Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page.

SCHLEY’S LAWYERS FILE HIS PROTEST Is Scathing Indictment of Ramsay and Benham. OPINION DECLARED TRAVESTY Finding of Majority Not Based on Evidence—Secretary Long is Served With Paper. 0 Admiral Schley, through his counsel, Wednesday filed with the secretary of the navy the bill of exceptions to the majority findings of the court of in¬ quiry and also a letter asking to be al¬ lowed to be heard in connection with the objections to be filed by attorneys for Admiral Sampson to the individual opinion of Admiral Dewey. This action was taken after Mr. Raynor, Mr. Teague and Captain Parker, of coun¬ sel, had held a consultation through¬ out the day with their client. Secre¬ tary Long, almost immediately after the receipt of the communications, called Judge Advocate Lemly and the solicitor for the department, Mr. Han¬ na, into conference. At its conclusion the secretary said that he had no state¬ ment to make regarding any action that he might take in the premises. He, however, indicated to Mr. Teague, through the judge advocate, that he would not hear an oral argument by Raynor regarding Admiral Sampson’s protest, but that would he would re¬ ceive a written statement. It was expected that counsel for Ad¬ miral Sampson would file their objec¬ tions to the findings of Admiral Dew¬ ey in the case, but they failed to do so. Contrary to Evidence. The bill of exceptions “objects to the approval of the findings of the court upon the ground that the opinion ren¬ dered and the report of facts made by the majority of the court are in con¬ flict with the overwhelming weight of evidence and that the majority of the court in their said opinion have ig¬ nored the testimony of the applicant and of the whole of the applicant s witnesses, and all that portion of the evidence given by witnesses for the government which was favorable to the applicant, and have thus deprived him of rights guaranteed him by the laws of the land and the constitution of the United States.” SOUTH FLORIDA SHIVERS. Cold Snap Visits State But Vo Danger Is Apprehended. According to a Tallahasee' dispatch, throughout northern Florida Wednes¬ day was the coldest December day in over twenty years. The thermometer ranged from 20 to 25 degrees above zero through the long 400-mile strip between Jackson¬ ville and Pensacola. The state agricul¬ tural department is advised that -no se¬ rious damage will result to orange and other fruit groves in the Florida penin¬ sular, as the sap had been driven from the trees by the continued cool weath¬ er of the past month. Vegetables in north Florida are con¬ siderably damaged, however. CASTRO DARKS KAISER BILL. Says Venezuela Cannot Be Coerced By Braggadocio Germans. La Republica, the Venezuelan offi¬ cial organ at Caracas, published an editorial Wednesday in part as fol¬ lows: “If the German government is in¬ formed that the presence of a few war¬ ships will suffice to effect an arrange¬ ment of her outstanding claims, it has been deceived. Venezuela is conscious that she is an independent nation, the equal of the other powers, and she is determined to defend that independ¬ ence and equality. She is desirous of peace; but if necessary she can cause hurt to her enemies and exercise ter¬ rible reprisals.” Another Victim of Marx Dying. A Richmond dispatch says: James Q. Stiff, the third man who was shot by Herbert Marx in the Westmore¬ land tragedy, is at his home and sink¬ ing rapidly. NERVY GIRL ROUTS ROBBER. With Revolver Miss Hamilton Pro¬ tects Office Safe. A stranger entered the office of Jus¬ tice Webb at Youngstown, Ohio, Wed¬ nesday morning, and finding his clerk, Miss Clementine Hamilton, alone, de¬ manded that she open the safe, which contained $2,000. Upon her refusal, he attempted to strangle her, saying: “If you don’t open the safe I’ll kill you.” break¬ Miss Hamilton succeeded In ing away, and securing a revolver, fired point blank at the fellow, who ran out of the office and escaped. COST OF COMBINING. Atlanta Council Committee and H. M. Atkinson Reach Agree¬ ment After Long Fight. An Atlanta dispatch says: After a wrangle lasting many days the con¬ ference committee of council and H. M. Atainson have agreed upon terms for consolidation of the properties of the Atlanta Railway and Power Company, the Atlanta Rapid Transit Company and the Georgia Electric Light Com¬ pany. This agreement will presented to council for consideration. The.terms of the agreement are as follows: In consideration of this agreement to consolidate the properties of the At¬ lanta Rapid Transit Company and the Atlanta Railway and Power Company, Mr. Atkinson agrees to pay into the city treasury $50,000 for the privilege of making pnyslcal connections and for the right to operate power com¬ pany cars over the Whitehall street viaduct. Also that the folowing payments on gross receipts of combined properties shall be made: One per cent of gross receipts for the first three years. Two per cent for next three years. Three per cent the next two years. Four per cent xor me next two years. Five per cent every year thereafter until the expiration of the franchises. It is expressly stipulated that in the event the assessment of all the prop¬ erty consolidated exceeds $2,ZOO,000 during the first ten years of the agree¬ ment, the company is to receive a re¬ bate of 1 1-4 per cent of this increase on the percentage of the gross receipts to be paid to the city. During the sec¬ ond ten years this -assessment is re¬ stricted to $3,000,000, and uuring the third ten years it is restricted to $3,- 500,000. The assessment of the combined property is now $2,200,000. The city rate of taxation is 1 l-* per cent. The lives of none of the franchises of the street railway companies, elec¬ tric light companies and steam heat¬ ing company are to be affected by this agreement. The consolidation includes the Atlanta Railway and Power com¬ pany, its electric lighting plant and its steam heating plant, and the Georgia Electrie Light Company. The first payment of gross receipts is to be made February 1, 1903, and will cover the year 1902. The agree¬ ment provides that the city council shall appoint a board of examiners to ascertain from the books of the con- solidated properties the correct amounts of the annual receipts prior to the 1st of February of each year. It is agreed that a system of inter¬ changeable transfers shall be estab¬ lished between the two street railway companies. FEAR UPRISING IN MANILA. Americans Are Placing Artillery In Various Sections of City. The steamer Keosa Maru, which ar¬ rived at Victoria, B. C., Wednesday, from the Orient, brings these advices: The authorities in Manila'evidently fear a rising, for Manila papers report that artillery is being placed in places about the city heretofore practically unprotected SOLDIER-JOURNALIST DEAD. Major French strange Victim of Heart Disease In Atlanta. While talking to a Jittle girl in the store of W. S. Beckman, corner of Whitehall and Murphy avenue, in At¬ lanta, Wednesday afternoon, Major French Strange, a journalist, and for many years a citizen of Atlanta, drop¬ ped dead from heart disease. He was a brave confederate soldier, having ranked as major under General Lee. MRS. HOOKS ARRAIGNED. Pleads “Not Guilty” to Charge of Poisoning Her Husband. Another step was taken in the sen¬ sational Hooks case at Memphis, Tenn., Wednesday afternoon when the widow of the late Cerro Gordo Hooks appeared In the criminal court room and entered a plea of not guilty to the indictment charging her with the kill¬ ing of her husband by the use of poi¬ son. GOES UNGER NEW MANAGEMENT, Aurora, Illinois, Man to Take Charge of Atlanta Street Railways. D. A. Belden, of Aurora, Ills., will take charge of the combined proper¬ ties of the Atlanta, Ga., Railway and Power Company and the Atlanta Rap¬ id Transit Company on January 1. On that date Ernest Woodruff, president of the Atlanta Railway and Power Company, who has been in practical charge of that system for the past ten years, will retire from office. What other changes will occur has not been announced. SMITH RESIGNS FROM THE CABINET Postmaster General Goes Back to Editorial Work. NEW APPOINTEE HENRY PAYNE Action of Mr. Smith in Leaving Cabinet at This Time Causes fluch Political Speculation. A Washington special says: Charles Emory Smith has resigned from the cabinet and Henry C. Payne, of Wis¬ consin, takes his place as postmaster general. The announcement of this change was made late Tuesday after¬ noon. Naturally it has given rise to all sorts of speculation concerning ths motives which prompted the resigna tion, whether this change will be fol¬ lowed by others and what will be its political effect. It has been known that Mr. Smith has desired to resign his portfolio and return to his editorial work, but it was expected that the cab¬ inet would hold together for some time at least. JUDGE GUAM’S MANDAMUS. Howell Resolution Is Declared To He Entirely t (institutional. An Atlanta dispatch says Judge John S. Candler, of the Stone Moun- tain circuit, decided Tuesday morning that the Howell resolution, appropriat- ing $325,880 of the public property fund for the payment of the interest on the bonded debt of the state, was en¬ tirely constitutional, and granted the mandamus absolute asked for by Gov¬ ernor Candler, which mandamus or¬ ders State Treasurer Robert E. Park to transfer the sum mentioned from the public property fund to the inter¬ est fund. The hearing of the case occurred in the office of Attorney General Terrell. X sX J X e .XX at o”ra S X 30 minutes were occupied in the hear¬ ing of the case. Both sides agreed on a statement of facts and the attorneys outlined briefly their contentions. The case will be appealed to the su- preme court at once as it is the de- sire of both sides to have the highest tribunal in the state to pass on the question. It is understood that the supreme court will hear the arguments in the case/at once but a decision will not be rendered before January 10th. Th^ case is almost on the same line as the one which was decided on last March, when Treasurer Park declined to use ihe public property fund as a loan to pay the school teachers. BURGLAR KILLS WOMAN. Young Lady Engages Tn Pistol Duel Willi Midnight Marauder. garnet P. Murphy, prominent in church and society circles and treas¬ urer of the Kingsley house fund, was murdered at her home in Pittsburg, Pa., by a burglar, about 3 o’clock Tues- day morning. The murderer made his escape, and although the detectives and police force of that section was called, the man has not been arrested. Before receiving her fatal wound, Miss Murphy fired two shots at her as¬ sailant. She was an expert with the revolver, having practiced many years for the purpose of protecting herself in the event of just such an attack, and she always had her pistol either under her or within reach. To Reopen Interesting Case. The Chattanooga chamber of com¬ merce has decided to reopen the action before the interstate commerce com¬ mission against the various railroads entering the city from the east for al- leged discriminations against Chatta- nooga in favor of Nashville and other rival cities in freight rates from the east. The case was dismissed by the United States supreme court on a tech- nicality, but can be reopened for hear- ing on its merits. CARNEGIE UNDAUNTED. Philanthropist Confident That Gov¬ ernment Will Accept His Gift. Andrew Carnegie was in Washing¬ ton Wednesday and, with Secretary Root, lunched with the president at the white house. It is understood that the proposed gift of $10,000,000 by Mr. Carnegie to the government was dis¬ cussed. Mr. Carnegie left the city late in the afternoon. He was quoted as saying that there would be no doubt’ about the gift—that the matter would come out all right. RESOLUTIONS GALORE Are Introduced In Congress By the Staunch Friends of Rear Admiral Schley. Representative Wheeler of Ken¬ tucky, a member of the committee on naval affairs, introduced a resolution in the house Tuesday for an investiga¬ tion of the Schley case. The resolu¬ tion recites the results of the recent court of inquiry and adds;: G*rge “Whereas, Admiral Dewey, recognized as the foremost naval offi¬ cer of the republic, entirely disagrees and dissents from the opinion of his colleagues on said board of inquiry; and, “Whereas, The American people de¬ sire that the conduct of Rear Admiral Schley should be investigated and passed upon by citizens of the repub¬ lic in nowise connected or identified with the navy department; therefore be it, “Resolved, That the committee on naval affairs of the house of represen¬ tatives be directed to inquire into the conduct of Rear Admiral Schley from the time he assumed control of the flying squadron up to and including the engagement with the Spanish fleet off the coast of Cuba.” Provision is made for a report to the house of representatives and thority is given to send for persons and papers. Representative. Mudd, of Maryland, also introduced a resolution relative to Admiral Schley, as follows: “Resolved, That the. thanks of con¬ gress and of the American people are hereby tendered to Rear Admiral Win¬ field Scott Schley and the officers and men under his command for their vic¬ tory over the Spanish forces and the destruction of the Spanish fleet in the naval battle off Santiago de Cuba July 3, 1898.” Mr. Mudd says the resolution is not the result of any concerted action by the Maryland delegation and repre¬ sents his individual views. Investigation Is Demanded. Representatives Cooper and Vandi¬ ver also introduced Schley resolutions. Mr. Cooper’s resolution declares Schley in command and entitled to credit for at Santiago 1,recta that he be placed on the active list with the rank he held before retire- ment. Mr. Vandiver’s resolution recites that the language of the court of in- C ; U ji-y reflected upon Admiral Schley an; j ca ij s f or an investigation by sev- en members of the house, w p icn shall investigate what injustice has been done and what remedy shou d be ap- plied Representative Gaines, of Ter.nes se?, introduced a resolution reciting the “nrparalleled achievement of Ad¬ miral Schley in destroying the entire Spat ’sh squadron with cons a um ue skill and terrible celerity.” The resolution makes the opinion of At i:> al Dewey the opinion ol' con- grtss. Representative Ball, of Teas, intro¬ duced a resolution tendering the thanks of congress to Admiral Schley. Representative Cummings, of New York, introduced a resolution direct- j ng the secretary of the navy to pre¬ sent a sword of honor to Admiral Schley and to strike off bronze “Schley me dals” for the officers and men who participated in the battle of Santiago, appropriation of $10,000 is made, GEORGIA STATE TROOPS. Roster Completed By Inspector Gen¬ eral lor War Department. Inspector General William G. Obear has completed making the roster of the Georgia state troops which roster will be forwarded in a few days to the United States war department by Adjutant General J. W. Robertson. The roster shows 4,772 members of the state militia, an increase of 591 sol- diers over last year. Of this number are negroes . There are 83 compa- n ; es 0 f j n f an try artillery and cavalry. There are 3,179 members of white in- f a ntry, 616 members of negro infantry, 552 members of white cavalry, 224 of heavy artillery, 159 of light artillery, 21 of general staff and 21 of the hos- pital cor ps. DEATH SENTENCE FOR PRICE. Slayer of Mrs. Rowland In Macon to Die For His Crime. At Macon, Ga., Thursday Arthur Price, the negro who brutally murder¬ ed Mrs. R. J. Rowland in South Macon recently, was found guilty in the supe rior court. Judge Felton immediately sentenced him to be hanged January 10th. On the stand Price denied the con¬ fession made to several persons after he was captured. He claimed that he made the confession under a threat that he would be killed if he did not do so. SCHLEY’S FRIENDS WILL NOT REST Congress Will Be Appealed to For Vindication. NOTICE IS SERVED ON MR. LONG Findings of Admirals Ramsey and Benham, of Inquiry Court Cannot Be Accepted. The Maryland friends in congress of Rear Admiral W. S. Schley have deter¬ mined to bring his case to the attention of congress and seek there the vindica¬ tion' they claim is uue him. This ac¬ tion was determined upon Monday night at a dinner given by General Felix Agnus and attended by Senator McComas, the Maryland members of the house and a few other friends. A resolution will be prepared extending to the admiral the thanks of congress for his services in the battle of San¬ tiago and conferring on him the rank, pay and emoluments of a rear admiral on the active list of the navy. A pre¬ amble to the resolution will recite Ad¬ miral Dewey’s conclusions of the court of inquiry giving Admiral Schley the credit for the victory of the battle of Santiago. Senator McComas will in¬ troduce the resolution in the senate, and probably Mr. Mudd a similar one in the house. If deemed expedient, an effort will be made to give Admiral Schley the rank of vice admiral. The resolutions will be prepared promptly and introduced in both houses and an attempt will be made to have early ac¬ tion on them. Retrial of Case Not Wanted. M. A. Teague, one of Admiral Schley’s counsel before the court of in quiry, and who was also a guest at the dinner, said that the admiral would not seek a retrial of the case under any circumstances. His desire and that of his friends was that to be relieved of the censure imposed upon him by the report of the majority of the court of inquiry. Nor, he added, would there be any suits instituted having in view the obtaining of money for li¬ belous publications affecting him. Mr Teague said that a vigorous bill of ex¬ ceptions to the conclusions of the court will be filed with the secretary of the navy. Senator McComas said: “I believe an investigation by con¬ gress would not have decisive results. It is not advisable. In some fashion this congress should have a chance to vote Admiral Dewey’s finding to be in the judgment of congress right or wrong. I want to see such a vote, and I hope to see it before the session ends. I will introduce a practical proposition tending to bring such vote in the senate at least. The details I do not now desire to elaborate.” Request Made of Long. Admiral Schley was in consultation Monday with his counsel, Hon. Isidor Raynor and M. A. Teague, also Gen¬ eral Felix Agnus, of Baltimore, and Congressman Schirm, of Maryland. Af¬ ter the conference Admiral Schley au¬ thorized Mr. Teague to make the fol¬ lowing statement: “We have been in consultation as to what further proceedings shall be ta¬ ken. Nothing definite has been deter, mined upon so far as civil or criminal action against Maclay and his sponsors is concerned. Maclay’s claim that the findings of the court are a vindication for himself and his book is absolutely spurious. There are no less than half a dozen instances in the book in which, even if he were to accept the findings, of the court and incorporate them in the volume and change it to suit the findings, the book would still be crim¬ inal libel.” Mr. Teague, during tie afternoon, presented the following letter to Sec- retary Long: “Washington, D. C., December 16.— Sir: I have the honor to most respect- fully request that you withhold your approval from the findings of the court of inquiry recently held at the navy yard in the city of Washington, . of which Admiral George Dewey was president, until such time as I may have an opportunity to file a statement of objection thereto and I therefore request that you do not dissolve the court until aqtion shall have Ueen fca- ken on such objections. Very respeet- fully, W. S. SCHLEY, “Rear Admiral United States Navy.” Later in the day Secretary Long ac knowledged, in a formal letter, the re^ ceipt of the request from Admiral for permission to file a bill o objections. The secretary’s response was brief and purely formal ; it grant ed the request and allowed until Fri day next in which to submit the bill. Adnirat Schley has been relieved front further duty In connection with the court of inquiry.