fact that men who are living in close contact with each other
are affected in their estimate of each other's work by the value
which the government seems to put upon their office?
Pardon the length of this letter. As my last word, may I respectfully urge you to set for the department and the nation a higher
standard for the chaplaincy of the navy than that of " the average
clergyman "? May I not hope that you will aim for nothing less
than gaining for the chaplaincies of the navy (as you are gaining
them for the other positions) men of distinct force of character, of
education, of tact, and of devotion?
I remain, with kind regards,
Yours respectfully,
The Honorable JOHN D. LONG             WILLIAM LAWRENCE 1
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
1 Right Reverend William Lawrence (b. I85o), Harvard College '71, Protestant
Episcopal bishop of Massachusetts, I893-1926.




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CAPTAIN LYON TO SECRETARY LONG
Olympia
Personal                                             BOSTON
January 29, I902
DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I am very much obliged to you for the photograph which is just
the best size, framed, to suit the height of the cabin and the size
of the panels. We went into commission last Saturday at ten o'clock,
the men marching back to their dinner on board the receiving ship
and then returning with bags and hammocks to begin their life
on board. Mrs. Lyon took luncheon with me on Sunday, and the
ship was wonderfully well shaken down even by that time. The
galley, heating system, electric lights and "all the comforts of a
home" were in working order and the men's Sunday afternoon
pipes seemed to send out a comfortable, glad-we-are-at-home sort
of smoke.
Since then we have made excellent progress in getting stores on
board, and have our six hundred tons of coal for first operations
safely in the bunkers. I have reported to the commandant that but
for the assurance that we shall have our fire hose and 8-inch ammunition hoist controllers, I could easily promise to get away on
the tenth proximo, or even sooner. Admiral Johnson1 has made
such efforts to give us a good shove off and his heads of department
have worked so well with him, I am anxious to give the navy department the surprise of finding us ready by the date set, and with
no questions as to outfit.
I am rather short of officers, but all on board are working well
and cheerfully to make a good ship. I am also short of leading petty
officers, but the crew is going to be a fine one, is now willing and
well behaved, and only wants some leading to be most efficient. In
speaking of these shortages, I am not reflecting at all on the bureau
of navigation which has done its very best for us, and has never
shown any discrimination such as was suggested by a Boston newspaper when it undertook to discuss what was nobody's business and
had a scare head line reading "Crowninshield and Lyon don't
speak." I shall see Mr. Glover shortly and ask him to come on
board. Before long, I hope that you will be able to visit us, and if
1 Mortimer Lawrence Johnson (I842-1913), commandant of the Boston Navy
Yard.




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you will give me sufficient notice I will have some doughnuts that
you can " chew on."
Mrs. Lyon has gone to Annapolis to be near our boy who is
doing very well in his studies to meet the competition of those
bright Yankee boys at the examination in Rockland or Lewiston
next May.
With highest regards to Mrs. Long,
Sincerely yours,
H. W. LYON
HORACE N. FISHER TO SECRETARY LONG
6o Congress Street
BOSTON
January 29, 1902
DEAR LONG:
In to-day's (Wednesday, 29 January) Boston Transcript will
be published a paper of mine on "The Danish West Indies," in
which are discussed these two propositions: (i) Their acquisition,
politically considered, the logical application of our Monroe Doctrine; (2) Strategically considered, an incident and consequence
of our isthmian canal policy. Proofs in pamphlet form are to be
made, as in former cases, 'and I will send you some for use of yourself and colleagues (if they wish them).
The Monroe Doctrine message defines three principles: (i) No
political domination of Europe over American nations; (2) No
European colonization hereafter on American continent and islands; (3) No transfer of existing European colonies from one
European power to another. This third principle appears in the
Monroe message in these words: " With the existing colonies or
dependencies of any European power, we have not interfered and
shall not interfere." The uniform interpretation of which, by every
President and secretary of state in messages and reports to Congress
on the subject whenever it has arisen, has been that we shall not
interfere with existing European colonies in America or West
Indies so long as their then owners (of i823) shall continue in possession, but no longer; that their transfer from one European power
to another will be a matter of moment to us as affecting (possibly)
our safety, and therefore not allowable.
It has been thus officially stated by President Grant in his annual message in I869: "The existing [European] dependencies




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are no longer regarded as subject to transfer from one European
power to another"; and by Secretary Fish, in his report to the
President appended to the message of July 14, I870, - " This policy
is not a policy of aggression but it opposes the creation of European
dominion on American soil, or its transfer to other European
powers; and it looks hopefully to the time when, by the voluntary
departure of European governments from this continent and the
adjacent islands, America shall be wholly American."
In the eighteenth and first half of the nineteenth century, the
West Indies held the practical monopoly of the sugar production
of the world - they were the " spice islands" of the western hemisphere, only infinitely more valuable to their European owners:
for which reason the great naval battles of the eighteenth century
between England, France, and Spain were fought in the West
Indies for the control of the Caribbean and its sugar islands. Even
as late as the year our class graduated at Harvard [1857], the
beet sugar production of the world was only 200,000 tons (15%)
against 1,200,000 tons of cane sugar, of which the West Indies
produced 57% and thus had the control of one of the great staples
of commerce. Sugar was king then, even more emphatically than
cotton has ever been a political dictator of national policy. To-day,
all this is changed: in 1900, beet sugar production was 5,607,000
tons as against 2,839,000 tons of cane sugar and the West Indian
islands (though producing, as in I857, 670,000 tons) produced
only 8% of the world's sugar: their commercial importance had
dwindled, their market on the continent had not only gone for
good but the surplus of the continental sugar production was driving them out of the British and American markets. The cheap
labor of oriental countries and Hawaii enabled those countries
to undersell the West Indies in cane sugar production, so that the
main West Indian industry is unprofitable and being abandoned
in despair: the consequence is that those islands are no longer
valuable commercially to their European owners, but because of
their wrecked sole industry they are unable to make their revenue
cover their expenditures and the home government of every European West Indian colony has to make up the annual deficit from
the public treasury. For example, in 1899, Parliament granted
~40,000 to Barbados, ~3 0,000 to Grenada, besides loaning to
Jamaica ~15o,ooo "in aid of revenue" and ~303,000 for public
works and railways, to Trinidad ~I0o,ooo for public works and




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railways, to Barbados  50,000 as "hurricane loan," and to Saint
Vincent ~ 50,000. Thus three and one-half millions of dollars were
drawn from the British taxpayers, already groaning under their
costly war in South Africa. In like manner the French budget of
I901 appropriated 3,857,971 francs for her two West Indian islands,
besides loaning, in 1899, 1,400,000 francs to Martinique for twenty
years. The Dutch West India Colony of CuraSao in 1900 showed a
deficit of $31,400 in its revenue, which was paid from the Dutch
treasury. As to the Danish West Indies, they have long had an
annual deficit, which has had to be paid from the Danish treasury
already so overburdened that her gold reserve fund for "sudden
occurrences "- $3,386,000 in i867 -had been drawn down to
$4,830,000 in I900.
Now these facts present a momentous question to us: what is to
be the political destiny of the remaining European colonies in
the West Indies? We have settled the West Indian interests of
Denmark by purchase,' at about one-third her asking price in 1867.
How about the others?
If we insist that their present owners shall not sell or transfer
those unprofitable colonies to other European powers (the only
powers which could buy, except ourselves), and the time should
come- and it seems not far away - when the European owners
find them too heavy a burden without commercial compensation
to keep, and the colonies see sure ruin before them if they remain
under European dominion, what will the United States do in such
event? The European owner may be glad to " voluntarily depart,"
'but scarcely one of those colonies is able to govern itself, financially
or politically. Their only chance of recuperation seems to be to
join the procession with Porto Rico and the Danish islands as dependencies of the United States; and thus, with favorable tariff
reductions in their favor, they will recover their pristine prosperity
and even more.
To my mind, the acquisition of the Danish West Indies is the
initiation of an American West Indian policy of immeasurable
importance to us and to the world.
Yours truly,
HORACE N. FISHER
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
WASHINGTON, D. C.
1 Negotiations for the purchase of the Danish West Indies failed until 1917.




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GEORGE FRISBIE HOAR TO SECRETARY LONG
WASHINGTON, D. C.
January 30, 1902
MY DEAR GOVERNOR LONG:
I can not tell whether I have paid the pew rent for this year or no.
I paid the quarter's bills which came about the first of January at
home and the receipts are there as are the checks. I do not at this
moment remember the address of the treasurer of the church, but
I suppose if you know it, you can ask him by telephone.
I doubt whether you ought to pay one-half of this pew rent.
Your soul and that of Mrs. Long are both so sure of salvation without preaching that a sinner like me ought at least to pay threefourths of the cost of the doctrine that comes to that pew.
I am,
Faithfully yours,
GEORGE F. HOAR
CAPTAIN MAHAN TO SECRETARY LONG
i6o West Eighty-Sixth Street
[NEW YORK]
February 9, 1902
MY DEAR MR. LONG:
This letter will introduce to you the Right Reverend Charles
Henry Brent,' who I hope will have the opportunity of presenting
it in an approaching visit to Washington. Bishop Brent has been
recently consecrated to the charge of the Missionary jurisdiction
of the Philippine Islands, and I need not say how advantageous
to him and his work will be the countenance of the navy department, so far as it can be properly extended in its various offices in
the Philippines. As a Bostonian, you have the means of knowing
from personal observers the high character of the work done by
Bishop Brent in his recent charge of St. Stephen's Church in Florence Street, while to the estimation of his clerical qualities by the
church at large, the selection of him for his present office is sufficient testimonial. In view of these, it is scarcely important to add
that for both Bishop Brent and his future work I personally have
the utmost value.
With much respect,                     Sincerely yours,
A. T. MAHAN
1 Charles Henry Brent (I862-I929).




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WILLIAM    H. LINCOLN TO SECRETARY LONG
Boston Chamber of Commerce
February 24, 1902
DEAR SECRETARY LONG:
I want to congratulate you upon the decision of the President
on the Schley controversy.'
When I read your letter upon the subject published a long
time ago, I said that was enough for me and for any intelligent
and sincere man - and I have not taken the time to read anything
since till I read the verdict of the President. I knew very well that
your sense of justice and fairness would not allow you to arrive
at any other than a sound conclusion. I am delighted that your
course in this unfortunate affair has received such unqualified endorsement. You must know that the people of this state are proud
of your record. I notice your intention soon to relinquish your
cares and responsibilities as secretary of the navy - and I am not
surprised. You have had a long and honorable service and during
one of the most momentous periods in our history.
A warm and hearty welcome awaits you.
I expect to leave the last of the week for Cuba, and shall do a
little exploring on my own account. It is a shame that Congress
does not rise to the height of the occasion and recognize its responsibilities to the people of Cuba.
Believe me, dear Mr. Long, your devoted friend and admirer,
WILLIAM H. LINCOLN2
HENRY CABOT LODGE TO SECRETARY LONG
WASHINGTON, D. C.
March I, 1902
DEAR GOVERNOR:
In what I said to our home newspapers last night in regard to
the change in the navy department, I tried to express my sincere
regret at your withdrawal and my sense of your great public service
in the Cabinet. Published interviews are however so apt to sound
cold and perfunctory that I can not refrain from saying to you personally how much I regret your determination to retire. As a friend
1 President's memorandum, dated February i8, 1902. See Long, The New
American Navy, II, 195.
2 William H. Lincoln, president of the Boston chamber of commerce.




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and a Massachusetts man I have taken the greatest possible pride in
your most distinguished service in the Cabinet, in your brilliant success in the trying days of war, and in the purity, the lofty purpose,
and the high-mindedness which have characterized your whole administration. In this pride Massachusetts shares, and I am but expressing the opinion of the state and of all reflecting men. That this
should be the case is an especial pleasure to your friends, among
whom I trust you will always allow me to number myself and who
feel not only pride in you but affection for you.
Sincerely yours,
HENRY CABOT LODGE
CYRUS T. BRADY TO SECRETARY LONG
Thirty-Sixth and Chestnut Streets
PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA
March I 2, 1902
DEAR SIR:
I have read with great regret the published statement that you
have resigned as secretary of the navy.
As a citizen of the country and a graduate of the United States
Naval Academy, I take the greatest interest in the welfare of the
navy, and I wish to express my profound sense of appreciation of
your brilliant administration. While it did not have so great a problem as that brought forth by the Civil War to grapple with, yet
in the lesser emergency the department under your leadership exhibited such a degree of efficiency, and the efforts of the navy were
attended by such signal success that I think it no more than due,
Sir, to say that your administration stands among the very highest
and best that the navy department has ever experienced.
You will, I am sure, Mr. Secretary, carry with you in your retirement, the gratitude and admiration of the best part of your
countrymen; and what is better than that, the consciousness that
you have deserved it. There is nothing back of this statement of
mine; no reason that I should make it, except that it conveys my
sincere and carefully considered opinion. I have expressed it publicly as well as privately, and I wish you to know it. Even the approbation of the humble is pleasant to the great.
Very sincerely yours,
Honorable JOHN D. LONG              CYRUs TOWNSEND BRADY
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.




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HENRY S. PRITCHETT TO SECRETARY LONG
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS
March 14, 1902
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:
I think the man who takes off his armor is to be congratulated,
rather than he who puts it on, and I am taking the liberty of sending a line of friendly congratulation after seeing your letter of
resignation. You have done a good work in Washington, and you
have every reason to feel satisfied and contented with it. I am
sure you would be more than pleased if you could hear the many
expressions of good will from the citizens of Massachusetts at the
thought of your return home. You will have here a welcome such
as perhaps no other son of Massachusetts would get, and which
is perhaps the best possible expression, not only of good will, but
of appreciation of your service.
Please do not take the trouble to answer this. I shall hope to
see you often when you have once more become a citizen of the
old Bay State.
Sincerely yours,
HENRY S. PRITCHETT
President
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
Secretary of the Navy
WASHINGTON, D. C.
A. BUSHNELL HART TO SECRETARY LONG
15 Appian Way
CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS
March 18, I902
DEAR SECRETARY LONG:
As one of your Massachusetts constituents, may I express a personal word with regard to your service as secretary of the navy?
We of Harvard are very proud of the position of Secretary Long
in public life as in private life. It is a splendid thing for the country
to have the opportunity of applying high standards and direct
methods to the administration of such a great public service as the
navy; and I can not let the opportunity pass to express a personal
gratitude for that spirit, for the splendid service of the navy during
the war, for the high standard of the navy in peace, and for the
good temper and wisdom with which you have borne the assaults




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of those who would like to force upon the department naval reputations which have not the endorsement of professional soldiers
either in this or in other countries. I think that calmness, quiet, and
dignity in the midst of trying controversy is as good an example
as an American or a Harvard man can set his fellows.
I feel personally indebted to you for some courtesy eighteen
months ago in bringing about an interview with President McKinley, but that is the smallest reason for writing this letter. I suppose
even the faithful public servant sometimes likes to know that his
millions of masters appreciate loyalty, unselfish and right public
service. Please do not take the pains to answer this letter, which is
not intended to add to the weariness of a very busy man.
Sincerely yours,
ALBERT BUSHNELL HART
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
CAPTAIN CLARK TO JOHN D. LONG
Naval Home
PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA
May 2, 1902
MY DEAR SIR:
I have written you so much lately you may well feel you are
entitled to a respite but your very kind letter which came yesterday shows that the misunderstanding which you say does not, in
my opinion does exist. While you have felt so kindly towards me
and have been so much interested in what concerned my reputation as an officer, you have in my opinion, and I say this in all
kindness, been persuaded and have persuaded others to entertain
such an estimate of my services that their value in the eyes of my
country men has been lowered or obscured. This I have felt keenly
because I have not sought but rather have discouraged others who
would seek for me rank and official distinction. I do not understand
how the only captain who always had his ship off Santiago, ready
to go full speed, and who, when the enemy came out and broke
through our line, and had apparently succeeded in escaping, was
able to overtake and play the leading part in forcing on shore, in
succession, all four Spanish ships, could have been said to have done
only one-sixth better than the other battleship captains. After
the first twenty minutes they had only to follow and deal with
the enemy's ships already beaten and headed for the shore. If the




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speed of the Oregon did this, or enabled her to do it, what gave
her this speed? She had to pass the Iowa and Texas, both rated
faster ships, and she did it, as an officer testified before the court
of inquiry, as if they were standing still. When the chief engineer
represented to me the advantage of never using the main boilers
for condensing, I kept the officers and men on tepid-almost
nauseating drinking water, but they were loyal and devoted knowing why I required it, but when he insisted that the ship could
not remain in service longer without going to a navy yard after
he knew of your despatch, telling me to go to Key West if ready
for service, otherwise to come north, I made him understand on
the quarter-deck that the ship had come to take her chances in
war and would take them. I speak of this because of the attempts
lately made by an engineer to show that he was the man of action.
The responsibility was always upon me as it was when I came
six hundred miles after leaving the Marietta and Nictheroy off
Cape Frio at the risk any hour of an encounter with the Spanish
fleet and then cabled you from Rio that the Oregon could make
a running fight with it: this too after you had, justly and considerately, suggested that I could in an emergency remain in a
Brazilian port, under plea of repairs. You saw the merit of Dewey's
action for whom you assumed the responsibility of ordering the
attack upon the Spanish fleet in the Philippines and recommended
him for an advance of more than two full grades, and of Wainwright's attack upon the torpedo boats, which he says he thought
the Indiana signalled him to make and recommended him for ten
numbers.
You know that Admiral Evans, for instance, was promoted over
five of his lifelong seniors gaining, perhaps, years; while I only
went over Chester and Harrington,- the remainder of my six
numbers being absorbed in getting back again over two Manila
captains and two engineers wedged in just above me by the personnel bill.1
I could never understand how you could think six numbers a
proportionate reward for my services or how you could say I had
received even that reward in full. Suppose that instead of two,
that four engineers had been put in just above me and that they
1 For the passage of the personnel bill, see the letter of Professor Hollis, January 19, I899, note. Captain Clark received seven additional numbers June i8, 1902,
just after his promotion to rear-admiral.




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retired the day after I was advanced, leaving me just where I was
at the start, next below Chester, would that be what you would
have the American people understand was a full reward for my
services?
But I am not complaining about the result for as I told Senator
Proctor2 when he wanted to take up the matter that I did not care
to wrangle about any of the six pieces when I thought so poorly of
the whole pie. Now, my dear Sir, I am not trying to make you see
things as I do. Your last kind letter shows that we differ so widely
in opinion that a concurrence is impossible. It is enough that you
did what you thought was just and right. My regard for my fellow
men whose actions affect me is measured by their feelings and intentions. However you may feel towards me after this I shall always
hope that good fortune and happiness will be yours and that some
time you will think leniently of my views.
Very sincerely yours,
C. E. CLARK
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
WASHINGTON
GEORGE FRISBIE HOAR TO SECRETARY LONG
United States Senate
WASHINGTON, D. C.
May 2o, 2902
MY DEAR GOVERNOR LONG:
The members of the Massachusetts delegation had hoped to mark
your retirement from the office which you had held so much to
the credit of the state, and the satisfaction as well as the advantage
of the country, by some emphatic expression of their sense of your
distinguished service, and their pride that it had been rendered by
a citizen of our commonwealth. It had been intended to address to
you a communication which you would have liked to preserve and
which would have been made public. That was desired by both senators and by the representatives including the two from the city of
Boston,' with one exception. That gentleman2 while having the
kindliest regard for you was afraid it might be interpreted into an
2 U. S. senator from Vermont, Captain Clark's native state.
1 The two representatives from Boston were Joseph Aloysius Conry (b. I868)
and Henry Francis Naphen (0852-I905), Harvard College '78.
2 Not identified.




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approval of the administration in regard to Admiral Schley. So the
matter was dropped as any division on political grounds on such a
matter would have been annoying to us all. But we had all hoped to
see you at the dinner to be given to Mr. Moody and to have assured
Mr. Moody and you that a very large share of the honor he had
gained came from the fact that he was your successor.3 But for the
unhappy reason4 which you know the dinner had to be postponed.
It will come off on the seventh of June.5 I hope very much you
will be able to come to Washington and take part in it. The occasion will be as much in your honor as in his, although the delegation
have the kindest feeling and greatest respect for him. This is the
desire, I am sure, of all of us. I believe Mr. Lovering 6 will write to
you also.
I am with high regard,
Faithfully yours,
GEORGE F. HOAR
3 W. H. Moody was secretary of the navy from May i, i902, to July i, 1904.
4 The death of Admiral Sampson on May 6.
5 The dinner was again postponed.
6 William C. Lovering, M. C. from Massachusetts.




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1903
FRANK W. HACKETT TO JOHN D. LONG
WASHINGTON, D. C.
June 19, 1903
DEAR JOHN:
I have just read your article in the Outlook upon the subject of
Schley's conduct before reaching Santiago. It is a perilous task for
you to treat of this topic, and I want to extend my congratulations,
because in my judgment, you have done the work admirably. One
can hardly review the behavior of that officer without indignation.
You exhibit self-control, good temper, and perfect fairness. To
do so under the strong temptation to comment with severity is indeed a triumph. It is highly important historically that your final
word should be spoken. It will, as it deserves, carry great weight.
I, for one, am greatly pleased to see that this is done with so temperate a spirit.
A like commendation is due you, I think, for your handling
of the very aggravating behavior of Admiral Dewey. You say just
enough and say it with the right tone. If anything, you might have
made it a little stronger, but after all the comparative mildness
with which you speak adds to the gravity of the rebuke. I am
glad to say this, not so much out of personal friendship, but because
in common with all who know the facts, I recognize the great importance of having the record " kept straight."
Yours truly,
FRANK W. HACKETT
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
HINGHAM, MASSACHUSETTS
JACOB W. MILLER TO JOHN D. LONG
NEW YORK
October 2, 1903
MY DEAR MR. LONG:
I do not wonder that you could not read my singular signature;
perhaps you may call to mind, however, J. W. Miller, who was
formerly a naval officer, and is now captain of the naval militia,
state of New York.
General Tracy, who is our president, as well as the rest of us
who are interested in the service, are very anxious that the exsecretaries of the navy shall all be honorary vice-presidents, and




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I sincerely trust that you will alter your decision and join the Navy
League. We have worked very hard over its formation, and intend
if possible, to make it equal to the similar bodies in Germany and
England. The President, Secretary Moody, and Admiral Dewey
are helping us. The position is purely honorary, and we are getting
prominent men all over the country to lend us the use of their
names. Our ambition is to have at least twenty thousand members
for the first year. We now have nineteen sections formed and are
publishing a journal monthly, and will meet with great success if
we can get all patriotic citizens interested in the navy to help us.
We of the central board here do not expect any active service from
you except that whenever you can legitimately do so you will ask
your friends to join the Massachusetts section, of which Captain
J. W. Weeks is a member in Boston. I have again asked the secretary
to send you all data on the subject.
Trusting that you will pardon me for writing again, from the
fact that my only ambition is one of patriotism, believe me,
Yours respectfully,
J. W. MILLER
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
HINGHAM, MASSACHUSETTS
THEODORE ROOSEVELT TO JOHN           D. LONG
WASHINGTON, D. C.
October 12, 1903
MY DEAR GOVERNOR LONG:
In the Outlook in an article written by you there has appeared
this statement about me when I was assistant secretary to you: " Just
before the war he, as well as some naval officers, was anxious to
send a squadron across the ocean to sink the ships and torpedo-boat
destroyers of the Spanish fleet while we were yet at peace with
Spain." I am sure that you did not intend to state the proposition just
as it is here expressed. My memory is that I wished to treat the sending over by Spain of her battleships and destroyers as a cause of war.
My memory is also that when two or more of the armor-clads of
Spain were in Havana - not on the coast of Spain - just before the
outbreak of hostilities, I desired some of our ships sent down to
watch them. Do you not refer to these two facts?
I would not bother you about this, my dear Governor, but it
1 Jacob William Miller (I847-I918), general manager of the New York, New
Haven & Hartford Railroad.




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seems to me to be a very serious accusation when brought against
me by a gentleman of your high standing, my former chief; and it
has seemingly been so accepted by the public at large, if I am to
judge by the activity of the gentlemen of the press in seeking interviews with me this morning.
With regards to Mrs. Long, believe me,
Sincerely yours,
THEODORE ROOSEVELT
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
HINGHAM, MASSACHUSETTS
JOHN D. LONG TO THEODORE ROOSEVELT1
HINGHAM, MASSACHUSETTS
October 14, I903
MY DEAR MR. PRESIDENT:
I have your letter and nobody can regret more than I that I have,
however unintentionally, caused you annoyance, especially if I
have subjected you to any misapprehension on the part of the public. In writing for the Outlook some personal reminiscences of my
naval association I referred by name to many of the navy men I
had met, intending to speak always [a] good word and never an
unkind one. When I came to you, I ought to have had in mind that
you are now President and that any word about you should not be
in such an unconventional style and might be misconstrued. But as
I took notes from my diary I was thinking of you only as assistant
secretary - of your ardor and enthusiasm and push in that capacity.
I still think that I did justice to your energy and helpfulness, for I
certainly intended to do so. When I wrote that your ardor sometimes went faster than that of the President and the department I
certainly was saying what was common knowledge and what with
many - I notice with most - people has redounded to your credit.
As an instance of this quality I wrote the [words cancelled] sentence that you now quote and wrote them [it] without any thought
of an attack upon you. Nor do I think they conveyed any such impression on the Outlook people, who, you know, are devoted friends
of yours, as otherwise they would have so notified me. Because of
the stir that sentence has made I should be glad if I had phrased
1 This is a rough draft of Mr. Long's letter, and is illegible in many places.




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435


them [it] differently or indeed if I had not written them [it] differently or indeed if I had not written them [it] at all. But the statement they contain I always regarded as almost common knowledge
at the time and it was clearly my memory that you took the view
there quoted that as you suggest in your letter now to me you regarded the approach of the Spanish fleet as a forerunner of war and
thought it our duty to meet it on its way and sink it. The impression
on my mind is that your word was " smash it." I know that this
view was taken by several leading naval officers. The President and
the department, on the other hand, held that the formal declaration
of war must be waited for. It is justice to you to say that time was
pressing: that the war was just on us and that, as I can not help
thinking, you were more inclined to your view than you would
have been if the ultimate resolution in such a case had been on you,
as it now is and as it then was on the then President, for ultimate
responsibility always makes a man more conservative and it has
not infrequently happened that the hand whose caution is doubted
becomes when on the helm the safest and steadiest.
Your second suggestion that when some of the Spanish armorclads were in Havana just before the war you desired some of our
ships sent to Havana to watch them I do not recall, but it is, no
doubt, correct.
I, too, have been beset by reporters. I have refused except in two
instances to say anything: in those I spoke as above of the incidents
[illegible] of the war at the moment and of the views of leading
naval officers as to hitting the Spanish fleet on its way. I carefully
refrained from saying more than I put in a written paragraph to
that effect, but one reporter, when I declined to answer his questions further than by referring him to that paragraph, took the liberty after leaving me of framing one or two questions and answers
of his own phraseology.
I have written [Outlook Company?] to send [me?] the bookplates that I may revise the phrasing of the sentence in question.
Very truly,
J [OHN] D. L[ONG]
To the PRESIDENT




436


PAPERS OF JOHN DAVIS LONG


[ I903


JOHN D. LONG TO MRS. THOMAS B. REED
HINGHAM, MASSACHUSETTS
October 14, 1903
DEAR MRS. REED:
In spite of your injunction to the contrary, I must write you in
reply to your letter just received. I am sure you are under a misapprehension. I entertained the greatest respect and personal regard for Mr. Reed and have often privately and publicly expressed
my appreciation of his great ability and services. So far from any
disparagement of him in my McKinley address at Adams, I intended
to pay him, and I think I did pay him, the highest compliment when
I said he was the most powerful five-minute debater that ever
stood on the floor of Congress and then went on to describe the
effect - the over-powering effect - of his assaults on his political
opponents. He never seemed to me to have the effect - that is of
driving everybody before him - in his longer speeches, and in the
frank talks I have often had with him I think I have said the same
thing to him. That certainly is not disparagement, to say that he
was more irresistible in one line than in another. It is simply one of
the entirely kindly distinctions which may always be drawn in
estimating the abilities of public men.
I was referring to the time only, when he was on its floor with
other great debaters like Carlisle' and Randall2 and McKinley.
McKinley later was on ways and means as chairman and was especially charged with its tariff bills and as you know in that capacity
had the opportunity to make special impression on the country as
to its revenue measures - more I think than any other. This is undoubtedly what gave him the presidency, because he was recognized, having been chairman of ways and means, as the special representative of protection. This, too, is simply one of the cases of
estimate of the opportunities of public men and is entirely a matter
of most proper statement.
I utterly fail to understand your suggestion of any disparagement of Mr. Reed's " character and honor." There is not a word in
my speech suggesting such a thing. I could not say or conceive
such a thing. A man of higher character, honor, truth and honesty,
I have not known. My admiration for him in all these respects was
1 John Griffin Carlisle (1835-1910), M. C. from Kentucky, Speaker.
2 Samuel Jackson Randall (1828-I890), M. C. from Pennsylvania, Speaker.




1903]


PAPERS OF JOHN DAVIS LONG


437


unbounded. Have you not drawn an altogether unwarranted inference? and done me injustice? I can not tell you how pained I
am at the thought that I have caused you pain, however unfounded
it may be. You and Mr. Reed have been to me and to my family
the objects of our warm personal regard, and your letter is a great
grief to me, for I would not for the world cause you a regret.
Very sincerely yours,
JOHN D. LONG
THEODORE ROOSEVELT TO JOHN D. LONG
WASHINGTON, D. C.
Personal                                      October 15, 1903
MY DEAR GOVERNOR:
I thank you for your letter. I am sure I need not tell you how well
I know your kindly feelings towards me, which feelings found full
expression in the general tenor of your article. I think, however, that
it was a pity that in such an important matter as this I was not given
a chance to try to refresh your memory on any point where we
differed. It is perfectly true that I wished a declaration of war
long before we did declare it; and I also desired notice to be sent
to the Spanish government that we should treat the sailing of the
fleet as an act of war, and then meet the fleet on the seas and smash
it before it could act on the defensive. It was to my mind obvious
that arm[or]ed cruisers and torpedo boats could not be used against
the insurgents, and could only be intended for use against us. But
this last is aside from the point. Don't you think the two statements
you have made as to my attitude are in themselves a little inconsistent? You speak in one case as if I wished to send a fleet over to
Spain and sink the Spanish boats while we were still at peace. In
the other case you speak of the Spanish vessels as having sailed, and
my being anxious to meet them on the sea and smash them. I am
sure that you will recall that I had been urging a declaration of war
for some time - that is, urging a declaration that we should take
certain acts, or failures to act, as warranting such declaration after
notice had been given. In the case of the sailing of the torpedo
boats, I did wish us to notify the Spanish government that we should
treat their being sent as an act of war. In the form in which the
statement is made in the Outlook, I can not admit that either I or
any naval officer whom I was associated with made it - indeed I
do not recall such a suggestion made by any one, and certainly I




438


PAPERS OF JOHN DAVIS LONG


I I 903


never made any such suggestion myself, as that we should send a
squadron across the ocean to sink the ships and torpedo-boat destroyers while we were yet at peace with Spain. As I recall it, all
that I remember any naval officer urging was that we should notify
the Spanish government that we should treat the sailing of the vessels
as an act of war, and that we would then conduct ourselves accordingly.
With regards to Mrs. Long, believe me,
Sincerely yours,
THEODORE ROOSEVELT
Honorable JOHN D. LONG
HINGHAM, MASSACHUSETrS
JOHN D. LONG TO THEODORE ROOSEVELT
[ROUGH DRAFT]                          HINGHAM, MASSACHUSETTS
October 17, 1903
DEAR MR. PRESIDENT:
I have your letter and am sure I can phrase the sentence so as to
be satisfactory. I take it to be your view that you and some naval
officers regarded the approach at that crucial time of a Spanish
battle fleet as in itself a cause of war and that we ought to meet it
without waiting for the more formal declaration of war, which, of
course, only Congress could make. The words " while we were yet
at peace with Spain " while technically correct, were therefore, I
agree with you, calculated to convey a different meaning and one
that I did not intend and I shall omit them as well as rev[ise] the
rest.
I repeat that I regret any annoyance to which I have put you.
Mrs. Long appreciates your kind message to her and joins me in
cordial regards to you and Mrs. Roosevelt.
Very truly yours,
JOHN D. LONG
To the PRESIDENT




1904]


PAPERS OF JOHN DAVIS LONG


439


- I


I904
HENRY CABOT LODGE TO JOHN D. LONG
60 Beacon Street
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS
March 18, I904
DEAR GOVERNOR LONG:
I pay but little attention to the announcements in a hostile newspaper of candidacies in opposition to my return to the Senate.
Although I did not for a moment suppose that an old and very
valued friend like yourself was to be a candidate against me, none
the less the kind words reported from you in the Washington despatches this evening have touched and pleased me very greatly. I
thank you for them most sincerely and I am especially gratified that
you should say, "He will be returned without opposition," for I
know how much weight your words will have and that they show
that in your opinion I have earned by my service the approbation
of Massachusetts as well as your own.
With my best thanks and kindest regards,
Sincerely yours,
HENRY CABOT LODGE










Appendix




VESSELS OF THE UNITED STATES NAVY
in commission during the
SPANISH AMERICAN WAR1


BATTLESHIPS
Indiana, 10,288 tons
Iowa, 11,340 tons
Massachusetts, IO,288 tons
Oregon, 10,288 tons
Texas, 6,3 5 tons


Nantucket, 1,875 tons 2
Passaic, I,875 tons 2
Puritan, 6,060 tons
Terror, 3,990 tons
Wyandotte, 2,100 tons 2


ARMORED CRUISERS
Brooklyn, 9,215 tons
New York, 8,200 tons
MONITORS
Amphitrite, 3,990 tons
Catskill, 1,875 tons 2
Jason, 1,875 tons
Lehigh, 1,875 tons 2
Miantonomoh, 3,990 tons
Monadnock, 3,990 tons
Montawk, 1,875 tons 2
Monterey, 4,084 tons
Nahant, 1,875 tons 2


PROTECTED CRUISERS
Baltimore, 4,413 tons
Boston, 3,000 tons
Charleston, 3,730 tons
Chicago, 4,500 tons 3
Cincinnati, 3,213 tons
Columbia, 7,375 tons
Minneapolis, 7,375 tons
Newark, 4,098 tons
New Orleans (Amazonas), 3,437
tons 4
Olympia, 5,870 tons
Philadelphia, 4,324 tons
Raleigh, 3,213 tons
San Francisco, 4,098 tons


1 The U. S. S. Maine, 6,682 tons, was blown up in the harbor of Havana on the
night of February I5, I898 by a mysterious explosion, with the loss of 266 men,
including several officers. Names in parentheses are those borne by vessels before
their purchase by the United States. Other ships of the United States Navy mentioned in the letters are: the Kearsarge, 11,525 tons; the Alabama, 11,525 tons, both
commissioned in 1901, and the second battleship Maine, 12,500 tons, commissioned
in 1902. Many vessels of minor importance are not included in this list.
2 This vessel was a Civil War monitor used for harbor defense.
3 Out of commission for repairs.
4 Purchased in England while under construction for Brazil.




442


APPENDIX


UNPROTECTED CRUISERS
Detroit, 2,089 tons
Lancaster, 3,250 tons
Marblehead, 2,089 tons
Mohican, 1,900 tons
Montgomery, 2,089 tons
GUNBOATS
Alvarado, 00o tons 5
Annapolis, I,ooo tons
Bancroft, 839 tons
Bennington, 1,7 IO tons
Castine, 1,177 tons
Concord, 1,710 tons
Helena, 1,392 tons
Machias, 1,177 tons
Marietta, 1,ooo tons
Monocacy, 1,370 tons
Nashville, 1,371 tons
Newport, I,ooo tons
Peoria (Philadelphia), 488 tons6
Petrel, 892 tons
Princeton, I,ooo tons
Topeka (Diogenes), 1,700 tons 7
Vicksburg, I,ooo tons
Wheeling, I,ooo tons
Wilmington, 1,392 tons
Yorktown, 1,710 tons
TORPEDO BOATS
Cushing, 105 tons
Dupont, I65 tons
Ericsson, 120 tons


Foote, 142 tons
Gwin, 46 /2 tons
McKee, 65 tons
Morris, o05 tons
Porter, 165 tons
Rodgers, 142 tons
Talbot, 462 tons
Winslow, 142 tons


CONVERTED CRUISERS
Badger (Yumuri), 4,784 tons
Buffalo (El Cid, Nictheroy), 6,888
tons 8
Dixie (El Rio), 6,i 14 tons
Harvard (New York), I,550 tons
Panther (Venezuela), 4,260 tons
Prairie (El Sol), 6,872 tons
St. Louis, 16,00o tons
St. Paul, 16,000 tons
Yale (Paris), 11,550 tons
Yankee (El Norte), 6,888 tons
Yosemite (El Sud), 6,179 tons
YACHTS 9
Buccaneer, -   tons
Eagle (Almy), 434 tons
Gloucester (Corsair), 786 tons
Hist (Thespia), 472 tons
Mayflower, 2,690 tons
Scorpion (Sovereign), 850 tons
Vixen (Josephine), 806 tons
Wasp (Columbia), 630 tons
Yankton (Penelope), 975 tons


5 Spanish prize.
6 Converted gunboat.
7 Purchased in England.
8 Purchased in Brazil.
9 There were twenty-seven yachts in all.




APPENDIX


443


MISCELLANEOUS 10
Albatross, Fish-commission vessel.
Armeria, I,6oo tons. Light-house
tender.
Dolphin, 1,486 tons. Dispatch
boat.
Fern, 840 tons. Transport.
Katahdin, 2,155 tons. Harbor-defense ram.
McCulloch, 1,280 tons. Revenue
cutter.
Merrimac, 7,500 tons. Collier.
Osceola (Winthrop), 571 tons.
Tug.
Potomac (Wilmot), 677 tons.
TTug.


Resolute (Yorktown), 4,175 tons.
Transport.
Solace (Creole), 4,700 tons. Hospital ship.
Supply (Illinois), 4,460 tons. Supply ship.
Suwanee, 2,185 tons. Light-house
tender.
Uncas (Walter A. Luckenback),
441 tons. Tug.
Vesuvius, 929 tons. Dynamite-gun
vessel.
Wompatuck (Atlas), 462 tons.
Tug.


0o There were thirty-nine tugs, sixteen colliers, fifteen revenue cutters, and
about twenty-four other vessels of various types.










Index




ACTIUM, Battle of, 48, 50.
Adams, Brooks, 327, 328.
Adams, Charles F., 274, 275, 277, 363,
364, 40-4I 2.
Adams, John, 363.
Adams, John Quincy, 259, 363.
Adee, Alvey A., 338.
Adria, Danish cable-vessel, 152, 153.
Advertiser, Boston, 296, 345.
/Eneid, Secretary Long's translation of,
349.
Agassiz, Alexander, scientist, 241, 242,
303.
Aguinaldo, Emilio, Filipino insurgent,
157, 158, I77.
Akron, U. S. naval airship, I20.
Alabama, C. S. S., 60, 72, 270, 379.
Alabama, U. S. S., 339, 340, 379.
Albany, proposed gift to, 226.
Albatross, fish commission ship, 241, 242,
317, 318.
Albemarle, C. S. S., 142.
Alexander, collier, 317.
Alexander, Edward P., 22.
Alfonso XII, Spanish ship, I50.
Alfonso XIII, precarious position of, 87.
Alfred the Great, 393.
Alger, Russell A., secretary of war, 22,
93, I82, 254, 362.
Allahabad, India, proclamation at, I858,
258.
Allen, Charles H., assistant secretary of
the navy, 112, 113, 132, 178, 271, 282;
governor of Puerto Rico, 325, 326,
361.
Allen, William V., U. S. senator, 57.
175.
Allison, William B., U. S. senator, i74,
Almy, yacht, 82. See U. S. S. Eagle.
Alvarado, U. S. S., 229.
America of Yesterday, 53, 84.
American, Baltimore, 231, 355.
American Antiquarian Society, 410.
American Atlantic and Pacific Canal
Company, 221.


American Colonization Society, 279.
American Historical Association, 283,
412.
American Line, 98, 153, 154, i6i.
American republics, bureau of, 256.
Ames, Dr. Azel, 371.
Amphitrite, U. S. monitor, 53, I21.
Andrews, E. Benjamin, president of
Brown University, i82, I83.
Anglo-American alliance, proposed by
R. H. Davis, I23.
Anglo-Saxon line, III, 234, 260, 262.
Anguila Isles, West Indies, 200.
Annapolis, appointment of southerners
at, 396.
Annie Dale, schooner, 99.
Ansaldos, shipbuilders at Genoa, 84,
85.
Anti-imperialism, 31, 130, 131, 140, 141,
163-166, 216-218, 259, 277, 346, 364,
372.
Appleton, Nathan, on canals, etc., 10,
II, 22, 32, 33, 7I; annexation of
Hawaii, I5.
Arbitration, European, on Maine disaster, proposed by Spain, 74, 75.
Armenians, sufferings of, 15
Armeria, lighthouse tender, 136.
Armistice, 166, 230.
Armstrong guns, 85.
Army, U. S., 126, 142; landing of, 134,
223, 229; transportation of, 154, 155,
224, 225, 236; in Cuba and Puerto
Rico, 176; sickness in, 177, I83, 184;
officers, 264.
Army and navy, 154, 155, 207, 208.
Army and Navy Journal, 46.
Army and Navy Register, 362.
Arroyo, Puerto Rico, surrender of, 229.
Arthur, Chester A., former President,
220, 348.
Aryan race, 260.
Asiatic dependencies, 258.
Asiatic Station and Squadron, 8, 68, 245,
323, 324, 354, 356, 365.




446                     INDEX


Assistant secretaryship, io8, 109, I 2,
II5.
Associated Press, correspondents of, I22.
Athens, fleet of, 50; U. S. minister at,
256.
Atkinson, Edward, 203, 204, 259.
Atlanta, U. S. S., 98, 339, 340.
Atlanta Constitution, 237.
Atlantic Monthly, 157, 159, 176, 204, 370,
37I.
Atwill, Reverend Edward R., 250.
Australia, American representative at
opening of Parliament, 364.
Badger, U. S. S., 93.
Bailey, James A., Jr., 8.
Bailey, Solon I., 336.
Bainbridge, Henry, i8.
Baker, Asher C., lieutenant-commander,
323.
Balance of trade, 405, 407.
Balthazar, Brazilian admiral, 212, 213.
Baltimore, U. S. S., 12, i88, 238, 239, 315.
Bancroft, U. S. S., 198, I99.
Bancroft, George, historian, 340.
Bancroft, William A., major-general,
341, 342.
Barbados, 422, 423.
Barber Asphalt Company, 282.
Barker, Albert S., captain, 84, 141, 142,
2II, 213, 238, 247, 249 -Barker, James M., judge, S11.
Barnes, Charles B., 29.
Barrett, William E., M. C., 9.
Barrier Reef, Cuba, 229.
Barrows, Samuel J., M. C., 140.
Bartlett, Francis, 6, 7, II, 288.
Bartlett, John R., captain, 179.
Baschio, Italian ship, 84, 85, 86.
Basque Roads, Battle of, 51.
Batabano, Cuba, 139.
Batchelor, Reverend George, 252, 253.
Battleship Maine Relief Association, 6i,
400, 402.
Battleships, 53, 54, 55, 58, 68, 72, 91, 97,
146, i66, 306-308, 318, 433.
Bayard, Thomas F., former secretary of
state, 222, 257.
Beachy Head, Battle of, 51.
Belknap, George E., rear-admiral, 319,
320, 321, 322.
Belknap, Reginald R., ensign, 200.
Bell Telephone Company, 75.


Belligerent rights, 74, 155.
Benham, Andrew E. K., rear-admiral,
409.
Benham, Edith W., 400.
Bennett, Ernest L., lieutenant, 385, 395,
396.
Bennington, U. S. S., 248, 365.
Bernard, Montague, 176.
Beyer, Henry G., surgeon, 385-387, 392.
Bigelow, Dr. William S., 103.
Blaine, James G., former secretary of
state, 213 -Blanco, Ramon y Arenas, GovernorGeneral of Cuba, 228.
Blish, John, lieutenant, 5o.
Bliss, William, i.
Bliven, A. Perry, 146.
Blockade, 92, 95, I34, I35, 139, 150, 152,
i86, I98, 367.
Block Island, 28.
Blue, Victor, lieutenant, 243.
Board of awards, 356, 367, 383.
Board of war. See naval war board.
Bodley, John E. C., I49.
Boers, skill of their generals, 411.
Bombrini,   -, 84.
Bonaparte, Charles J., 372.
Bonsal, Stephen, 122.
Borneo, 168, 169.
Boston, 54; board of trade, 22; port, 23,
i6i; harbor, 28; chamber of commerce, 80.
Boston, U. S. S., 48, 50.
Boston Civil Service Reform Association, 295.
Boston University, 336.
Botha, Louis, general, 411.
Boutelle, Charles A., M. C., 63.
Boutwell, George S., former governor
of Massachusetts, 78, 79, i8o, 259.
Bouve, Walter L., 62, 64.
Bowers, George M., fish commissioner,
241.
Bowles, Francis T., naval constructor,
37, 83, 230, 265, 349, 353; chief constructor (rear-admiral), 350; testimonial, 350, 351; titles, 408, 409.
Bowman, Selwyn Z., M. C., 8.
Boxer Rebellion, 330, 333, 334, 335.
Bradford, Gamalicl, 65, 67, 92, 139.
Bradford, Royal B., commodore, 41,
47; rear-admiral, 316, 332.
Bradford, Mrs. Royal B., 400.




INDEX


447


Brady, Reverend Cyrus T., 409, 41o,
426.
Brazil, proposed purchase of torpedo
boats from, 95; Captain Clark in, 429.
Breckinridge, James C., second lieutenant, 148.
Brent, Right Reverend Charles H., 424.
Brewer, David J., associate justice, U. S.
supreme court, 20.
Briggs, LeBaron R., 357, 358.
Brooke, Sir James, i68, 169.
Brooke, John R., major-general, 229,
272, 286.
Brooklyn, U. S. S., 23, 28, 49, 219, 364.
Brown, Reverend Allan D., 249, 250.
Brown, B. F., 237, 238.
Brownson, Willard H., commander, 84,
86; captain, 379.
Brumby, Thomas M., lieutenant, 243.
Bryan, Charles P., U. S. minister to
Brazil, 95, 2 1.
Bryan, William J., 77, 253, 327.
Buccaneer, yacht, 95, 178, 179.
Buckingham, Benjamin H., lieutenantcommander, 312.
Buffalo, U. S. S., 91.
Bulwer, Sir Henry, British minister, 220,
222.
Bumpus, Everett C., 327, 328.
Bunce, Francis M., rear-admiral, 224.
Burnham, Daniel H., 373.
Butler, Matthew C., major-general, 206.
CABINET, 344, 345, 348, 369, 392, 402,
403, 425, 426.
Cable-cutting, 127, 152, 153, 228, 229.
Cables, 133.
Cabot, Dr. Arthur T., 357.
Cadiz Fleet, 141.
Ccesar, collier, 317.
California, schools, 273.
Cambon, Jules M., French ambassador,
180.
Camp Alger, 183, 203, 208.
Camperdown, Battle of, 5I.
Camp Thomas, typhoid fever at, 183.
Canada, 79, 192, 193, 257.
Canals, 10, 22, 32, 71.
Canary Islands, 130, i6i, i66.
Candler, John W., M. C., 62, 277.
Canning, George, 1o1.
Cannon, Joseph G., M. C., 348.
Canteen at navy yard, 25.


Canton, 189.
Cape Ann, rumor of proposed attack on,
by Spaniards, o15.
Cape Cruz, Cuba, 152, 229.
Cape Frio, Brazil, 429.
Cape Hatteras, 91, 95.
Cape Verde Islands, 92, i6i.
Capps, Washington L., naval constructor, 353 -Caracas, 366.
Cardenas, Cuba, 135.
Caribbean Sea, 41, 422.
Carlisle School Indians, 331.
Carlisle, John G., former secretary of
the treasury, 436.
Carlo Alberto, Italian ship, 85.
Carlyle, Thomas, 140.
Carranza, Ram6n de, lieutenant, I37.
Carter, James C., 205.
Casey, Silas, rear-admiral, 339.
Castilian-Gothic line, I I.
Caucasian race, 233, 234, 256.
Cavite, Philippine Islands, 189, 21o, 248,
365.
Cavour, Count Camillo B., 262.
Cay Frances, port of, 199.
Cay Sal, Cuba, 199.
Cebu, Philippine Islands, I88, 190.
Cervera y Topeta, Pascual, admiral, 138,
I54, 156, 201, 219, 229, 230, 237, 316,
367, 369.
Ceuta, Africa, proposed attack on, I6o.
Chadwick, French E., captain, 33, 34,
49, 134-138, 347; advises appointment
of Admiral Walker, io8, 1o9; advises
attack on coast of Spain, 109, 137;
blockade of Santiago, 134, 135; war
scare, 135-137; letters, 206, 276, 284;
Admiral Sampson's health, 231, 383 -385; promotions, 245-247; raising the
Colon, 265; sword presented to, 276;
Naval Academy, 299, 300.
Chadwick, Mrs. French E., 33, 299.
Challenger, British ship, 241.
Chamberlin, Joseph E., 381, 382, 383.
Chandler, William E., former secretary
of the navy, 7, I8, 68, IO8, 126, 284.
Chang, Li Hung (1823-1901), Chinese
diplomat, 335.
Chaplains in the navy, 415-419.
Chaplin, Heman W., 233.
Chapman, John J., 316.
Charleston, 202, 207.




448


INDEX


Charleston, U. S. S., 126.
Chartered ships, I61, i62.
Chekiang, China, province of, 335.
Chester, Colby M., captain, I86, 429, 430.
Chicago, 6, 277; University of, 52; Normal School, 272.
Chicago, U. S. S., 98, 11 5, 2, 150, 314,
315~
Chile, I I, 235, 262; university, 404.
China, 6, 69, ii8, i68, 189, 214, 330, 334,
335.
Chitung, H. E. Chang, Chinese statesman, 335.
Christian Register, 252, 253, 254.
Church, William C., 46.
Cienfuegos, Cuba, 139, 228, 229, 285.
Cincinnati, U. S. S., 71, 314, 359.
Ciudad Bolivar, Venezuela, 281.
Civil Service Commission, 297.
Civil Service reform, 171, 283, 284, 295 -298, 301, 302.
Civil War, 52, 53, 67, 132, 138, 172, 251,
285, 286, 299, 426.
Claflin, William, former governor, 83.
Clark, Charles E., captain, 141, I96, 197,
339, 340, 415, 428-430; rear-admiral,
429.
Clarke, Sir George S., colonel in British
army, 107.
Clarkson, Thaddeus S., 196.
Clayton, John M., former secretary of
state, 220.
Clayton-Bulwer Treaty, 220-222.
Clement, Edward H., 255, 278.
Cleveland, Grover, former President, 70,
222, 253.
Clive, Lord Robert, 117.
Clough, -, 344.
Clover, Richardson, captain, 40, 84, 95,
134, 198, 200, 375, 377, 378.
Clover, Mrs. Richardson, 400.
Coal, 34, 47, 93, 95, 198, 290, 318 -Coaling ship, i66, 199, 224, 353.
Coaling stations, 159, 168, 169.
Coast defense, 10, 38, 93, 94, 104, 105, Io6,
415.
Coast signal service, 75, 228.
Coast survey, 46, 55, 289, 290, 317, 318,
323, 324, 333, 336, 348.
Coffin, Charles A., 96.
Cole, William C., lieutenant, 282, 332.
Colliers, 92, i66, 180, 316.
Colon, canal officials at, 33.


Colon, Spanish armored cruiser, 154, 265.
Colonial expansion, 129, 130, 151.
Colonial government, I I, 112, 256;
training of officials, 283.
Columbia, U. S. S., 92, 93, 109, 136, 137.
Columbus, Christopher, 260.
Command, assignments to, 49.
Commercial Advertiser, New York, 163.
Commercial Bulletin, Boston, 344.
Commercial relations, as based on international concessions, 157.
Commissioners, to Cuba, 186, 190, 191,
206, 231; to Puerto Rico, i86.
Commissioning officers, 174, 175.
Complaints, 122, 202, 203, 204, 206-208,
243-245, 428-430.
Concord, U. S. S., 157.
Confederate States, 138, 411.
Congratulations, letters of, to Secretary
Long, 3, 5, 13, I4, i6, 159, i6o, 180.
Congress, acts of, 5, 26, 35, 54, 63, 92,
146, 230; powers of, 54, Ioo, o102,
III, 368; and treaty, I77; candidate
for, 343.
Conkling, Roscoe, U. S. senator, 32.
Conquered territory, disposition of, as
an act of sovereignty, I59.
Conry, Joseph A., M. C., 430.
Constantinople, Battle of, 50.
Constitution, U. S. S., celebration, 17,
I8, 24; cruise of, 167-169.
Continental Congress, 140.
Contraband, 138, 139.
Convention of 1787, 140.
Cook, Francis A., captain, 49.
Convoy, 135, 139, 198, 223, 224, 236.
Coolidge, T. Jefferson, 192, 259.
Cooper, Philip H., captain, superintendent of the Naval Academy, i8,
19, 29, 31, 44; wishes to command
Chicago, 115, 150.
Corbesier, Antoine J., swordmaster, 294,
295.
Corsair, yacht, 98. See U. S. S. Gloucester.
Cortes, supremacy of, in Spain, 87; in regard to a treaty of peace, 177.
Courts: see inquiry, court of; court
martial, 377; prize court, 155.
Cowles, William S., commander, 391.
Cramp, Charles H., shipbuilder, 20, 153,
313-315.
Crane, Stephen, 122.




INDEX


449


_


Crane, W. Murray, governor of Massachusetts, 321.
Creecey,, 294.
Cristobal Colon. See Colon.
Croker, Richard, 253.
Cromwell, Bartlett J., commodore, 226.
Crosby, Peirce, rear-admiral, 105, io6.
Crowninshield, Arent S., commodore,
40, 84, 132, 185, 187, 195, 197; rear-admiral, 290, 292, 300, 317, 319, 322, 325,
358, 359, 364, 365, 367, 379-381, 383,
390, 391, 397, 420.
Crowninshield, Mrs. A. S., 364, 400.
Crowninshield, Caspar S., consular
agent, 365.
Crozier, William, captain, 262.
Croxall, M. L., 42, 44, 45.
Cuba, 4, 2i, 54, 57, 60, 62, 64, 69, Io9,
112, i6i, 257; acquisition of, 31; independence of, 65, 66, 68, 74, 75, 86,
13o, 164, 165; intervention, 79, 157;
government of, 90, 235; insurgents, 90;
purchase proposed, 96, 97; republic,
100, 101, I02; mortgage plan, 103, 104;
cables, 127, 152; supplies going to, 138;
blockade of, 139, 186; commission,
186, 191, 206, 231; sickness in, 178;
coast of, 225, 229, 237, 357; people,
234, 263; schools, 272, 273, 286, 287;
responsibilities of Congress, 425.
Cuestas, Don Juan L., President of
Uruguay, 216.
Culebra, Panama, 33, 415.
Cullom, Shelby M., U. S. senator, 181.
Culver, Erastus D., U. S. minister, ioI.
Cunard Line, 399.
Curagao, Dutch West Indies, deficit in
finances, in 1900, 423.
Cushing, William B., lieutenant-commander, 142.
DAGUPAN, Philippine Islands, i88, 189.
Daiquiri, Cuba, landing of American
troops at, 134, 154.
Dana, Richard H., 295, 298, 301, 302.
Danish West Indies, 421, 423.
Dashiell, Paul J., 40, 288, 289.
Davis, Charles H., captain, 44, 298, 299,
366.
Davis, Cushman K., U. S. senator, 181,
182, 380.
Davis, George W., brigadier-general,
325.




Davis, Henry W., M. C., 171.
Davis, Richard H., 114, i2i, 123.
Dawes, Henry L., U. S. senator, 327.
Day, William R., secretary of state, 2o,
2I, 41, 57, 112, 175, 182, 380.
Dayton, James H., commander, 382.
Dayton, William L., U. S. minister to
France, Ioo.
DeCastro, Hector, consul general, 84.
Declaration of Independence, 164.
Deerbound, British yacht, 270.
Delano, Frederic H., second lieutenant,
I48.
Delehanty, Daniel, commander, 293.
De Lesseps, Ferdinand, 32.
De Lome, Don Enrique, Spanish minister, 20, 53, 88.
Democratic party, 5, 92.
Denby, Charles, Philippine commissioner, 310.
De Normandie, Reverend James, 77,
152.
Dent, Louis A., U. S. consul, 138.
Destroyers, 97, I35, 433.
Detroit, U. S. S., I99, 281, 382, 383.
De Wet, Christian R., skill as a Boer
general, 411.
Dewey, George, commodore, 95, 126,
i29; victory of, IIO, 112, 116, 117, I18,
212, 213, 214, 2I5; rear-admiral, i88,
190, 209; account of Philippines, 188 -190; promotion, 210, 429; admiral,
wishes relief, 238, 250; recommends
promotions, 243, 244; at Manila, 248,
249, 252; letter to, 250; celebration,
254; question of neutrality, 270; dinner, 271, 284; construction board, 308;
Philippine commission, 310; rewards,
354, 356; general staff, 359; general
board, 368; despatch, 379-383; court
of inquiry, 388, 409, 410, 412, 44, 432;
navy league, 433.
Dewey Hall, at Norwich University,
Vermont, 249.
Diaz, Porfirio, President of Mexico,
303.
Dickins, Francis W., captain, 186, 187.
Dickins, Randolph, major, 333.
Dingley, Nelson, Jr., M. C., 193.
Dingley Act, 193, 404, 405, 406.
Diogenes, English ship, 94. See U. S. S.
Topeka.
Diplomacy, 176, 177, 221.




450


INDEX




Discipline, of army and navy, in relation to Congress, 245.
Dixie, U. S. S., 91, 324.
Dockyards, 409.
Dodge, Grenville M., major-general,
204.
Dog Watches at Sea, 398.
Dole, Reverend Charles F., 2i6, 2i8,
265.
Dolphin, U. S. S., 27, 36, 37, 82, 83, 271,
280, 281, 289, 393, 394 -Dominion Line, 399.
Doria, Andrea, 50.
Draper, William F., U. S. ambassador,
85, 109, 1o.
Dresel, Herman G., lieutenant, 50.
Drinking, in U. S. Navy, congressional
acts as to, 25-27.
Dry docks, 64, 83, 91, I89.
Dry Tortugas, 41, 46, 47, 55, 368.
Dryden, John, 349 -Durango, Mexico, American mining interests in, 303.
Dutch East Indies, 257, 258, 261.
Dutch West Indies, 423.
Eagle, U. S. S., 82, 136, 138, 199, 200,
285, 317.
Eames, Milton, 60.
East India Company, 258.
East Indies, 69, 117, i68, 169; Spanish,
III, 158.
Eastport, Maine, 91.
Eaton, Joseph G., commander, 89.
Eckert, Thomas, T., 75.
Education. See school system.
Edward VII, 379.
Eliot, Charles W., 272, 336, 37I.
Elkins, Stephen B., U. S. senator, 19,
347 -Ellicott, John M., lieutenant, 354.
Embargo on shipments to Havana, 95.
Emerson, Dr. Edward W., 346.
Emery, Daniel S., 94.
Emmons, George F., commodore, 99.
Emory, William H., commander, 6.
Emperador, Panama, 33.
Endicott, William, Jr., 31, 32, 129, 132.
Engineer corps, navy, 34, 35, 36, 230, 429;
army, 104.
England, io. See Great Britain.
Enterprise, U. S. S., 89, i2i, 317, 319,
321.


Episcopal City Mission, 399 -Erben, Henry, rear-admiral, 98, 99.
Essex Club, Boston, Long's speech on
Dewey Day, 254.
Etiquette, of navy, according to law,
35 -European station, American naval vessels at (1897-1900), 319.
Evans, Robley D., captain, 49, 154, 347,
429.
Evarts, William M., former secretary of
state, ioi.
Evening Post, New York, 254.
Everett, William, 327, 372.
Exploring expedition. See Wilkes.
FAIRBANKS, Charles W., U. S. senator,
193.
Fairchild, ---, 329.
Faneta, I99.
Faneuil Hall, 139, 41.
Far East, 69, 117, 66, 168, 171, 189, 214,
233, 26I, 330 -Farquhar, Norman von H., rear-admiral, 353.
Farragut, David G., admiral, 6, 99, 195,
376.
Faunt Le Roy, Robert P., second lieutenant, 148.
Favors requested (promotion, change
of orders, etc.), 6, 8, II, 12, 37, 39, 48,
62, 64, 65, 113, 115, 119, 120, 121, 146,
150, 151, 154, 156, I81, 259, 287, 294,
295, 300, 303, 329, 339, 359, 360, 366,
367.
Fern, transport, 28, 51.
Filibustering, o2, 2i, 199.
First Army Corps, 229.
First Massachusetts Regiment, io6.
Fish, Hamilton, former secretary of
state, 422.
Fish commission, 323, 324.
Fisher, Horace N., 52, 74, 75, 86, 88, 89,
91, 100, 102, 1IO, 139, 277; colonial
government, I, 112; foreign policy,
157-159; diplomacy, 176, I77; canals,
220-222; Chilean consul, 22i; expansion and local government, 233-235,
256-262; parliamentary government,
402, 403; reciprocity, 404-407; West
Indies, 421-423.
Fisheries, tariff on imports from Canada,
192, 193.




INDEX


451




Fiske, Bradley A., lieutenant-commander, 354.
Flagg, Ernest, 374 -Fletcher, Frank F., lieutenant, 40.
Flint, Charles R., 95.
Florida, export of arms from, to Cuban
rebels (I897), 2i.
Florida East Coast Railroad, 20.
Flying Squadron, 42, 93, 114, 137, 225,
237, 316.
Fohkien, China, province of, 335.
Foraker, Joseph B., U. S. senator, 132.
Forbes, John M., 285.
Ford, Paul L., 114.
Foreign policy, 53, 70, 140, 141, I57 -159; possessions, 163, 164, 169, 170, 171,
172, 173, I74.
Formosa, 1 7, 266.
Forrest, Nathan B., general, 411.
Fort Warren, 106.
Fortress Monroe, 229.
Foss, Eugene N., 331.
Foss, George E., M. C., 331, 332.
Foster, Charles, former secretary of the
treasury, 12.
Foster, John W., former secretary of
state, 20.
France, o0, 102, 149, 172, 257, 278, 279,
422.
Franklin, U. S. S., 202, 206.
Franklin, Benjamin, 140.
Franklin, Samuel R., rear-admiral, 213.
Frazar, Everett, 213, 215.
Freedom of the seas, petition to prevent
seizure of private property of Spaniards, 107.
Free Trade League, 233.
Frelinghuysen, Frederick T., former
secretary of state, 221.
Fremont, John C., 252.
Fremont, John C., Jr., lieutenant-commander, 323.
French, Henry F., 196.
Friendly Islands, Polynesia, 241.
Frothingham, Louis A., lieutenant of
marines, I 3.
Frye, Alexis E., captain, 272, 273.
Frye, William P., U. S. senator, 19, x8i,
I82.
Furness Line, 399.
GAGE, Lyman J., secretary of the treasury, 6, 13, 104, 283, 365.


Gallinger, Jacob H., U. S. senator, 80.
Galveston, 99.
Garfield, James A., former President, 3.
Garibaldi, Italian ship, 84.
Garretson, George A., brigadier-general, 202, 203, 208.
Garrison, William L., 67, 233.
Gary, James A., postmaster general, 25.
General Board, 339, 359, 368, 387.
General Electric Company, 96.
General staff, 306, 311, 312, 359.
Geneva, 176; convention, 268, 269.
Genoa, ships building at, 41, 85; victory
over Venice, 5o.
Georgia, naval militia, 94; negro population in, 234.
Germany, 86, 157, 158, 172, 194, 278, 279,
330, 366.
Gibbons, John H., lieutenant, 43.
Gibraltar, 161, 166.
Gilbert Islands, Micronesia, coral reefs
of, 241.
Gillet, Frederick H., M. C., 140.
Ginn, Edwin, publisher, 272, 273.
Glass, Henry, captain, 247.
Glenridge, New Jersey, 384.
Globe, Boston, 378.
Gloucester, 78, 193, 394.
Gloucester, U. S. S., 78, 98, 229, 273, 383.
Glover, --, 420.
Godoy, Don Joachim, Chilean minister,
220, 221, 222.
Goodrich, Caspar F., captain, president
of Naval War College, 7, 15, i6, 38,
39, 43, 47, 50; asks for sea duty, 48, 49;
coast signal service, 75; in command
of the St. Louis, 107, 126; cutting cables, 127, 152, 153; hopes for a battleship, 154; on prize courts, 155; desires
to go to Spain, 156; services of, 227 -230; Naval Academy, 299.
Gould, Charles W., counsel, 206.
Government, proposal to reorganize and
consolidate the departments of the
federal, 402, 403.
Grace, William R., former mayor of
New York, 13, 14.
Gracey, Reverend Samuel L., U. S. consul, 335, 336.
Granada, Battle of, 51.
Grant, Ulysses S., former President, 372,
421, 422.
Gray, George, U. S. senator, x8i, 182.




452


INDEX


Great Britain, officers of, 4; sympathy
of, 69, I24, i74; intervention of, in
Greece, 102; negotiations with, 221,
222; colonies of, 256, 257, 258; Queen
of, assumes the government of India,
258; spirit towards, 271; in China, 330;
government, 402; British West Indies,
422, 423.
Great Lakes, proposal for a deep waterway to the Atlantic, 22.
Greece, emancipation of, 102, 157.
Greely, Adolphus W., lieutenant, 12;
brigadier-general, 133, 150, 153.
Greene, Francis V., brigadier-general,
188, 264, 344 -Greenleaf, Charles R., assistant surgeongeneral, 183, 203.
Greenough, Charles P., 413, 414.
Grenada, Windward Islands, West Indies, 422.
Gridley, Charles V., captain, 11, 49.
Griggs, John W., attorney-general, 380,
381, 382, 383.
Guam, 247, 248.
Guanica, Puerto Rico, 203, 207, 2i0.
Guantanamo, Cuba, 27, 228.
Guild, Curtis, Jr., 344, 345.
Gun practice, 40.
HACKETT, Frank W., assistant secretary
of the navy, 331, 332, 355, 356, 357,
367, 383, 388, 389, 390, 432.
Hague Conference. See Peace Conference.
Haines,, 82.
Haiti, 199.
Hale, Reverend Edward E., 226, 327.
Hale, Edwin B., 8.
Hale, Eugene, U. S. senator, 20, 57, 69,
147, 148, 332, 333, 380.
Hall, ---, yeoman, 82.
Hamilton, Alexander, 140, 402.
Hampton Roads, Virginia, 23, 137, I41,
i86, 229.
Hancock, army transport, 333.
Hanna, Edwin P., solicitor, 394, 395.
Hanna, Marcus A., U. S. senator,
223.
Hanson shell, 21.
Harcourt, Sir William Vernon, 102, 157.
Harper's Monthly, 200.
Harper's Weekly, 121.
Harrington, Purnell F., captain, 429.


Harrison, Benjamin, former President,
13, 143, 213, 296, 348.
Hart, A. Bushnell, 200, 20o, 342, 345, 346,
427, 428.
Hart, Thomas C., ensign, 332.
Hartford, U. S. S., 332.
Hartford Convention (1814), jingoes
likened to members of, 83.
Harvard University, 38, 125, 147, 200,
205, 272, 304, 305, 336, 376, 378, 427;
overseers, 125, 371, 373; corporation,
288, 371, 373; scholarships, 357, 358;
commencement, honorary degrees,
371-373~
Haskell, Edwin B., 233.
Haskins, David G., Jr., 24.
Hastings, Daniel H., 256.
Havana, 51, 52, 53, 54, 59, 99, 135, 137,
192, 226, 228.
Hawaii, annexation of, 10, 22, 112, 139,
140, 151, I58, 256, 257; sugar, 422.
Hawley, John M., commander, 322.
Hawley, Joseph R., U. S. senator, 191.
Hay, John, secretary of state, 256, 263,
339, 371, 378, 405.
Hearst, William R., trip to Puerto Rico,
178, 179.
Hebron Academy, Maine, 331.
Helena, U. S. S., 198, 324.
Hemenway, Alfred, 29.
Hemphill, Joseph N., commander, 281.
Hempstead Bay, Long Island, 28.
Henshaw, David, former secretary of
the navy, i68.
Heraclea of Minos, Battle of, 50.
Herald, Boston, 71, 122, 129, 194, 233,
255, 295, 415I
Herald, New York, 122, 375.
Herbert, Hilary A., former secretary of
the navy, 4, 38, 195.
Heywood, Charles, colonel of marine
corps, 148, 333.
Heywood, Mrs. Charles, 400.
Hichborn, Philip, chief naval constructor, 14.
Hichborn, Mrs. Philip, 400.
Higginson, Francis J., captain, 46, 47,
55, 21o; rear-admiral, 359, 361, 415.
Higginson, Henry L., major, 96, 97, 103,
104, 107, io8, 13, 268, 269, 285, 287,
288, 303, 357 -Higginson, Stephen, 59 -Higginson, Thomas W., colonel, 59, 149.




INDEX


453




Hilgard, Julius E., 348.
Hill, David B., governor of New York,
32.
Hingham, 255, 328, 362.
Hinman, -, 43, 44, 45.
Hist, U. S. S., 229.
Hoar, George F., U. S. senator, 75, ioo,
130, I92, 196, 327, 340, 35I, 352, 358,
363, 371, 373, 378, 424, 430, 431 -Hoar, Samuel, 128, 129.
Hoar, Sherman, 183, 184.
Hobson, Richmond P., naval constructor, 30, 147, 243, 309, 310, 329, 331, 384 -Holguin, Cuba, 210.
Holland, John P., 62.
Hollis, Ira N., 204, 205, 230, 23I, 429.
Holls, George F. W., secretary, 262, 363.
Holmes, John H., I55.
Holy Alliance, 158.
Home Market Club, 233.
Home Squadron, 358-359, 368.
Hong Kong, 189, 214, 309, 380.
Honolulu, Io, 121, I89.
Hood, Edwin M., 132.
Horton, Reverend Edward A., 254, 255.
Hospitality, 2II-213, 215, 216.
Hospitals and hospital ships, 183, I84,
270.
Hotchkiss gun, 85.
Houghton Mifflin Company, 398.
House of Representatives, 139, I40, 230.
Howell, John A., rear-admiral, 186.
Howell, William, clerk, 43, 44, 45.
Howison, Henry L., commodore, 24,
99; rear-admiral, 390, 391.
Hoyt, Henry M., assistant attorney-general, 388, 389.
Hsii, Chinese viceroy, 335.
Hudson, John E., 75.
Huneus, -, University of Chile,
404.
Hunker, John J., captain, 225, 236, 300.
Hunt, Carleton, 3, 5, 76, 77.
Hunt, Livingston, paymaster, 114.
Hunt, Ridgely, lieutenant, 76.
Hunt, William H., former secretary of
the navy, 3.
Hunt, William H., judge, 325, 326, 327.
Hutin,, 7I.
Hydrographic office, 76, 292, 317, 318.
Iliad, 349 -Illinois, U. S. S., 359.


Iloilo, port in the Philippines, 190.
Impson,, I78.
Inay, Don Jose, minister of marine, 137.
India, government of, 258, 260; mutiny,
260.
Indian Archipelago, The, 168, I69.
Indiana, U. S. S., 23, 49, 136, 199, 200oo,
429.
Inland Sound, Cuba, 230.
Inquiry, court of, 238, 24I, 355, 356, 357,
386-391, 394, 397, 409, 410, 412, 413,
414.
Insurance, 214, 215.
International law, 38, IOO, 101, 102, 281,
404.
International sentiment, 107.
Intervention, 66, 79, 89, 90, 102, I57, 158.
Iowa, U. S. S., 23, 46, 47, 64, 71, 213, 215,
244, 429.
Irene, German cruiser, 157, 158.
Iroquois, army transport, I50.
Isla Grande, Philippine Islands, I57.
Isthmian Canal Commission, 323.
JAMAICA, 25, 127, 138, 422; cables, 153,
228.
Japan, o1, 54, 117, ii8, 174, I89, 214, 262,
334, 335.
Java, i68, 261.
Jerningham, Sir Hubert E. H., governor of Trinidad, 280, 281, 282.
Jesuit order, strength of the organization of, 403.
Jingoists, 3, 31, 68, 81, 83, I24, 130.
Johnson, Mortimer L., rear-admiral, 420.
Jomini, Baron Henri, 195.
Jones, Reverend Jesse H., 123, 124.
Josephine, yacht, 82. See U. S. S. Vixen.
Journal, Boston, 32, 277.
Journal, New York, 56, 130.
Journal of Commerce, New York, 67.
Jungen, Carl W., lieutenant, 127.
KANE, Aloysius J. G., 375-378.
Kane, James J., chaplain, 376.
Kaneko, Kentaro, on Japanese in Formosa, 266.
Katahdin, U. S. S., 8, 53, 84.
Kautz, Albert, commodore, 28.
Kearsarge, U. S. S., 97, 270, 379.
Kearsarge, U. S. S. (second), 332, 353,
379, 392.
Kelly, Edward A., 96, 97.




454


INDEX


Kempff, Louis, rear-admiral, 330, 365.
Kennard, Martin P., 52.
Kentucky, U.S. S., 97.
Key West, 41, 51, 133, 137, 150, i6o, 179,
i86, 198, 225, 237, 285, 429.
Kiao-chau, China, 330.
Kimball, William W., lieutenant commander, 62, 287, 288, 300, 30I.
King, B. J., 146.
King, Stanton H., 398, 399.
Kirkland, William A., rear-admiral, i86.
Knapp, John J., lieutenant, 301, 303,
323 -Knowlton, Marcus P., judge, 328.
Knox, Philander C., attorney-general,
388.
Knox, William S., M. C., 250.
Komura, Jutaro, Japanese minister, 266.
Kumi, or neighborhood groups of Japanese, 262.
Kure, Japan, 334.
LABOR and capital, 118, 170.
Labuan, island of, near Borneo, I68.
La Guaira, Venezuela, 281, 366.
La Hogue, Battle of, 50.
Lampasas, army transport, I84, 203.
Latin-American and Asiatic trade, 233.
Latin-American colonies, III, 257.
Lawrence, William, bishop of Massachusetts, 415-419.
Lee, Arthur H., lieutenant-colonel, 263.
Lee, Fitzhugh, consul-general, 54, 59, 95,
279.
Lee, Henry, 97, 120, 121, 124, 125.
Lee, Higginson and Company, 125.
Lee, Robert E., 279, 410, 411.
Leeson, Joseph R., 80, 8I.
Legare, -, 45.
Leghorn, cruiser building at, 41.
Lehigh, U. S. monitor, 144, 145, 146.
Lemly, Samuel C., judge advocate-general, 387-390, 394 -Lemly, Mrs. Samuel C., 389, 400.
Lepanto, Battle of, 5o.
Lessons of the War with Spain, 308.
Lewis, Mrs.    -, I73.
Leyland Line, 399.
Leyte, Philippine Islands, 188, 190.
Liberia, 278, 279.
Lighthouse board, 12, 13.
Lighthouses, Lake Ontario, i i.
Lin, H. E., 335 -

Lincoln, Abraham, former President, 65,
I74 -Lincoln, William H., 73, 80, 8i, 425.
Line and staff controversy, 34, 35, 36,
230, 408, 409.
Livermore, Thomas L., colonel, 303.
Local government, common origin of,
234, 235, 260, 261; suppression of, in
Spain, 235; local self-government acts,
258.
Lodge, Henry Cabot, U. S. senator, 9,
10, 25, 57, 80, I32, 278; naval war college, 15, i6, 19, 205; wishes to be peace
commissioner, i8I, 182; politics, 200,
20I; suggests court of inquiry, 240,
241; recommends A. L. Lowell, 305;
fears German aggression, 365-367; letter to, 403; on Long's resignation, 425,
426; senatorship, 439.
Lodge, Mrs. H. C., 305.
Logan, George W., lieutenant, 326, 332.
Long, B. F., 88.
Long, Helen, 34, 292, 304, 326, 352, 364.
Long, John D., secretary of the navy,
passim; author, 7; letters of, 8, 25, 60,
82, 88, I44, 146, 155, 159, 162, 178, 179,
237, 239, 250, 275, 3I2, 353, 397, 40I,
414, 434, 436, 438; commendation of,
67, 68, 73, 77, 147, 425-428, 430, 431,
432; senatorship, 73, 352, 439; criticized by R. H. Davis, 122; defense of
Alger and Sampson, 182; speeches,
201, 254, 259, 273, 358; on surrender
of Santiago, 268; Boston Navy Yard,
303, 304; vice-presidency, 327, 328,
329, 335; Hebron Academy, 331; retirement, 344; ZEneid, 349; abused,
355, 357; medals, 356; president of
alumni, 378; despatch to Dewey, 380,
382; paper on Lee, 411; court of inquiry, 413, 414; resignation, 425-427;
service of, 427, 428, 430; criticized by
President Roosevelt, 433.
Long, Mrs. John D., 34, 155, 282, 292,
304, 326, 332, 334, 380, 393, 400, 421.
Long, Peirce, 352, 394.
Long Island Sound, 84.
Loomis, Francis B., minister to Venezuela, 40.
Lord, Arthur, 283, 284, 359, 360.
Louisiana, feeling against the Democratic party in, 5.
Lovering, William C., M. C., 113, 431.




INDEX


455




Low, A. Maurice, 59.
Low, Seth, peace commissioner, 262,
263, 269, 270.
Lowell, A. Lawrence, 304, 305.
Lowell, Augustus, 304.
Lowell, Francis C., 357.
Loyal Legion, Military Order of, 376.
Luce, Stephen B., commodore, 7; rearadmiral, 14.
Luckenback tugs, 294.
Luzon, Philippine Islands, 173, i88, 189,
263, 264, 320.
Lyon, Henry W., commander, 27, 29,
36, 38, 420, 421.
Lyon, Mrs. Henry W., 29, 37, 420, 421.
MCANENY, George, 296, 302, 312, 313.
McCall, Samuel W., M. C., 9, 345 -McCalla, Bowman H., commander, 142,
143, 320, 334, 392.
McClellan, George B., an organizing,
not a fighting general, 220.
McClure, Alexander K., 218, 220; McClure's Magazine, 202.
McCook, John, colonel, 44.
McCormick, Benjamin B., ensign, 50.
MacFarland, Henry B. F., commissioner, 129.
McGill, John F., second-lieutenant, 148.
McKim, Charles F., 373.
McKinley, William, President, 17, 53,
64, 65, 67, 68, 80, 8I, 124, 167, 183, I85,
i86, 201, 305, 325, 336, 345; administration, 5, 76, 97, I84, 254; statesmanship
of, 8i; policy of, 83, 130, 172, I73;
nomination of, i4I; peace, i81, 182,
212; letters to, 214, 264; speeches, 233,
251, 405; promotions, 245, 246; opposed to Spanish demand, 267, 369;
schools in Cuba, 268, 269; civil service
order, 283; Philippine commission,
310, 311; coast survey, 333; renominated, 335; letter to, 347; court of inquiry, 356, 357; visit to Massachusetts, 359, 360, 363; proposed honorary
degree, 364, 371-373; general board,
368; despatch to Dewey, 380, 381; assassination of, 392, 393; in the Congress, 436.
Maclay, Edgar S., 395.
McLean,    Walter,   lieutenant-commander, 323.
McMillan, James, U. S. senator, 353, 354.


McNair, Frederick V., rear-admiral,
I50.
McVeagh, Wayne, former attorneygeneral, 281, 390.
Madrid, American secret service report
from, 166; cut off from communication with Cuba, 228.
Magalhaes, Olyntho de, minister of marine, 212.
Magellan lands at Guam, 152I, 248.
Mahan, Alfred T., captain, 39, 48, 84,
10o, 175, 176, 187; advises single officer
in place of war board, 119, 120; proposes sending ships to Mediterranean,
i66, 167; on delay of Spain, I79, i8o;
writing, 201, 209, 225; on Santiago,
223; on transporting the army, 224,
225, 236; peace commissioner, 262 -264, 269, 270, 362, 363; on surrender of
Santiago, 267, 268, 362, 369, 370; Sampson-Schley controversy, 284; on construction, 306-308; on Bishop Brent,
424.
Mail and Express, New York, 383.
Mail subsidy, 25.
Maine, U. S. S., 23, 49, 314; loss of, 53,
54, 55, 56, 57, 58, 63, 66, 68, 74, 83, 88,
90, 99, 123, 279, 400, 401, 402; inquiry,
92, 125, 232; souvenirs, 226, 232.
Maine, U. S. S. (second), 360, 361, 366.
Maine, Sir Henry J. S., 260.
Malay States, 261.
Malone, Reverend Sylvester, 43.
Manchester Guardian, 263.
Manchuria, Russian policy in, 330.
Manila, 68, 126, 144, 175, 177, i86, I88,
189, 248, 364, 380; victory at, IIo, 112,
II6, 124, 213, 244, 354; Germans at,
157, 158; medal, 356.
Mansfield, Samuel M., colonel, 104.
Mantius, William E., consul, 43.
Manzanillo, Cuba, I39, 230.
Marblehead, average age of sea-captains
in War of 1812, 59.
Marblehead, U. S. S., 54, 142.
Marcellus, collier, 317, 318.
Margarita Islands, Venezuela, 366.
Mariana Islands, or Ladrones, Pacific
Ocean, 247.
Mariel, Cuba, 150.
Marietta, U. S. S., 141, 215, 429.
Marine Corps, U. S., 26, 148, 333, 334.
Mars, English battleship, 353.




456


INDEX




Marshall Islands, Micronesia, coral reefs
of, 241.
Martinique, 423.
Maryland, naval militia, 94.
Mason, William E., U. S. senator, 57, 80,
132.
Massachusetts, 8o, 8i; naval militia, 94;
exposed coast of, io6; government of,
402, 403.
Massachusetts, U. S. S., 23, 28, 29, 46,
91, 210.
Massachusetts Club, Nantasket, Secretary Long's speech at, 380.
Massachusetts Historical Society, 37,
4II.
Massachusetts    Nautical    Training
School, 89, 319, 321, 322.
Massachusetts Naval Brigade, 144, I45.
Massachusetts Total Abstinence Society, 27.
Massachusetts Volunteer Aid Association, I83, I84.
Matagorda Bay, Texas, 98, 99.
Matthews, Edmund 0., rear-admiral,
243.
Matthews, Mrs. Edmund 0., 400.
Mayer, Augustus N., lieutenant, I79.
Mayflower, proposed article on, 370.
Mayflower, U. S. S., 98.
Mayo, Lawrence S., 53, 84.
Mead, Edwin D., 79, 8o.
Meade, Robert L., colonel, 367.
Medals, I87, 191, 356, 367, 382, 383.
Mediterranean, i67, I75, 324, 365.
Melbourne, opening of Parliament at,
364.
Menocal, Anecito G., civil engineer, 32.
Merchant marine, 43, 193.
Merrell, John P., commander, 50, 278,
279.
Merrimac, U. S. S., 147, 316.
Merritt, Wesley, major-general, I77,
i88, 275, 343, 344 -Merritt Wrecking Company, 54.
Merry, John F., commander, 8.
Mersina, Asia Minor, I5.
Mexico, 235, 303.
Michigan, naval militia, 94, I79; governor, I79.
Michigan, U. S. S., 50.
Midshipmen, i8, 29, 174, 396.
Miles, Nelson A., major-general, 176,
202, 208, 210, 223, 267, 369, 413, 414.


Military government, 256, 257, 261.
Military Historical Society of Massachusetts, 342, 343.
Militia, 105, io6.
Miller, Frederick A., lieutenant-commander, 70, 71.
Miller, Jacob W., captain, 432, 433.
Miller, Merrill, captain, i86.
Miller, Warner, M. C., 32.
Millet, Dr. Asa, 5.
Millet, Francis D., 5, 6, 44, 274, 275, 277.
Milwaukee, U. S. S., 70.
Minche, Chinese provinces of Fohkien
and Chekiang, 335.
Mindanao, Philippine Islands, 188.
Minneapolis, U. S. S., 92, 93, 109, 137,
314.
Minnesota, U. S. S., 144.
Minorca, 175.
Mir, Russian town system, 260.
Missionaries, 15.
Mississippi, Confederate ram, 251.
Mitchell, Dr. S. Weir, 396.
Mobile, 6, 199.
Moffett, William A., ensign, 120, 121,
I24.
Mohican, U. S. S., 121.
Mole St. Nicholas, I36, 228.
Monadnock, U. S. monitor, 248.
Monastic orders, in the Philippines, 261 -262.
Monitors, 53, 137.
Monroe Doctrine, 20, 74, 89, II9, 158,
259, 363, 368, 421.
Monrovia, Liberia, 278.
Monterey, U. S. monitor, 126, 248.
Montevideo, 215.
Montgomery, U. S. S., I99, 200oo, 278, 359.
Montreal, 137.
Moody, William H., M. C., 78, 192, 193,
343, 404; secretary of the navy, 431,
433 -Moraes, Prudente de, President of Brazil, 212.
Morgan, Charles, gunner, 375.
Morgan, John T., U. S. senator, 147, i8i.
Morgan Line, 9I.
Morocco, Sultan of, 85.
Morrison, William R., M. C., tariff bill,
5.
Morse, Robert M., 3, 67, 68.
Mosby, Beverly C., second lieutenant,
148.




INDEX


457




Mosby, John S., colonel, 411.
Moser, Jefferson F., lieutenant-commander, 242.
Mosquito Fleet, 93.
Mugwumps, 52, 139, 327, 364, 372.
Munitions, I38.
Mura, village system of Japan, 262.
Murdock, Joseph B., lieutenant, 50.
NAGASAKI, 189, 33I.
Nantucket Sound, 28.
Naphen, Henry F., M. C., 430.
Napoleon, 136, 195.
Narragansett Bay, 28.
Narrative of the Maine, 232.
Nassau, New Providence, Bahama Islands, 138.
National Civil Service Reform League,
296, 297, 302, 312.
National party, Massachusetts, in 1900,
346.
Naupaktus, Battle of, 50.
Naval warfare, revolutionizing of, 3;
rules of the Geneva Convention,
268.
Navigation, difficult, 46, 47.
Navy, United States, Academy, colored
boy appointed to, I8, I9; post-graduate school at, 29, 30; reconstruction
of, 150; appointments to, 152, 173, 396;
commissioning cadets, 174, 175; instruction in, 194, 195, 205, 230, 231, 322,
408; library, 232; superintendent, 294,
299, 300, 306, 312; founder of, 340;
chapel, 373, 374; graduate of, 426. -
architecture, 3, 146.-and army, 154,
55. - attaches, 40, 41. —construction, 29, 30, 31, 97, 16o, 353; corps, 147,
408, 409; board, 306, 308; in navy yards
and private yards, 313-315. - department, bureau of construction, 314,
350, 351, 408; bureau of equipment,
3I4, 323, 324, 408; bureau of navigation, 7, 40, 50, 6i, I95, 196, 251, 301,
317, 318, 323, 408; bureau of ordnance,
21, 40, 41, 314, 323, 324; bureau
of steam  engineering, 314. —Home,
Philadelphia, 428.-intelligence, officer of, 41, 287, 288, 300, 301, 400.League, 432, 433. -militia, 94, 432.observatory, 44, 298, 366, 399. —operations, 134-138, i6o, 16i, 175, 201.ordnance, 3, 21.- paymasters, 153.

personnel, 34, 35, 36, 43, 6i, 204, 205,
230, 231.-promotion board, 243.Register, 408.- war board, 84, 91, 93,
94, 97, 98, 19, I20, 128, 129, I38, i6o,
161, 187, 209.-War College, 7, I5,
i6, 19, 20, 38, 39, 47, 205; instruction,
7, 50, 264; library, 48; prejudice
against, I94, 195. -yards, Boston
(Charlestown), 14, I5, 25, 26, 27, 299,
302, 303, 304, 313, 341, 342, 378; New
York (Brooklyn), 14, 314, 315, 347,
350, 351; Norfolk, 14, 202, 206;
Mare Island, I85, 186; Portsmouth
(Kittery), 296, 298, 302, 312, 313,
332; Washington, 301; Philadelphia
(League Island), 339.
Nazro, Arthur P., commander, 322.
Negroes, 18, 19, 172, 234.
Negros, Philippine Islands, 188, I90.
Neilson. See Nelson.
Nelson, Henry L., 82, 12i, 122.
Nelson, Lord, admiral, 307.
Neutrals, on scene of naval warfare, 270,
271.
New American Navy, The, 7, 42, 75,
84, I58, i82, 230, 243, 305, 382, 414,
425.
Newark, U. S. S., 98, 141, 229, 230, 315,
320, 334, 365.
Newel, Stanford, peace commissioner,
262.
New England, 135; town government,
234, 235, 260; in the Cabinet, 344;
literary men, 349.
New England Magazine, 79.
New Jersey, naval militia, 94.
New Orleans, favorable feeling toward
McKinley in, 4; capture of, by Farragut, 6.
New Orleans, U. S. S., 114.
Newspapers and reporters, 34, 46, 59, 68,
78, 82, 99, 11, 112, 114, 121-123, 153,
I56, 162, 231, 270, 276, 353, 355, 379,
390, 391, 395.
Newton, John T., lieutenant-commander, 323.
New York, naval militia, 94,432.
New York, U. S. S., 23, 29, 41, 49, 86,
122, 133, 134, 185, 242, 244, 265.
New York, 98.
New York Life Insurance Association,
23.
New Zealand, official visit to, 364.




458


INDEX


Niblack, Albert P., lieutenant, 4I, 354.
Nicaragua canal, 32, 132, 220, 22I.
Nictheroy, Brazilian ship, 91, 94, 95, 429.
See U. S. S. Buffalo.
Noon, Reverend Alfred, 25, 27.
North Atlantic Squadron, 72, 93, 195,
198, 244, 245, 317, 319, 353, 356, 360,
361, 366, 368; off Santiago, 135.
North Carolina, negro population in,
234.
Norton, Charles E., 372.
Norton, Charles S., rear-admiral, 243.
Norwich University, 249, 250.
Numancia, Spanish ship, 53.
Nurses, 183, I84.
ODERO, Italian shipbuilders, 85.
CEdipus Tyrranus, 349.
Offensive warfare, I09, 136.
Officers, American, accomplishments of,
3; appointment of, io8; merits of, 163,
416; rewards of, 243, 244; duties and
details of, 317, 318, 323, 324.
Ogle, Charles T., clerk, 302.
Olangapo, Philippine Islands, I89.
Olcott, Morgan, 28I.
Old Bahama Channel, 200.
Olmsted, Frederick L., 373.
Olney, Richard, former secretary of
state, 70.
Olympia, U. S. S., 49, 238, 359 -Omaha Exposition, 196.
O'Neil, Charles, commodore, 21, 40,
98; rear-admiral, 300.
O'Neil, Mrs. Charles, 400.
Oregon, U. S. S., 126, 129, 141, I60, I97,
211, 213, 215, 216, 219, 238, 247, 248,
354, 365, 429.
Orinoco River, 281, 282, 289.
Orinoco Shipping and Trading Company, 281.
Osage, U. S. S., 70.
Osceola, naval tug, 229.
Otis, Elwell S., major-general, 275, 310,
342.
Outlook, 432, 433, 434, 435, 437 -Ovtchinnikow de Vaissian, Russian lieutenant, 264.
PACIFIC Ocean, cable, io; coast, 70, I85;
colony in, 151; station, 317.
Pacifism, 3I, 66, 67, 79, 80, 81, 92, 2i6 -218.


Paget, Alfred W., British naval attache,
II9.
Paumotus, 241.
Panama Canal, o1, 22, 71; Panama Canal
Company, 32, 33, 71.
Panay, Philippine Islands, i88, I90.
Panola, U. S. S., 98, 99.
Panther, U. S. S., 136.
Paris, 98.
Paris Exposition Commission, 323.
Parker, William H., captain, 388, 394.
Parkman, Francis, historian, 257.
Partridge, James R., U. S. minister to
Venezuela (1870), IoI.
Peace commissioners, 181, 182, 270.
Peace Conference, 262, 263, 264, 268,
269, 270, 362, 363, 370.
Peace Conference of The Hague, The,
363.
Peace, terms of, 152, 163, i66, 167, 169,
170, I8I, 226, 369; negotiations, 369,
370.
Pearl Harbor, Hawaiian Islands, io, 22.
Peck, Robert G., lieutenant, 144, 145,
I46.
Pelayo, Spanish battleship, 219.
Pennsylvania, naval militia, 94.
Pensacola, visit of Secretary Long to,
353 -Percival, John, captain, I68.
Perkins, George H., commodore, 6, I.
Perkins, Hamilton, lieutenant, 11.
Pernambuco, Brazil, 278.
Perry, Bliss, 370, 371.
Personnel bill, 43, 204, 205, 230, 231, 429.
Peters, Benjamin F., chief clerk, 42.
Petrel, U. S. S., 6.
Phi Beta Kappa, 125, 327.
Philip II, III, I77, 235, 257, 260.
Philip, John W., captain, 46, 155; commodore, I85, i86, 224, 251.
Philip, John W., Jr., 396.
Philippines, 74, iii, ii6, 117, 118, I23,
124, 126, 161, 172, 212, 248.-annexation of, 130, 131, 141, 2i6, 255.- coaling station, 169. —Commission, 238,
304, 305, 310, 311. —Dewey's account
of, 88-19o. - events in, 257.- fleet,
316, 429.- government of, 260, 26I.information concerning, 345, 346.Information Society, 345.- insurrection, 248, 262, 263, 342.- Merritt and
Otis, 275. - operations in, 262, 263,




INDEX


459


342, 38o. —opposition to annexation,
372, 374. - pacification of, 359. - peopie superior to Cubans, 188. - war in,
252, 253.
Pickrell, George, surgeon, 203.
Pierce, Phineas, 203.
Pilgrim Society, 360.
Pillsbury, John E., commander, 142,
384.
Pingree, Hazen S., governor of Michigan, 179.
Piracy, 168, 169.
Plassy, Battle of, 117.
Platt, Orville H., U. S. senator, 227.
Platt, Thomas C., U. S. senator, 32.
Plutarch, 48.
Plymouth, Mass., visit of McKinley to,
360.
Political and commercial relations, 140,
141, 157-I59.
Political Nursery, The, 3 6.
Politics, 252, 254, 255, 327, 328, 329, 335,
343, 345, 352 -Pollock Rip, Nantucket Sound, 28.
Ponce, Puerto Rico, 176, 183, 184.
Port Eads, Louisiana, 93.
Port Mahon, Minorca, 175.
Port au Prince, Haiti, 92, 132.
Port of Spain, Trinidad, 280.
Porter, David D., admiral, 376.
Porter, Horace, ambassador to France,
338.
Porter, John A., secretary to President
McKinley, 22.
Portland, Battle of, 50.
Post, Washington, 397.
Post traderships, 25, 26, 27.
Potomac, U. S. S., 318.
Powell, Levin M., rear-admiral, 376.
Powelson, Wilfred V., ensign, 232.
Prairie, U. S. S., 91, 323.
President Roads, Virginia, 23.
Prince Rupert Bay, Battle of, 51.
Prisoners, 155, 229.
Pritchett, Henry S., 336, 348, 349, 427.
Private property, seizure of, 107.
Privateers, 214, 215.
Prizes, 152, 155.
Proctor, Redfield, U. S. senator, 9, 8o,
430.
Proconsuls, danger of, to republics, 257.
Prohibition, absurd aspects of, 27.
Promotion, 64, 65, 147, i86, 191, 209, 210,




239, 240, 243, 245, 246, 284, 293, 347,
428-430.
Protection, 4, 5, 192, 193.
Protocol. See armistice.
Provincetown, Katahdin stationed at,
84.
Public, North Abington, 124.
Pueblo of Gothic Spain, origin of, 235.
Puerto Rico, 74, 109, II2, 137, 138, i6i,
177, 178, 179, 208, 361, 423; annexation
of, i44, 163-I65; landing, 176, 210, 229;
sickness at, 183, 184; enlarges market,
192; people, 234, 263; local government, 235; schools, 273, 286; finances,
325, 326.
Puget Sound, 354.
Puritan, U. S. monitor, 53.
QUEBEC, 193.
Quincy, Mass., invitation to McKinley,
363.
Quincy, Josiah, 403.
Raleigh, U. S. S., 157, 314.
Raleigh, Sir Walter, 279.
Ramsay, Francis M., rear-admiral, 213,
409.
Randall, Samuel J., M. C., 436.
Randolph, Wallace F., brigadier-general, 227.
Rank, 143, 155, 156, 320, 408, 409.
Rayner, Isidor, U. S. senator, 388, 394.
Reciprocity, 404-407.
Recognition of foreign governments as
an executive function, 100-102.
Reconcentrados, 74.
Red Cross, I84.
Reed, Thomas B., M. C., 57, 63, 64, 253,
335, 390, 39I, 436, 437.
Reed, Mrs. Thomas B., 436, 437.
Reform Club, abuse of McKinley, 283.
Reid, Whitelaw, peace commissioner,
I82.
Religious liberty, 170, 261.
Remey, George C., commodore, 186,
198, 199, 200, 225; rear-admiral, 331,
364, 365.
Remington, Frederick, 122.
Republican Club, Boston, Secretary
Long's speech at, 201.
Republican party, 66, 92, 327, 328; convention, 329, 335.
Resolute, U. S. S., 199, 229.




460


INDEX




Revolution, American, 67.
Rewards, 187, 191, 209, 210, 243, 244, 334,
347, 354, 356, 367, 428-430 -Rhode Island, reserves, 179, I8o.
Richardson, Malbon G., 398, 399.
Rio de Janeiro, 211-213, 429.
Roach, John, shipbuilder, 3I4, 315.
Robeson, Henry B., captain, 64, 65.
Robison, Samuel S., lieutenant, 339, 340.
Rockhill, William W., U. S. minister to
Greece, 256.
Rodgers Board, 294.
Rodgers, C. R. P., rear-admiral, 213.
Rodgers, Frederick, rear-admiral, 213,
294, 365.
Rodgers, Raymond P., commander, 259.
Rodriguez, -, general, Cuban insurgent, 199.
Roeder, -, 280, 290, 291.
Roman Catholic church, as a perfect organization, 403.
Roosevelt, Theodore, assistant secretary
of the navy, character, 9, o1, 13, i6,
103; Naval War College, 16; marine
corps, 26, II3; gun practice, 40; Dry
Tortugas, 41; stamps, 42; loss of the
Maine, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 58; war
board, 84, 91, 93, 94, 95, 96; advises
prompt action, 96, 433, 434, 435, 437,
438; advises purchase and construction of ships, 97, 98; resignation of,
IO8, 115; candidate for governor, 196;
governor of New York, 271, 287, 288,
289, 294, 316; Vice-President, 329, 352;
President, 396; on appointments, 396;
naval observatory, 399; court of inquiry, 414, 425; on awards, etc., 415;
navy league, 433.
Root, Elihu, secretary of war, 272, 273,
274, 277, 279, 352, 413, 414~
Ropes, John C., 125, 205, 277, 288, 342.
Roys, John H., ensign, 332.
"Rule by Parliament," 402.
Russell, Earl, 149.
Russia, 102, 172, 256, 260, 330, 344.
Ryan, Thomas W., lieutenant, 280, 282,
292.
SAGASTA, Praxedes M., prime minister of
Spain, 75, 124, i66.
Sailors' Haven, 398, 399.
St. Louis, U. S. S., 9I, 98, 107, 126, 127,
153, 154, 155, 228, 229; armament, 153.


St. Mary's, U. S. S., 317.
St. Mary's House for Sailors, 399.
St. Paul, 33; U. S. S., 91, 98, 137.
St. Stephen's Church, 424.
St. Thomas, Virgin Islands, 228.
St. Vincent, West Indies, 423.
Salamis, Battle of, 50.
Salem, average age of sea-captains in
War of I812, 59.
Salles, Campos, President of Brazil, 212.
Sampson, Ralph E., 396.
Sampson, William T., commander, 7;
captain, 46, 64, 65, 71, 73; advises
building rather than purchase of
ships, 72, 73; rear-admiral, 91, 95,
112, 127, 132, 133, 175, 179, 192,
213, 227, 293; in command of North
Atlantic Squadron, 134, 152, 153, 154,
237; report of, 162, 201; colliers for,
I8o; defense of, 182, 183; praises officers, I85, 294, 295; commissioner, 186,
191, 206; thanks Secretary Long, 190;
promotion, 209, 2o1, 239, 284, 347;
health, 211, 231, 383-386; criticized,
218-220, 275, 276; dinner in honor of,
230; court of inquiry, 241, 389; recommends promotions, 243, 244, 245;
spirit of, 266, 267; neutrality, 270;
services, 274; explanation, 276, 277;
Naval Academy, 299, 300; Boston
Navy Yard, 303, 304, 341, 342; construction board, 308; controversy,
355-357; at San Juan, 367, 382; correspondence, 375-378; leave, 392; interview, 395; death, 431.
Sampson, Mrs. William T., 300, 304,
383, 384, 386.
Sampson-Schley controversy, 182, 190,
218-220, 231, 237, 238, 241, 355-357,
396, 397, 412, 413, 425.
San Bernardino Strait, Philippine Islands, 189.
Sanders, --, 193.
Sand Key Light, Florida, 200.
San Francisco, I60, 214.
San Francisco, U. S. S., 14, 34, 333.
San Juan, Puerto Rico, 137, I76, 228, 326,
367, 382.
Santa Maria, -, foreign minister of
Chile, 404.
Santiago, 127, 132, 133, 138, 285, 367;
blockade of, 134, 135; campaign, 134,
135, 210, 219, 237, 266, 411; blocking




INDEX


461




channel, 147; naval battle of, i62, 163,
244, 274, 382, 4I2, 429; sickness at, 177,
184; hospital at, 183; landing at, 223;
cables, 228, 229; surrender of, 267, 369,
370; lack of schools, 287; medal, 356;
evacuation, 362; capitulation, 370.
Saratoga, U. S. S., 317.
Sargent, Horace B., 142, 144.
Sargent, Nathan, 366.
Sawyer,   -, captain and signal officer, I50.
Schaff, Morris, brigadier-general, 151.
Schley, Winfield S., captain, 12, 13, 42,
132, 395; commodore, 162, 213; commissioner, 186; promotion, 209, 2Io;
commendation of, 218, 219, 220;
record of, 237, 238, 432; rear-admiral,
letter to, 239; examination, 240; court
of inquiry, 241, 388, 389, 390, 391, 394,
412; proposed further promotion, 284;
controversy, 355, 356, 357, 396, 397,
431; at Santiago, 412, 413.
School-ships. See State training ships.
School system, 268, 269, 272, 273, 286,
287.
Schurman, Jacob G., chairman of
Philippine Commission, 310.
Schurz, Carl, 277, 278.
Scindia, collier, 317.
Scorpion, U. S. S., 82, 98, 136, 138, 229,
317, 318, 366.
Scott, Henry T., shipbuilder, I59,
i6o.
Scovel, Sylvester, 133, 192.
Scribner's Magazine, 122.
Scriven, George P., captain, 109.
Selfridge, Thomas 0., rear-admiral, 14,
15, 34, 36, 230.
Semmes, Raphael, captain, 270.
Seward, William H., former secretary
of state, 100, 1oi.
Sewell, John S., lieutenant, 104, 105.
Seymour, Sir Edward H., admiral, 334.
Shafter, William R., major-general, 155,
177, 178, 198, 219, 227, 229, 267, 276,
277, 369.
Shan, Tartar general of the "Minche,"
335.
Sharp, Alexander, lieutenant, 43, 45.
Shattuck, Dr. Frederick C., 173, 174.
Shaw, Quincy A., Jr., 303.
Shiloh, Battle of, 86.
Shipbuilding, 313, 314.




Shoe industry, 193, 194.
Siberia, 310, 329.
Siboney, Cuba, 134, 154.
Sicard, Montgomery, rear-admiral, 23,
40, 47, 5i, 84, I20, 138, I39, I60, I62,
187.
Sickness, malaria, 38, 184; yellow fever,
117, 142, 183, 186; typhoid fever, 183,
184, 203; typhus, 203; measles, 203;
mumps, 203; small-pox, 203.
Sierra Leone, Africa, 278, 279.
Sigsbee, Charles D., captain, 49, 54, 59,
226, 232, 233, 287, 300, 360, 361, 400,
401.
Simes, Robert F., 181.
Sims, William S., lieutenant, 166.
Sixth Massachusetts Regiment, 202, 203,
208.
Sladen, Fred W., captain, 342.
Smith, Sydney, 129, 149.
Smuggling arms, 20, 2i, 138.
Snow, Freeman, 38.
Snowden, Thomas, lieutenant, 36, 37,
282.
Snyder, Harold C., clerk, 142.
Sohier, William D., colonel, 206, 208.
Solace, hospital ship, 330, 331.
Somers, U. S. S., 94.
Sons of the American Revolution, i8.
South, loyalty of, 4, 76, 77, 88, 251.
South Africa, 410, 411, 423.
South Atlantic Station, 317, 319.
Southerland, William H. H., lieutenant,
29, 82, 83, 136, 224, 225, 236; lieutenant-commander, 280, 282, 289, 293,
331, 332, 393, 394 -South Seas, proposed scientific expedition to, 241, 242.
Sovereign, yacht, 82, 98. See U. S. S.
Scorpion.
Sowdon, Arthur J. C., I25.
Spain, war with, 3, 42, 53, 60, 69, 76, 78,
79, 86, 88, 175, 214; navy of, 41, 53, 72,
109, I35, 136, 137, 224, 225, 381, 433,
435, 438; resources of, 6o; policy
towards, 66, 123, 124; Queen of, 87;
getting supplies, 93, 138, 139; plans of,
I05; attack on, advised, 109, 137; colonies of, II, 139, i6i, 170, 257; in the
Philippines, 117, 172, 173; legation of,
137; army of, 138, 139; treaty with,
163, 166; diplomacy of, 176, 177; delay of, 179, 180; prisoners, 229; losses




462


INDEX




of, 230; inquisition, 262; in the West
Indies, 422.
Spaniards, cruelty of, 62, 261, 262; panic
fear of, on seaboard, 136, 137, 225; procrastination of, 175.
Spanish America, 74, 91, o10, I77, 234,
235, 257 -Spooner, John C., U. S. senator, 329.
Standard, London, 263.
Standard, Rockland, I24.
State training ships, 89, 12i, 317, 318,
319, 321, 322, 323, 324.
Staunton, Sidney A., lieutenant, I9I,
242, 245, 323 -Stedman, Mrs. --, 152.
Sternberg, George M., surgeon-general,
183, I84.
Stevens, Captain -, 279.
Stevens, Benjamin F., 167, 169.
Stevenson, -, 312.
Stewart, Edwin, paymaster-general, 400.
Stewart, Mrs. Edwin, 400.
Stickney, F. H., 42, 44, 45.
Stockton, Charles H., commander, 38,
39, 48, 205.
Stone, Eugene P., passed-assistant-surgeon, 248.
Stone, Reverend George W., 169, I71.
Storey, Moorfield, 139, 163, i66, I74,
259, 372.
Straits Settlements, Malay Peninsula,
26i.
Stratford Shoal Light, Long Island
Sound, 28, 29.
Strobel, Edward H., 205.
Strong, William L., mayor of New
York, 9, I0.
Sturtevant, Benjamin F., 331.
Subig Bay, Philippine Islands, I57, 189.
Submarine, accounts of new invention,
62.
Suez Canal, 22, 214.
Sugar, production of, in the Philippines,
I9o; in the West Indies, 422; in the
United States, 422; cane and beet
sugar, 422.
Sumatra, i68.
Sumner, Charles, former U. S. senator,
80.
Sun, New York, 382.
Supplies, 138, 182, 183, 184.
Supply, U. S. S., 136.
Suwanee, lighthouse tender, 229.


Swinburne, William T., commander,
I98.
Symonds, Frederick M., commander,
141.
Syracuse, Battle of, 50.
TAGUES, William H., 62.
Taku, China, 330.
Talbot, Thomas H., 69, 70, I71, I73.
Tammany Hall, I96, 403.
Tampa, 121, 134, 154, 198, 199, 225.
Tariff, 4, 5, 15, 131, 404, 406, 436.
Taussig, Charles A., second lieutenant,
I48.
Taussig, Edward D., commander, 248.
Taylor, David W., naval constructor,
31, 353.
Taylor, Henry C., captain, 194, 195, I99,
300, 305, 306, 308, 311, 312, 347; rearadmiral, 358, 359, 367, 368, 382, 387.
Technology Review, 348.
Temerario, Spanish torpedo boat, 215.
Temperance, 25, 26, 27.
Terror, U. S. monitor, 53.
Texas, U. S. S., 23, 46, 47, 91, I55, 232,
314, 353, 354, 360, 361, 429.
Texel, Battle of, 50.
Thayer, James B., 265, 266, 304, 305.
Third Illinois Infantry, 229.
Thompson, Robert M., colonel, 390,
395, 396.
Thurston, John M., 80.
Ticknor, Benjamin H., 414.
Times, London, 5, 121, 122, 144.
Times, New York, 254.
Titanic, loss of, 6.
Tides, 34, 35, 408, 409.
Tobacco, production of, in the Philippines, i88.
Tomkins, T. A., 396, 397.
Tompkinsville, New York, I2, 28, I86.
Topeka, U. S. S., 94.
Torpedo boats, 58, 72, 85, 97, 98, 99, I35,
146, 198, 287; station, 98, 99, 317, 318,
332.
Torpedoes, 41, 56, 70, 71, 98, 99.
Tortugas Island, Cuba, 200.
Tracy, Benjamin F., brigadier-general,
former secretary of the navy, 12, 13,
54, 213, 296, 306, 314, 432.
Transcript, Boston, 89, III, 112, 255,
278, 382, 402, 405, 421.
Transport service, 54, 155, I6i, 162, 183,




INDEX


463




I98, 202, 203, 206, 207, 208, 224, 225,
227, 236.
Treaties, 163, 176, I77, 278, 400-407.
Tribune, New York, 182.
Tricomalee, Battle of, 51.
Trinidad, 139, 280, 290, 422.
Tuan, prince, Chinese rebel (900o),
335 -Turks, character of, 15, 102, I57.
Twickenham, prize, 155.
Tyler, John, former President, 169.
Uncas, navy tug, 200.
United Fruit Company (Boston Fruit
Company), 25.
Upham, Josephine R., 399.
Urie, John F., surgeon, 280, 291, 292.
VALDARANA, —, foreign minister of
Chile, 404.
Valusia, yacht, 21.
Van Reypen, William K., surgeon-general, i86.
Van Wyck, Augustus, judge, 196.
Van Wyck, Robert A., mayor, 196.
Venezuela, 20, 40, 1oi, 281, 289, 366.
Vermont, U. S. S., 306, 347.
Vessels, purchase of, 60, 84, 85, 94, 3 6.
Vesuvius, U. S. S., 142, 199, 200.
Vicksburg, naval monument at, 298.
Victoria, Queen, 87, 258.
Visigoths in Spain, 234, 235, 260.
Vixen, U. S. S., 82, 300, 301.
Vizcaya, Spanish warship, 56.
Von Diederich, rear-admiral, 157.
Von Hoist, Hermann E., historian, 52.
WADE, James F., major-general, 206.
Wagner, Arthur L., colonel, 142.
Wainwright, Richard, commander, 243,
273, 274, 288, 312, 373, 374, 429.
Walker, John G., rear-admiral, 32, io8,
Io9, I95, 213, 323~
Waller, Littleton T. W., major, 330, 331.
War of 1812, 40.
War board. See naval war board.
War department, I82, 289, 297.
War and peace, 60, 62-64, 65-67, 69, 70,
77, 78-8i, 83, 96, 97.
War scare, 31, 32, 63, 73, 135, I36, 137.
Ward, ---, 61, 279.
Ward, Samuel G., 125.
Warren Line, 399.


Warren, Winslow, 413.
Washburn, Charles G., 343.
Washington, George, 65, 70, 132; Farewell Address, I40, 158.
Wasp, U. S. S., 229.
Watson, John C., rear-admiral, i66, I75,
309, 323, 324~
Watts, William C., ensign, 332.
Weeks, John W., captain, I44, I45, 146,
155, 156, 433 -Weihaiwei, Shantung, China, 330.
Wendell, Barrett, 357.
Western Union Telegraph Company,
75 -West Indies, 25, 138, I4I, 15, i6i, 421 -423.
West Point, appointment of southerners at, 396.
Wharton, Francis, ioo, io1.
Wheeler, Jesse F., 29.
White, Andrew D., peace commissioner, 262.
White, Sir William H., 408.
White House, 369, 370, 380.
Whitney, William C., former secretary
of the navy, 60, 119, 314.
Whittlesey, Humes H., lieutenant, 380,
38I.
Wight, Isle of, naval action off, 50.
Wildes, Frank, captain, I87.
Wilkes expedition to Pacific Ocean
(1843), 242.
Wilkes, William, 43, 44, 45.
Willard, Arthur L., ensign, 5o.
William II, activities in Venezuela, 366.
Wilson, James H., major-general, I6.
Wilson, Jeremiah M., judge, 388, 394.
Windom, William, former secretary of
the treasury, I2.
Windward Islands, U. S. S. St. Louis at,
228.
Windward Passage, off Cuba, 132.
Winship, Emory, lieutenant, 354.
Winslow, Cameron M., lieutenant-commander, 243.
Wise, Frederick M., commander, 319,
320, 321, 322.
Wise, William C., captain, 202, 203, 206,
208.
Wolcott, Edward 0., U. S. senator, 57,
58, 59, 337 -Wolcott, Roger, governor of Massachusetts, 17, i8, 24, 89, I04, 105, io6, 144,




464


INDEX


146, 147; appointed Philippine commissioner, 310, 3II; appointed ambassador to Italy, 337; declines, 338,
339 -Wompatuck, naval tug, 127, 228.
Wood, Leonard, brigadier-general, 268,
269, 285, 286; Governor-General of
Cuba, 286, 287, 288.
Woodward, Charles F., colonel, 208.
Worcester, Dean C., Philippine commissioner, 310.
World, New York, 56, 133.


Wright, Henry J., i62, 163.
Wynne, Robert F., captain, 367.
Yale, U. S. S., 202, 203, 207, 208.
Yankee, U. S. S., 91, I36.
Yankton, U. S. S., 317.
Yokohama, I89, 329.
Yorktown, 38.
Yosemite, U. S. S., 91, 136, I79, i8o.
Yrarrazaval, Don Manuel J., i i.
ZOGBAUM, Rufus F., 122.




I
I




THE UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN
DATE DUE


1 -

MAR 2 3 1994




UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN
3II 9015 02897 6317




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