The divers at work on the wreck of the Maine have been steadily hampered by the difficult situation of the vessel. In the first place, the hull is sinking into the mud at the rate of a foot a day, and a week after the disaster the divers had to wade through mud up to their waists. Then, too, the water is so dirty that they can hardly see below the surface.
Nevertheless, they have succeeded in bringing up many valuables, among others the paymaster's safe containing $2,700.
The opinion seems to be growing that we may never be able to discover the cause of the disaster. The fact that the forward half of the ship has been completely destroyed adds probability to this view. The after half, however, is reported to be practically intact.
As for the submarine mines, it may be that their existence will also remain problematical. A prominent naval officer has explained that such mines consist merely of big metal cases filled with gun-cotton, and that their explosion would blow them into atoms.
In spite of our sensational newspapers, which had done their best to spread the "war scare," our country has acted in a thoroughly sensible and praiseworthy manner in relation to the disaster of the Maine. The best of our newspapers, moreover, had also shown a willingness to avoid sensational news for the sake of encouraging peace. This shows that we are a much less aggressive nation than we have hitherto been thought to be.
In this connection it is worth while calling the attention of the readers of The Great Round World to the immense influence that our newspapers may exert at a time like this. If all of the papers had behaved as disgracefully as some have done, we might now be really on the verge of war.
In other words, it is of the highest importance to us as a nation, with an absolutely free press, to have for journalists men and women who possess not only ability, but character and discretion as well. So much that was false was published in some of the papers that their reputation for reliability has been entirely lost, and now no one pays very much attention to what they say. They have certainly now a well-established reputation as monumental liars, and this reputation will stick to them for a long time to come.