(From
“Dolly Gray”)
We
have come to say “hello”,
Mister Schley;
You’re
a gallant old he – ro,
Mister Schley;
There’s
a murmur in the air
They
ain’t going to use you fair,
But
you hardly need to care,
Mister Schley.
O
you bravely led the van,
Mister Schley;
And
we’re with you to a man,
Mister Schley;
For
you nobly did the trick –
And
it’s making someone sick,
But
to you the crowd will stick,
Mister Schley.
Good
bye Sampson we must leave you
Altho’ it breaks your heart we know;
Something
tells us you warn’t needed
At the front to fight the foe.
No
one but Schley will get the glory,
Not matter how they try;
Good
bye Sampson we must leave you
Bravo, old man Schley!
Aug.
4, 1901
Winfield
Scott Schley (9 October 1839 – 2 October 1911) was a rear
admiral in the United States Navy and the hero of the Battle
of Santiago de Cuba during the Spanish–American War.
Controversy
relating to the Battle of Santiago –
A controversy arose between partisans of Schley
and those of Sampson over their respective claims to the credit of the victory
over Cervera's fleet during the recent war. Of that discussion neither officer
personally took public notice until after the appearance of a work by Edgar
Stanton Maclay entitled History of the United States Navy. In that
book, the author referred to Commodore Schley as a “caitiff, poltroon and
coward.” The proofs of the book had been read and approved by various naval officers,
among them Rear Admiral Sampson.
At Schley's request, because of the charges
made against him in the book, a court of inquiry was opened on September 12,
1901, composed of Admiral George Dewey, Rear Admiral Andrew E. K.
Benham and Rear Admiral Francis Munroe Ramsay, which investigated
Schley's conduct before and during the Battle of Santiago. On 13 December 1901,
the court reported its proceedings and the testimony taken, with a full and
detailed statement of all the pertinent facts which it deemed to be
established, together with its opinion and recommendations. Various officers
gave conflicting testimony as to Schley's conduct, with one, Captain Templin
Potts, directly accusing Schley of cowardice.
The majority report of the court found that
Commodore Schley failed to proceed to Santiago with due despatch, that the
squadron should not have been delayed by the yacht U.S.S. Eagle, that
he should not have turned westward, that he should have obeyed the Navy
Department's order of May 25, 1898, that he did not do his utmost to capture
the Colon, that the turn of the Brooklyn caused the Texas to
stop, for carelessness in endangering Texas, for blanketing the fire of
other American vessels, that he did injustice to Lieutenant Commander Hodgson
(Navigation officer of the Brooklyn at the time of the incident),
that his conduct in the Santiago campaign was characterized by vacillation,
dilatoriness, and "lack of enterprise," and that his coal reports
were inaccurate and misleading. Admiral George Dewey, however, presented a
minority report, in which he praised Schley for promptness and efficient
service, and gave him the credit for the destruction of Cervera's fleet.
The court recommended that no action be taken
in view of the length of time which had elapsed. Rear Admiral Schley filed a
protest against the court's findings, which, however, were approved by the Secretary
of the Navy Long, who (expectedly) supported Sampson on grounds of rank
and seniority. Nonetheless, the public press, and particularly the Hearst
newspapers, saw the outcome as vindicating Schley, whose status as a war hero
was enhanced by the exposure. In January 1902, Rear Admiral Schley
appealed from the verdict to President Theodore Roosevelt, who, however,
confirmed Secretary Long's approval.
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