The Boys of '98
by James Otis · English · Gutenberg #30684 · 560,227 chars · public domain (US)
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Title: The Boys of '98
Author: James Otis
Release date: December 15, 2009 [eBook #30684]
Most recently updated: June 16, 2020
Language: English
Other information and formats: www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/30684
*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE BOYS OF '98 ***
THE BOYS OF ’98
*STORIES of*
*AMERICAN HISTORY*
*By James Otis*
1. When We Destroyed the Gaspee
2. Boston Boys of 1775
3. When Dewey Came to Manila
4. Off Santiago with Sampson
5. When Israel Putnam Served the King
6. The Signal Boys of ’75
(A Tale of the Siege of Boston)
7. Under the Liberty Tree
(A Story of the Boston Massacre)
8. The Boys of 1745
(The Capture of Louisburg)
9. An Island Refuge
(Casco Bay in 1676)
10. Neal the Miller
(A Son of Liberty)
11. Ezra Jordan’s Escape
(The Massacre at Fort Loyall)
*DANA ESTES & COMPANY*
*Publishers*
*Estes Press, Summer St., Boston*
[Illustration: THE CHARGE AT EL CANEY.]
THE BOYS OF ’98
BY
JAMES OTIS
AUTHOR OF
“TOBY TYLER,” “JENNY WREN’S BOARDING HOUSE,”
“THE BOYS OF FORT SCHUYLER,” ETC.
_Illustrated by_
J. STEEPLE DAVIS
FRANK T. MERRILL
_And with Reproductions of Photographs_
_ELEVENTH THOUSAND_
BOSTON
DANA ESTES & COMPANY
PUBLISHERS
_Copyright, 1898_
BY DANA ESTES & COMPANY
CONTENTS.
CHAPTER PAGE
I. THE BATTLE-SHIP MAINE 1
II. THE PRELIMINARIES 19
III. A DECLARATION OF WAR 38
IV. THE BATTLE OF MANILA BAY 64
V. NEWS OF THE DAY 92
VI. CARDENAS AND SAN JUAN 117
VII. FROM ALL QUARTERS 130
VIII. HOBSON AND THE MERRIMAC 149
IX. BY WIRE 171
X. SANTIAGO DE CUBA 194
XI. EL CANEY AND SAN JUAN HEIGHTS 224
XII. THE SPANISH FLEET 254
XIII. THE SURRENDER OF SANTIAGO 290
XIV. MINOR EVENTS 302
XV. THE PORTO RICAN CAMPAIGN 320
XVI. THE FALL OF MANILA 335
XVII. PEACE 345
APPENDIX A—THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS 355
APPENDIX B—WAR-SHIPS AND SIGNALS 370
APPENDIX C—SANTIAGO DE CUBA 379
APPENDIX D—PORTO RICO 383
APPENDIX E—THE BAY OF GUANTANAMO 386
ILLUSTRATIONS.
PAGE
THE CHARGE AT EL CANEY _Frontispiece_
U. S. S. MAINE 7
CAPTAIN C. D. SIGSBEE 12
EX-MINISTER DE LOME 20
U. S. S. MONTGOMERY 24
MAJOR-GENERAL FITZHUGH LEE 30
U. S. S. COLUMBIA 38
CAPTAIN-GENERAL BLANCO 44
PREMIER SAGASTA 49
PRESIDENT WILLIAM MCKINLEY 55
U. S. S. PURITAN 58
ADMIRAL GEORGE DEWEY 64
U. S. S. OLYMPIA 69
U. S. S. BALTIMORE 72
BATTLE OF MANILA BAY 75
U. S. S. BOSTON 77
U. S. S. CONCORD 82
U. S. S. TERROR 99
JOHN D. LONG, SECRETARY OF NAVY 107
U. S. S. CHICAGO 117
THE TRAGEDY OF THE WINSLOW 119
U. S. S. AMPHITRITE 123
THE BOMBARDMENT OF SAN JUAN, PORTO RICO 127
U. S. S. MIANTONOMAH 130
ADMIRAL SCHLEY 135
U. S. S. MONTEREY 144
U. S. S. MASSACHUSETTS 151
LIEUTENANT HOBSON 156
U. S. S. NEW YORK 161
HOBSON AND HIS MEN ON THE RAFT 166
ADMIRAL CERVERA 169
QUEEN REGENT, MARIA CHRISTINA OF SPAIN 171
GENERAL GARCIA 181
ADMIRAL CAMARA 186
GENERAL AUGUSTI 192
U. S. S. MARBLEHEAD 201
U. S. S. VESUVIUS 207
U. S. S. TEXAS 215
COLONEL THEODORE ROOSEVELT 218
MAJOR-GENERAL SHAFTER 224
THE ATTACK ON SAN JUAN HILL 229
VICE-PRESIDENT HOBART 234
U. S. S. NEWARK 239
ADMIRAL W. T. SAMPSON 243
GENERAL WEYLER 254
CAPTAIN R. D. EVANS 256
U. S. S. IOWA 262
THE DESTRUCTION OF CERVERA’S FLEET 266
U. S. S. INDIANA 269
U. S. S. OREGON 275
U. S. S. BROOKLYN 282
MAJOR-GENERAL JOSEPH WHEELER 292
KING ALPHONSO XIII. OF SPAIN 300
GENERAL GOMEZ 311
U. S. S. NEW ORLEANS 314
U. S. S. SAN FRANCISCO 318
MAJOR-GENERAL MILES 320
MAJOR-GENERAL BROOKE 327
GENERAL BROOKE RECEIVING THE NEWS OF THE 333
PROTOCOL
GENERAL RUSSELL A. ALGER, SECRETARY OF WAR 334
MAJOR-GENERAL WESLEY MERRITT 344
DON CARLOS 349
THE BOYS OF ’98.
CHAPTER I.
THE BATTLE-SHIP MAINE.
At or about eleven o’clock on the morning of January 25th the United
States battle-ship _Maine_ steamed through the narrow channel which gives
entrance to the inner harbour of Havana, and came to anchor at Buoy No. 4,
in obedience to orders from the captain of the port, in from five and
one-half to six fathoms of water. She swung at her cables within five
hundred yards of the arsenal, and about two hundred yards distant from the
floating dock.
Very shortly afterward the rapid-firing guns on her bow roared out a
salute as the Spanish colours were run up to the mizzenmast-head, and this
thunderous announcement of friendliness was first answered by Morro
Castle, followed a few moments later by the Spanish cruiser _Alphonso
XII._ and a German school-ship.
The reverberations had hardly ceased before the captain of the port and an
officer from the Spanish war-vessel, each in his gaily decked launch, came
alongside the battle-ship in accordance with the rules of naval etiquette.
Lieut. John J. Blandin, officer of the deck, received the visitors at the
head of the gangway and escorted them to the captain’s cabin. A few
moments later came an officer from the German ship, and the courtesies of
welcoming the Americans were at an end.
The _Maine_ was an armoured, twin-screw battle-ship of the second class,
318 feet in length, 57 feet in breadth, with a draught of 21 feet, 6
inches; of 6,648 tons displacement, with engines of 9,293 indicated
horse-power, giving her a speed of 17.75 knots. She was built in the
Brooklyn navy yard, according to act of Congress, August 3, 1886. Work on
her was commenced October 11, 1888; she was launched November 18, 1890,
and put into commission September 17, 1895. She was built after the
designs of chief constructor T. D. Wilson. The delay in going into
commission is said to have been due to the difficulty in getting
satisfactory armour. The side armour was twelve inches thick; the two
steel barbettes were each of the same thickness, and the walls of the
turrets were eight inches thick.
In her main battery were four 10-inch and six 6-inch breech-loading
rifles; in the secondary battery seven 6-pounder and eight 1-pounder
rapid-fire guns and four Gatlings. Her crew was made up of 370 men, and
the following officers: Capt. C. D. Sigsbee, Lieut.-Commander R.
Wainwright, Lieut. G. F. W. Holman, Lieut. J. Hood, Lieut. C. W. Jungen,
Lieut. G. P. Blow, Lieut. F. W. Jenkins, Lieut. J. J. Blandin, Surgeon S.
G. Heneberger, Paymaster C. M. Ray, Chief Engineer C. P. Howell, Chaplain
J. P. Chidwick, Passed Assistant Engineer F. C. Bowers, Lieutenant of
Marines A. Catlin, Assistant Engineer J. R. Morris, Assistant Engineer
Darwin R. Merritt, Naval Cadet J. H. Holden, Naval Cadet W. T. Cluverius,
Naval Cadet R. Bronson, Naval Cadet P. Washington, Naval Cadet A.
Crenshaw, Naval Cadet J. T. Boyd, Boatswain F. E. Larkin, Gunner J. Hill,
Carpenter J. Helm, Paymaster’s Clerk B. McCarthy.
Why had the _Maine_ been sent to this port?
The official reason given by the Secretary of the Navy when he notified
the Spanish minister, Señor Dupuy de Lome, was that the visit of the
_Maine_ was simply intended as a friendly call, according to the
recognised custom of nations.
The United States minister at Madrid, General Woodford, also announced the
same in substance to the Spanish Minister of State.
It having been repeatedly declared by the government at Madrid that a
state of war did not exist in Cuba, and that the relations between the
United States and Spain were of the most friendly character, nothing less
could be done than accept the official construction put upon the visit.
The Spanish public, however, were not disposed to view the matter in the
same light, as may be seen by the following extracts from newspapers:
“If the government of the United States sends one war-ship to Cuba, a
thing it is no longer likely to do, Spain would act with energy and
without vacillation.”—_El Heraldo, January 16th._
“We see now the eagerness of the Yankees to seize Cuba.”—_The Imparcial,
January 23d._
The same paper, on the 27th, declared:
“If Havana people, exasperated at American impudence in sending the
_Maine_, do some rash, disagreeable thing, the civilised world will know
too well who is responsible. The American government must know that the
road it has taken leads to war between both nations.”
On January 25th Madrid newspapers made general comment upon the official
explanation of the _Maine’s_ visit to Havana, and agreed in expressing the
opinion that her visit is “inopportune and calculated to encourage the
insurgents.” It was announced that, “following Washington’s example,” the
Spanish government will “instruct Spanish war-ships to visit a few
American ports.”
The _Imparcial_ expresses fear that the despatch of the _Maine_ to Havana
will provoke a conflict, and adds:
“Europe cannot doubt America’s attitude towards Spain. But the Spanish
people, if necessary, will do their duty with honour.”
The _Epocha_ asks if the despatch of the _Maine_ to Havana is “intended as
a sop to the Jingoes,” and adds:
“We cannot suppose the American government so naïve or badly informed as
to imagine that the presence of American war-vessels at Havana will be a
cause of satisfaction to Spain or an indication of friendship.”
The people of the United States generally believed that the battle-ship
had been sent to Cuba because of the disturbances existing in the city of
Havana, which seemingly threatened the safety of Americans there.
On the morning of January 12th what is termed the “anti-liberal outbreak”
occurred in the city of Havana.
Officers of the regular and volunteer forces headed the ultra-Spanish
element in an attack upon the leading liberal newspaper offices, because,
as alleged, of Captain-General Blanco’s refusal to authorise the
suppression of the liberal press. It was evidently a riotous protest
against Spain’s policy of granting autonomy to the Cubans.
The mob, gathered in such numbers as to be for the time being most
formidable, indulged in open threats against Americans, and it was
believed by the public generally that American interests, and the safety
of citizens of the United States in Havana, demanded the protection of a
war-vessel.
The people of Havana received the big fighting ship impassively. Soldiers,
sailors, and civilians gathered at the water-front as spectators, but no
word, either of threat or friendly greeting, was heard.
In the city the American residents experienced a certain sense of relief
because now a safe refuge was provided in case of more serious rioting.
That the officers and crew of the _Maine_ were apprehensive regarding
their situation there can be little doubt. During the first week after the
arrival of the battle-ship several of the sailors wrote to friends or
relatives expressing fears as to what might be the result of the visit,
and on the tenth of February one of the lieutenants is reported as having
stated:
“If we don’t get away from here soon there will be trouble.”
The customary ceremonial visits on shore were made by the commander of the
ship and his staff, and, so far as concerned the officials of the city,
the Americans were seemingly welcome visitors.
The more radical of the citizens were not so apparently content with
seeing the _Maine_ in their harbour. Within a week after the arrival of
the ship incendiary circulars were distributed in the streets, on the
railway cars, and in many other public places, calling upon all Spaniards
to avenge the “insult” of the battle-ship’s visit.
A translation of one such circular serves as a specimen of all:
“Spaniards: Long live Spain and honour.
[Illustration: U. S. S. MAINE.]
“What are ye doing that ye allow yourselves to be insulted in this way?
“Do you not see what they have done to us in withdrawing our brave and
beloved Weyler, who at this very time would have finished with this
unworthy rebellious rabble, who are trampling on our flag and our honour?
“Autonomy is imposed on us so as to thrust us to one side and to give
posts of honour and authority to those who initiated this rebellion, these
ill-born autonomists, ungrateful sons of our beloved country.
“And, finally, these Yankee hogs who meddle in our affairs humiliate us to
the last degree, and for still greater taunt order to us one of the ships
of war of their rotten squadron, after insulting us in their newspapers
and driving us from our homes.
“Spaniards, the moment of action has arrived. Sleep not. Let us show these
vile traitors that we have not yet lost shame and that we know how to
protect ourselves with energy befitting a nation worthy and strong as our
Spain is and always will be.
“Death to Americans. Death to autonomy.
“Long live Spain!
“Long live Weyler!”
At eight o’clock on the evening of February 15th all the magazines aboard
the battle-ship were closed, and the keys delivered to her commander
according to the rules of the service.
An hour and a half later Lieut. John J. Blandin was on watch as officer of
the deck; Captain Sigsbee sat in his cabin writing letters; on the
starboard side of the ship, made fast to the boom, was the steam cutter,
with her crew on board waiting to make the regular ten o’clock trip to the
shore to bring off such of the officers or crew as were on leave of
absence.
The night was unusually dark; great banks of thick clouds hung over the
city and harbour; the ripple of the waves against the hulls of the vessels
at anchor, and the subdued hum of voices, alone broke the silence. The
lights here and there, together with the dark tracery of spar and cordage
against the sky, was all that betokened the presence of war-ship or
peaceful merchantman.
Suddenly, and when the silence was most profound, the watch on board the
steamer _City of Washington_, and some sailors ashore, saw what appeared
to be a sheet of fire flash up in the water directly beneath the _Maine_,
and even as the blinding glare was in their eyes came a mighty, confused
rumble as of grinding and rending, followed an instant later by a roar as
if a volcano had sprung into activity beneath the waves of the harbour.
Then was flung high in the air what might be likened to a shaft of fire
filled with fragments of iron, wood, and human flesh, rising higher and
higher until its force was spent, when it fell outwardly as falls a column
of water broken by the wind.
The earth literally trembled; the air suddenly became heavy with stifling
smoke. Electric lights on shore were extinguished; the tinkling of
breaking glass could be heard everywhere in that portion of the city
nearest the harbour.
When the shower of fragments and of fire ceased to fall a dense blackness
enshrouded the harbour, from the midst of which could be heard cries of
agony, appeals for help, and the shouts of those who, even while
struggling to save their own lives, would cheer their comrades.
After this, and no man could have said how many seconds passed while the
confusing, bewildering blackness lay heavy over that scene of death and
destruction, long tongues of flame burst up from the torn and splintered
decks of the doomed battle-ship, a signal of distress, as well as a beacon
for those who would succour the dying.
Captain Sigsbee, recovering in the briefest space of time from the
bewilderment of the shock, ran out of the cabin toward the deck, groping
his way as best he might in the darkness through the long passage until he
came upon the marine orderly, William Anthony, who was at his post of duty
near the captain’s quarters.
It was a moment full of horror all the more intense because unknown, but
the soldier, mindful even then of his duty, saluting, said in the tone of
one who makes an ordinary report:
“Sir, I have to inform you that the ship has been blown up, and is
sinking.”
“Follow me,” the captain replied, acknowledging his subordinate’s salute,
and the two pressed forward through the blackness and suffocating vapour.
Lieutenant Blandin, officer of the deck, was sitting on the starboard side
of the quarter-deck when the terrible upheaval began, and was knocked down
by a piece of cement hurled from the lowermost portion of the ship’s
frame, perhaps; but, leaping quickly to his feet, he ran to the poop that
he might be at his proper station when the supreme moment came.
Lieut. Friend W. Jenkins was in the junior officers’ mess-room when the
first of a battle-ship’s death-throes was felt, and as soon as possible
made his way toward the deck, encouraging some of the bewildered marines
to make a brave fight for life; but he never joined his comrades.
Assistant Engineer Darwin R. Merritt and Naval Cadet Boyd together ran
toward the hatch, but only to find the ladder gone. Boyd climbed through,
and then did his best to aid Merritt; but his efforts were vain, and the
engineer went down with his ship.
It seemed as if only the merest fraction of time elapsed before the
uninjured survivors were gathered on the poop-deck. Forward of them, where
a moment previous had been the main-deck, was a huge mass looming up in
the darkness like some threatening promontory.
On the starboard quarter hung the gig, and opposite her, on the port side,
was the barge.
During the first two or three seconds only muffled, gurgling, choking
exclamations were heard indistinctly; and then, when the terrible
vibrations of the air ceased, cries for help went up from every quarter.
Lieutenant Blandin says, in describing those few but terrible moments:
“Captain Sigsbee ordered that the gig and the launch be lowered, and the
officers and men, who by this time had assembled, got the boats out and
rescued a number in the water.
“Captain Sigsbee ordered Lieut.-Commander Wainwright forward to see the
extent of the damage, and if anything could be done to rescue those
forward, or to extinguish the flames which followed close upon the
explosion and burned fiercely as long as there were any combustibles above
water to feed them.
“Lieut.-Commander Wainwright on his return reported the total and awful
character of the calamity, and Captain Sigsbee gave the last sad order,
‘Abandon ship,’ to men overwhelmed with grief indeed, but calm and
apparently unexcited.”
The quiet, yet at the same time sharp, words of command from the captain
aroused his officers from the stupefaction of horror which had begun to
creep over them, and this handful of men, who even then were standing face
to face with death, set about aiding their less fortunate companions.
As soon as they could be manned, boats put off from the vessels in the
harbour, and the work of rescue was continued until all the torn and
mangled bodies in which life yet remained had been taken from the water.
Capt. H. H. Woods, of the British steamer _Thurston_, was among the first
in this labour of mercy, and concerning it he says:
“My vessel was within half a mile of the _Maine_, and my small boat was
the first to gain the wreck. It is beyond my power to describe the
explosion. It was awful. It paralysed the intellect for a few moments. The
cries that came over the water awakened us to a realisation that some
great tragedy had occurred.
“I made all haste to the wreck. There were very few men in the water. All
told, I do not believe there were thirty. We picked up some of them and
passed them on to other vessels, and then continued our work of rescue.
“The sight was appalling. Dismembered legs and trunks of bodies were
floating about, together with pieces of clothing, boxes of meats, and all
sorts of wreckage. Now and then the agonised cry of some poor suffering
fellow could be heard above the tumult.
“One grand figure stood out in all the terrible scene. That was Captain
Sigsbee. Every American has reason to be proud of that officer. He seemed
to have realised in an instant all that happened. Not for a moment did he
show evidence of excitement. He alone was cool. Discipline? Why, man, the
discipline was there as strong as ever, despite the fact that all around
was death and disaster.”
[Illustration: CAPTAIN SIGSBEE.]
The commander of the _Maine_ was the last to leave the wreck, and then all
that was left of the mighty ship was beginning to settle in the slime and
putrefaction which covers the bottom of Havana harbour.
Calmly, with the same observance of etiquette as if they had been
assisting at some social function, the officers took their respective
places in the boats, and, amid a silence born of deepest grief, rowed a
short distance from the rent and riven mass so lately their post of duty.
A gentleman from Chicago, a guest at the Grand Hotel, was seated in front
of the building when the explosion occurred.
“It was followed by another and a much louder one,” he said. “We thought
the whole city had been blown to pieces. Some said the insurgents were
entering Havana. Others cried out that Morro Castle was blown up.
“On the Prado is a large cab-stand. One minute after the explosion was
heard the cabmen cracked their whips and went rattling over the
cobblestones like crazy men. The fire department turned out, and bodies of
cavalry and infantry rushed through the streets. There was no sleep in
Havana that night.”
Soon after the disaster Admiral Manterola and General Solano put off to
the wreck, and offered their services to Captain Sigsbee.
There were many wonderful escapes from death. One of the ward-room cooks
was thrown outboard into the water.
A Japanese sailor was blown into the air, and, falling in the sea, was
picked up alive.
One seaman was sleeping in a yawl hanging at the davits. The boat was
crushed like an egg-shell; but the sailor fell overboard and was picked up
unhurt.
Three men were doing punishment watch on the port quarter-deck, and thus
probably escaped death.
One sailor swam about until help came, although both his legs were broken.
Another had the bones of his ankle crushed, and yet managed to keep
afloat.
Two hours or more passed before the unsubmerged, wooden portion of the
wreck had been consumed by the flames, and at 11.30 P. M. the smoke-stacks
of the ill-fated ship fell.
On board the steamer _City of Washington_, two boats were literally
riddled by fragments of the _Maine_ which fell after the explosion, and
among them was an iron truss which, crashing through the pantry,
demolished the tableware.
When morning came the wreck was the central figure of an otherwise bright
picture, sad as it was terrible. The huge mass of flame-charred débris
forward looked as if it had been thrown up from a subterranean storehouse
of fused cement, steel, wood, and iron.
Further aft, one military mast protruded at a slight angle from the
perpendicular, while the poop afforded a resting-place for the workmen or
divers.
Of the predominant white which distinguishes our war-vessels in time of
peace, not a vestige remained. In its place was the blackness of
desolating death, marking the spot where two hundred and sixty-six brave
men had gone over into the Beyond.
The total loss to the government as a result of the disaster was
officially pronounced to be $4,689,261.31. This embraced the cost of hull,
machinery, equipment, armour, gun protection and armament, both in main
and secondary batteries. It included the cost of ammunition, shells,
current supplies, coal, and, in short, the entire outfit.
The pet of the _Maine’s_ crew, a big cat, was found next morning, perched
on a fragment of a truss which yet remained above the water, and near her,
as if seeking companionship, was the captain’s dog, Peggy.
Consul-General Lee cabled from Havana on the afternoon of the sixteenth:
“Profound sorrow is expressed by the government and municipal authorities,
consuls of foreign nations, organised bodies of all sorts, and citizens
generally.
“Flags are at half-mast on the governor-general’s palace, on shipping in
the harbour, and in the city.
“Business is suspended, and the theatres are closed.”
On the afternoon of the seventeenth the bodies which had been found up to
that time were buried in Havana with military honours, two companies of
Spanish sailors from the cruiser _Alphonso XII._ acting as escort.
A board of inquiry, composed of Capt. W. T. Sampson of the U. S. S. _Iowa_
as presiding officer, Commander Adolph Marix as judge advocate, Capt. F.
E. Chadwick, and Commander W. P. Potter, all of the _New York_, was
convened, and on March 28th President McKinley sent a message to Congress,
the conclusion of which was as follows:
“The appalling calamity fell upon the people of our country with crushing
force, and for a brief time an intense excitement prevailed, which in a
community less just and self-controlled than ours might have led to hasty
acts of blind resentment.
“This spirit, however, soon gave way to calmer processes of reason, and to
the resolve to investigate the facts and await material proof before
forming a judgment as to the cause, the responsibility, and, if the facts
warranted, the remedy due. This course necessarily recommended itself from
the outset to the executive, for only in the light of a dispassionately
ascertained certainty will it determine the nature and measure of its full
duty in the matter.
“The usual procedure was followed, as in all cases of casualty or disaster
to national vessels of any maritime state.
“A naval court of inquiry was at once organised, composed of officers well
qualified by rank and practical experience to discharge the onerous duty
imposed upon them.
“Aided by a strong force of wreckers and divers, the court proceeded to
make a thorough investigation on the spot, employing every available means
for impartial and exact determination of the causes of the explosion. Its
operations have been conducted with the utmost deliberation and judgment,
and, while independently pursued, no source of information was neglected,
and the fullest opportunity was allowed for a simultaneous investigation
by the Spanish authorities.
“The finding of the court of inquiry was reached, after twenty-three days
of continuous labour, on the twenty-first of March instant, and, having
been approved on the twenty-second by the commander-in-chief of the United
States naval force in the North Atlantic station, was transmitted to the
executive.
“It is herewith laid before the Congress, together with the voluminous
testimony taken before the court.
“The conclusions of the court are: That the loss of the _Maine_ was not in
any respect due to fault or negligence on the part of any of the officers
or members of her crew.
“That the ship was destroyed by the explosion of a submarine mine, which
caused the partial explosion of two or more of her forward magazines; and
that no evidence has been obtainable fixing the responsibility for the
destruction of the _Maine_ upon any person or persons.
“I have directed that the finding of the court of inquiry and the views of
this government thereon be communicated to the government of her majesty,
the queen regent, and I do not permit myself to doubt that the sense of
justice of the Spanish nation will dictate a course of action suggested by
honour and the friendly relations of the two governments.
“It will be the duty of the executive to advise the Congress of the
result, and in the meantime deliberate consideration is invoked.”
It was the preface to a mustering of the boys of ’61 who had worn the blue
or the gray, this tragedy in the harbour of Havana, and, when the
government gave permission, the boys of ’98 came forward many and many a
thousand strong to emulate the deeds of their fathers—the boys of ’61—who,
although the hand of Time had been laid heavily upon them, panted to
participate in the punishment of those who were responsible for the
slaughter of American sailors within the shadow of Morro Castle.
CHAPTER II.
THE PRELIMINARIES.
War between two nations does not begin suddenly. The respective
governments are exceedingly ceremonious before opening the “game of
death,” and it is not to be supposed that the United States commenced
hostilities immediately after the disaster to the _Maine_ in the harbour
of Havana.
To tell the story of the war which ensued, without first giving in regular
order the series of events which marked the preparations for hostilities,
would be much like relating an adventure without explaining why the hero
was brought into the situation.
It is admitted that, as a rule, details, and especially those of a
political nature, are dry reading; but once take into consideration the
fact that they all aid in giving a clearer idea of how one nation begins
hostilities with another, and much of the tediousness may be forgiven.
Just previous to the disaster to the _Maine_, during the last days of
January or the first of February, Señor Enrique Dupuy de Lome, the Spanish
minister at Washington, wrote a private letter to the editor of the Madrid
_Herald_, Señor Canalejas, who was his intimate friend, in which he made
some uncomplimentary remarks regarding the President of the United States,
and intimated that Spain was not sincere in certain commercial
negotiations which were then being carried on between the two countries.
By some means, not yet fully explained, certain Cubans got possession of
this letter, and caused it to be published in the newspapers. Señor de
Lome did not deny having written the objectionable matter; but claimed
that, since it was a private communication, it should not affect him
officially. The Secretary of State instructed General Woodford, our
minister at Madrid, to demand that the Spanish government immediately
recall Minister de Lome, and to state that, if he was not relieved from
duty within twenty-four hours, the President would issue to him his
passports, which is but another way of ordering a foreign minister out of
the country.
_February 9._ Señor de Lome made all haste to resign, and the resignation
was accepted by his government before—so it was claimed by the Spanish
authorities—President McKinley’s demand for the recall was received.
_February 15._ The de Lome incident was a political matter which caused
considerable diplomatic correspondence; but it was overshadowed when the
battle-ship _Maine_ was blown up in the harbour of Havana.
[Illustration: EX-MINISTER DE LOME.]
As has already been said, the United States government at once ordered a
court of inquiry to ascertain the cause of the disaster, and this,
together with the search for the bodies of the drowned crew, was
prosecuted with utmost vigour.
Very many of the people in the United States believed that Spanish
officials were chargeable with the terrible crime, while those who were
not disposed to make such exceedingly serious accusation insisted that the
Spanish government was responsible for the safety of the vessel,—that she
had been destroyed by outside agencies in a friendly harbour. In the
newspapers, on the streets, in all public places, the American people
spoke of the possibility of war, and the officials of the government set
to work as if, so it would seem, they also were confident there would be
an open rupture between the two nations.
_February 28._ In Congress, Representative Gibson of Tennessee introduced
a bill appropriating twenty million dollars “for the maintenance of
national honour and defence.” Representative Bromwell, of Ohio, introduced
a similar resolution, appropriating a like amount of money “to place the
naval strength of the country upon a proper footing for immediate
hostilities with any foreign power.” On the same day orders were issued to
the commandant at Fort Barrancas, Florida, directing him to send men to
man the guns at Santa Rosa Island, opposite Pensacola.
_February 28._ Señor Louis Polo y Bernabe, appointed minister in the place
of Señor de Lome, who resigned, sailed from Gibraltar.
By the end of February the work of preparing the vessels at the different
navy yards for sea was being pushed forward with the utmost rapidity, and
munitions of war were distributed hurriedly among the forts and
fortifications, as if the officials of the War Department believed that
hostilities might be begun at any moment.
Nor was it only within the borders of this country that such preparations
were making. A despatch from Shanghai to London reported that the United
States squadron, which included the cruisers _Olympia_, _Boston_,
_Raleigh_, _Concord_, and _Petrel_, were concentrating at Hongkong, with a
view of active operations against Manila, in the Philippine Islands, in
event of war.
At about the same time came news from Spain telling that the Spanish were
making ready for hostilities. An exceptionally large number of artisans
were at work preparing for sea battle-ships, cruisers, and torpedo-boat
destroyers. The cruisers _Oquendo_ and _Vizcaya_, with the torpedo-boat
destroyers _Furor_ and _Terror_, were already on their way to Cuba, where
were stationed the _Alphonso XII._, the _Infanta Isabel_, and the _Nueva
Espana_, together with twelve gunboats of about three hundred tons each,
and eighteen vessels of two hundred and fifty tons each.
The United States naval authorities decided that heavy batteries should be
placed on all the revenue cutters built within the previous twelve months,
and large quantities of high explosives were shipped in every direction.
During the early days of March, Señor Gullon, Spanish Minister of Foreign
Affairs, intimated to Minister Woodford that the Spanish government
desired the recall from Havana of Consul-General Lee.
Spain also intimated that the American war-ships, which had been
designated to convey supplies to Cuba for the relief of the sufferers
there, should be replaced by merchant vessels, in order to deprive the
assistance sent to the reconcentrados of an official character.
Minister Woodford cabled such requests to the government at Washington, to
which it replied by refusing to recall General Lee under the present
circumstances, or to countermand the orders for the despatch of
war-vessels, making the representation that relief vessels are not
fighting ships.
_March 5._ Secretary Long closed a contract for the delivery at Key West,
within forty days, of four hundred thousand tons of coal. Work was begun
upon the old monitors, which for years had been lying at League Island
navy yard, Philadelphia. Orders were sent to the Norfolk navy yard to
concentrate all the energies and fidelities of the yard on the cruiser
_Newark_, to the end that she might be ready for service within sixty
days.
_March 6._ The President made a public statement that under no
circumstances would Consul-General Fitzhugh Lee be recalled at the request
of Spain. He had borne himself, so it was stated from the White House,
throughout the crisis with judgment, fidelity, and courage, to the
President’s entire satisfaction. As to supplies for the relief of the
Cuban people, all arrangements had been made to carry consignments at once
from Key West by one of the naval vessels, whichever might be best adapted
and most available for the purpose, to Matanzas and Sagua.
_March 6._ Chairman Cannon of the House appropriations committee
introduced a resolution that fifty millions of dollars be appropriated for
the national defence. It was passed almost immediately, without a single
negative vote.
Significant was the news of the day. The cruiser _Montgomery_ had been
ordered to Havana. Brigadier-General Wilson, chief of the engineers of the
army, arrived at Key West from Tampa with his corps of men, who were in
charge of locating and firing submarine mines.
_March 10._ The newly appointed Spanish minister arrived at Washington.
_March 11._ The House committee on naval affairs authorised the immediate
construction of three battle-ships, one to be named the _Maine_, and
provided for an increase of 473 men in the marine force.
The despatch-boat _Fern_ sailed for Matanzas with supplies for the relief
of starving Cubans.
[Illustration: U. S. S. MONTGOMERY.]
News by cable was received from the Philippine Islands to the effect that
the rebellion there had broken out once more; the whole of the northern
province had revolted; the inhabitants refused to pay taxes, and the
insurgents appeared to be well supplied with arms and ammunition.
_March 12._ Señor Bernabe was presented to President McKinley, and laid
great stress upon the love which Spain bore for the United States.
_March 14._ The Spanish flying squadron, composed of three torpedo-boats,
set sail from Cadiz, bound for Porto Rico. Although this would seem to be
good proof that the Spanish government anticipated war with the United
States, Señor Bernabe made two demands upon this government on the day
following the receipt of such news. The first was that the United States
fleet at Key West and Tortugas be withdrawn, and the second, that an
explanation be given as to why two war-ships had been purchased abroad.
_March 17._ A bill was submitted to both houses of Congress reorganising
the army, and placing it on a war footing of one hundred and four thousand
men. Senator Proctor made a significant speech in the Senate, on the
condition of affairs in Cuba. He announced himself as being opposed to
annexation, and declared that the Cubans were “suffering under the worst
misgovernment in the world.” The public generally accepted his remarks as
having been sanctioned by the President, and understood them as indicating
that this country should recognise the independence of Cuba on the ground
that the people are capable of self-government, and that under no other
conditions could peace or prosperity be restored in the island.
_March 17._ The more important telegraphic news from Spain was to the
effect that the Minister of Marine had cabled the commander of the torpedo
flotilla at the Canaries not to proceed to Havana; that the government
arsenal was being run night and day in the manufacture of small arms, and
that infantry and cavalry rifles were being purchased in Germany.
The United States revenue cutter cruiser _McCulloch_ was ordered to
proceed from Aden, in the Red Sea, to Hongkong, in order that she might be
attached to the Asiatic squadron, if necessary.
_March 18._ The cruiser _Amazonas_, purchased from the Brazilian
government, was formally transferred to the United States at Gravesend,
England, to be known in the future as the _New Orleans_.
_March 19._ The _Maine_ court of inquiry concluded its work. The general
sentiments of the people, as voiced by the newspapers, were that war with
Spain was near at hand, and this belief was strengthened March 24th, when
authority was given by the Navy Department for unlimited enlistment in all
grades of the service, when the revenue service was transferred from the
Treasury to the Naval Department, and arrangements made for the quick
employment of the National Guards of the States and Territories.
_March 24._ The report of the _Maine_ court of inquiry arrived at
Washington.
_March 27._ Madrid correspondents of Berlin newspapers declared that war
with the United States was next to certain. The United States cruisers
_San Francisco_ and _New Orleans_ sailed from England for New York, and
the active work of mining the harbours of the United States coast was
begun.
_March 28._ The President sent to Congress, with a message, the report of
the _Maine_ court of inquiry, as has been stated in a previous chapter.
_March 29._ Resolutions declaring war on Spain, and recognising the
independence of Cuba, were introduced in both houses of Congress.
With the beginning of April it was to the public generally as if the war
had already begun.
In every city, town, or hamlet throughout the country the newspapers were
scanned eagerly for notes of warlike preparation, and from Washington,
sent by those who were in position to know what steps were being taken by
the government, came information which dashed the hopes of those who had
been praying that peace might not be broken.
There had been a conference between the President, the Secretary of the
Treasury, and the chairman of the committee on ways and means, regarding
the best methods of raising funds for the carrying on of a war. A joint
board of the army and navy had met to formulate plans of defence, and a
speedy report was made to Secretary Long.
Instructions were sent by the State Department to all United States
consuls in Cuba to be prepared to leave the island at any moment, and to
hold themselves in readiness to proceed to Havana in order to embark for
the United States.
_April 2._ A gentleman in touch with public affairs wrote from Washington
as follows:
“To-day’s developments show that there is only the very faintest hope of
peace. Unless Spain yields war must come. The administration realises that
as fully as do members of Congress.
“The orders sent by the State Department to all our consuls in Cuba,
especially those in the interior, to hold themselves in readiness to leave
their positions and proceed to Havana, show that the department looks upon
war as a certainty, and has taken all proper precautions for the safety of
its agents.
“Such an order, it is unnecessary to say, would not have been issued
unless a crisis was imminent, and the State Department, as well as other
branches of the government, has now become convinced that peace cannot
much longer be maintained, and that the safety of the consular agents is a
first consideration.
“General Lee has also been advised that he should be ready to leave as
soon as notified, and that the American newspaper correspondents now in
Havana must prepare themselves to receive the notification of instant
departure.
“The Secretary of the Navy has instructed the Boston Towboat Company,
which corporation had charge of the wrecking operations on the U. S. S.
_Maine_, to suspend work at once. The Secretary of War has authorised an
allotment of one million dollars from the emergency fund for the office of
the chief of engineers, and this amount will be expended in purchasing
material for the torpedo defences connected with the seacoast
fortifications. The United States naval attaché at London has purchased a
cruiser of eighteen hundred tons displacement, capable of a speed of
sixteen knots, and the vessel will put to sea immediately. The Spanish
torpedo flotilla is reported as having arrived at the Cape Verde Islands.”
_April 4._ Senators Perkins, Mantle, and Rawlins spoke in the Senate,
charging Spain with the murder of the sailors of the _Maine_, claiming
that it was properly an act of war, and insisting that the United States
should declare for the independence of Cuba and armed intervention.
_April 5._ Senator Chandler announced as his belief that the United States
was justified in beginning hostilities, and Senators Kenny, Turpie, and
Turner made powerful speeches in the same line, fiercely denouncing Spain.
General Woodford was instructed by cable to be prepared to ask of the
Madrid government his passports at any moment.
Marine underwriters, believing that war was inevitable, doubled their
rates. The merchants and manufacturers’ board of trade of New York
notified Congress and the President that it believed Spain was responsible
for the blowing up of the _Maine_; that the independence of Cuba should be
recognised, and that it should be brought about by force of arms, if
necessary.
_April 7._ The representatives of six great powers met at the White House
in the hope of being able to influence the President for peace. In closing
his address to the diplomats, Mr. McKinley said:
“The government of the United States appreciates the humanitarian and
disinterested character of the communication now made in behalf of the
powers named, and for its part is confident that equal appreciation will
be shown for its own earnest and unselfish endeavours to fulfil a duty to
humanity by ending a situation, the indefinite prolongation of which has
become insufferable.”
Americans made haste to leave Cuba, after learning that Consul-General Lee
had received orders to set sail from Havana on or before the ninth. The
American consul at Santiago de Cuba closed the consulate in that city.
Solomon Berlin, appointed consul at the Canary Islands, was, by the State
Department, ordered not to proceed to his post, and he remained at New
York.
[Illustration: MAJOR-GENERAL FITZHUGH LEE.]
The Spanish consul at Tampa, Florida, left that town for Washington, by
order of his government.
The following cablegram gives a good idea of the temper of the Spanish
people:
“London, April 7.—A special dispatch from Madrid says that the ambassadors
of France, Germany, Russia, and Italy waited together this evening upon
Señor Gullon, the Foreign Minister, and presented a joint note in the
interests of peace.
“Señor Gullon, replying, declared that the members of the Spanish Cabinet
were unanimous in considering that Spain had reached the limit of
international policy in the direction of conceding the demands and
allowing the pretensions of the United States.”
_April 9._ Guards about the United States legation in Madrid were trebled.
General Blanco, captain-general of Cuba, issued a draft order calling on
every able-bodied man, between the ages of nineteen and forty, to register
for immediate military duty. At ten o’clock in the morning, Consul-General
Lee, accompanied by British Consul Gollan, called on General Blanco to bid
him good-bye. The captain-general was too busy to receive visitors.
General Lee left the island at six o’clock in the evening.
_April 11._ The President sent a message, together with Consul Lee’s
report, to the Congress, and Senator Chandler thus analysed it:
_First_: A graphic and powerful description of the horrible condition of
affairs in Cuba.
_Second_: An assertion that the independence of the revolutionists should
not be recognised until Cuba has achieved its own independence beyond the
possibility of overthrow.
_Third_: An argument against the recognition of the Cuban republic.
_Fourth_: As to intervention in the interest of humanity, that is well
enough, and also on account of the injury to commerce and peril to our
citizens, and the generally uncomfortable conditions all around.
_Fifth_: Illustrative of these uncomfortable conditions is the destruction
of the _Maine_. It helps make the existing situation intolerable. But
Spain proposes an arbitration, to which proposition the President has no
reply.
_Sixth_: On the whole, as the war goes on and Spain cannot end it,
mediation or intervention must take place. President Cleveland said
“intervention would finally be necessary.” The enforced pacification of
Cuba must come. The war must stop. Therefore, the President should be
authorised to terminate hostilities, secure peace, and establish a stable
government, and to use the military and naval forces of the United States
to accomplish these results, and food supplies should also be furnished by
the United States.
_April 12._ Consul-General Lee was summoned before the Senate committee on
foreign relations. It was announced that the Republican members of the
ways and means committee had agreed upon a plan for raising revenue in
case of need to carry on war with Spain. The plan was intended to raise
more than $100,000,000 additional revenue annually, and was thus
distributed:
An additional tax on beer of one dollar per barrel, estimated to yield
$35,000,000; a bank stamp tax on the lines of the law of 1866, estimated
to yield $30,000,000; a duty of three cents per pound on coffee, and ten
cents per pound on tea on hand in the United States, estimated to yield
$28,000,000; additional tax on tobacco, expected to yield $15,000,000.
The committee also agreed to authorise the issuing of $500,000,000 bonds.
These bonds to be offered for sale at all post-offices in the United
States in amounts of fifty dollars each, making a great popular loan to be
absorbed by the people.
To tide over emergencies, the Secretary of the Treasury to be authorised
to issue treasury certificates.
These certificates or debentures to be used to pay running expenses when
the revenues do not meet the expenditures.
These preparations were distinctly war measures, and would be put in
operation only should war occur.
_April 13._ The House of Representatives passed the following resolutions:
_Whereas_, the government of Spain for three years past has been waging
war on the island of Cuba against a revolution by the inhabitants thereof,
without making any substantial progress toward the suppression of said
revolution, and has conducted the warfare in a manner contrary to the laws
of nations by methods inhuman and uncivilised, causing the death by
starvation of more than two hundred thousand innocent non-combatants, the
victims being for the most part helpless women and children, inflicting
intolerable injury to the commercial interests of the United States,
involving the destruction of the lives and property of many of our
citizens, entailing the expenditure of millions of money in patrolling our
coasts and policing the high seas in order to maintain our neutrality;
and,
_Whereas_, this long series of losses, injuries, and burdens for which
Spain is responsible has culminated in the destruction of the United
States battle-ship _Maine_ in the harbour of Havana, and the death of two
hundred and sixty-six of our seamen,—
_Resolved_, That the President is hereby authorised and directed to
intervene at once to stop the war in Cuba, to the end and with the purpose
of securing permanent peace and order there, and establishing by the free
action of the people there of a stable and independent government of their
own in the island of Cuba; and the President is hereby authorised and
empowered to use the land and naval forces of the United States to execute
the purpose of this resolution.
In the Senate the majority resolution reported:
_Whereas_, the abhorrent conditions which have existed for more than three
years in the island of Cuba, so near our own borders, have been a disgrace
to Christian civilisation, culminating as they have in the destruction of
a United States battle-ship with two hundred and sixty-six of its officers
and crew, while on a friendly visit in the harbour of Havana, and cannot
longer be endured, as has been set forth by the President of the United
States in his message to Congress on April 11, 1898, upon which the action
of Congress was invited; therefore,
_Resolved_, First, that the people of the island of Cuba are, and of right
ought to be, free and independent.
_Second_, That it is the duty of the United States to demand, and the
government of the United States does hereby demand, that the government of
Spain at once relinquish its authority and government in the island of
Cuba, and withdraw its land and naval forces from Cuba and Cuban waters.
_Third_, That the President of the United States be, and he hereby is,
directed and empowered to use the entire land and naval forces of the
United States, and to call into the actual service of the United States
the militia of the several States to such extent as may be necessary, to
carry these resolutions into effect.
_April 14._ The Spanish minister at Washington sealed his archives and
placed them in the charge of the French ambassador, M. Cambon. The queen
regent of Spain, at a Cabinet meeting, signed a call for the Cortes to
meet on the twentieth of the month, and a decree opening a national
subscription for increasing the navy and other war services.
_April 15._ The United States consulate at Malaga, Spain, was attacked by
a mob, and the shield torn down and trampled upon.
_April 17._ The Spanish committee of inquiry into the destruction of the
_Maine_ reported that the explosion could not have been caused by a
torpedo or a mine of any kind, because no trace of anything was found to
justify such a conclusion. It gave the testimony of two eye-witnesses to
the catastrophe, who swore that there was absolutely no disturbance on the
surface of the harbour around the _Maine_. The committee gave great stress
to the fact that the explosion did no damage to the quays, and none to the
vessels moored close to the _Maine_, whose officers and crews noticed
nothing that could lead them to suppose that the disaster was caused
otherwise than by an accident inside the American vessel.
_April 18._ Congress passed the Senate resolution, as given above, with an
additional clause as follows:
_Fourth_, That the United States hereby disclaim any disposition or
intention to exercise sovereignty, jurisdiction or control over said
island, except for the pacification thereof; and asserts its
determination, when that is accomplished, to leave the government and
control of the island to its people.
CHAPTER III.
A DECLARATION OF WAR.
All that had been done by the governments of the United States and of
Spain was indicative of war,—it was virtually a declaration that an appeal
would be made to arms.
_April 20._ Preparations were making in each country for actual
hostilities, and the American people were prepared to receive the
statement made by a gentleman in close touch with high officials, when he
wrote:
“The United States has thrown down the gage of battle and Spain has picked
it up.
“The signing by the President of the joint resolutions instructing him to
intervene in Cuba was no sooner communicated to the Spanish minister than
he immediately asked the State Department to furnish him with his
passports.
“It was defiance, prompt and direct.
“It was the shortest and quickest manner for Spain to answer our
ultimatum.
“Nominally Spain has three days in which to make her reply. Actually that
reply has already been delivered.
[Illustration: U. S. S. COLUMBIA.]
“When a nation withdraws her minister from the territory of another it is
an open announcement to the world that all friendly relations have
terminated.
“Answers to ultimatums have before this been returned at the cannon’s
mouth. First the minister is withdrawn, then comes the firing. Spain is
ready to speak through shotted guns.
“And the United States is ready to answer, gun for gun.
“The queen regent opened the Cortes in Madrid yesterday, saying, in her
speech from the throne: ‘I have summoned the Cortes to defend our rights,
whatever sacrifice they may entail, trusting to the Spanish people to
gather behind my son’s throne. With our glorious army, navy, and nation
united before foreign aggression, we trust in God that we shall overcome,
without stain on our honour, the baseless and unjust attacks made on us.’
“Orders were sent last night to Captain Sampson at Key West to have all
the vessels of his fleet under full steam, ready to move immediately upon
orders.”
The Spanish minister, accompanied by six members of his staff, departed
from Washington during the evening, after having made a hurried call at
the French embassy and the Austrian legation, where Spanish interests were
left in charge, having announced that he would spend several days in
Toronto, Canada.
_April 21._ The ultimatum of the United States was received at Madrid
early in the morning, and the government immediately broke off diplomatic
relations by sending the following communication to Minister Woodford,
before he could present any note from Washington:
“_Dear Sir_:—In compliance with a painful duty, I have the honour to
inform you that there has been sanctioned by the President of the republic
a resolution of both chambers of the United States, which denies the
legitimate sovereignty of Spain and threatens armed intervention in Cuba,
which is equivalent to a declaration of war.
“The government of her majesty have ordered her minister to return without
loss of time from North American territory, together with all the
personnel of the legation.
“By this act the diplomatic relations hitherto existing between the two
countries, and all official communication between their respective
representatives, cease.
“I am obliged thus to inform you, so that you may make such arrangements
as you think fit. I beg your excellency to acknowledge receipt of this
note at such time as you deem proper, taking this opportunity to reiterate
to you the assurances of my distinguished consideration.
(Signed) “H. GULLON.”
Relative to the ultimatum and its reception, the government of this
country gave out the following information:
“On yesterday, April 20, 1898, about one o’clock P. M., the Department of
State served notice of the purposes of this government by delivering to
Minister Polo a copy of an instruction to Minister Woodford, and also a
copy of the resolutions passed by the Congress of the United States on the
nineteenth instant. After the receipt of this notice the Spanish minister
forwarded to the State Department a request for his passports, which were
furnished him on yesterday afternoon.
“Copies of the instructions to Woodford are herewith appended. The United
States minister at Madrid was at the same time instructed to make a like
communication to the Spanish government.
“This morning the Department received from General Woodford a telegram, a
copy of which is hereunto attached, showing that the Spanish government
had broken off diplomatic relations with this government.
“This course renders unnecessary any further diplomatic action on the part
of the United States.
“‘April 20, 1898.
“‘_Woodford, Minister, Madrid_:—You have been furnished with the text of a
joint resolution, voted by the Congress of the United States on the
nineteenth instant, approved to-day, in relation to the pacification of
the island of Cuba. In obedience to that act, the President directs you to
immediately communicate to the government of Spain said resolution, with
the formal demand of the government of the United States, that the
government of Spain at once relinquish her authority and government in the
island of Cuba, and withdraw her land and naval forces from Cuba and Cuban
waters.
“‘In taking this step, the United States disclaims any disposition or
intention to exercise sovereignty, jurisdiction, or control over said
island, except for the pacification thereof, and asserts its determination
when that is accomplished to leave the government and control of the
island to its people under such free and independent government as they
may establish.
“‘If, by the hour of noon on Saturday next, the twenty-third day of April,
there be not communicated to this government by that of Spain a full and
satisfactory response to this demand and resolutions, whereby the ends of
peace in Cuba shall be assured, the President will proceed without further
notice to use the power and authority enjoined and conferred upon him by
the said joint resolution to such an extent as may be necessary to carry
the same into effect.
“‘SHERMAN.’
“This is Woodford’s telegram of this morning:
“‘MADRID, April 21. (Received at 9.02 A. M.)
“‘_To Sherman, Washington_:—Early this morning (Tuesday), immediately
after the receipt of your telegram, and before I communicated the same to
the Spanish government, the Spanish Minister for Foreign Affairs notified
me that diplomatic relations are broken between the two countries, and
that all official communication between the respective representatives has
ceased. I accordingly asked for my passports. Have turned the legation
over to the British embassy, and leave for Paris this afternoon. Have
notified consuls.
“‘WOODFORD.’”
The Spanish newspapers applauded the “energy” of their government, and
printed the paragraph inserted below as a semi-official statement from the
throne:
“The Spanish government having received the ultimatum of the President of
the United States, considers that the document constitutes a declaration
of war against Spain, and that the proper form to be adopted is not to
make any further reply, but to await the expiration of the time mentioned
in the ultimatum before opening hostilities. In the meantime the Spanish
authorities have placed their possessions in a state of defence, and their
fleet is already on its way to meet that of the United States.”
_April 21._ General Woodford left Madrid late in the afternoon, and
although an enormous throng of citizens were gathered at the railway
station to witness his departure, no indignities were attempted. The
people of Madrid professed the greatest enthusiasm for war, and the
general opinion among the masses was that Spain would speedily vanquish
the United States.
In Havana, in response to the manifesto from the palace, the citizens
began early to decorate the public buildings and many private residences,
balconies, and windows with the national colours. A general illumination
followed, as on the occasion of a great national festivity. Early in the
evening no less than eight thousand demonstrators filled the square
opposite the palace, a committee entering and tendering to the
captain-general, in the name of all, their estates, property, and lives in
aid of the government, and pledging their readiness to fight the invader.
General Blanco thanked them in the name of the king, the queen regent and
the imperial and colonial governments, assuring them that he would do
everything in his power to prevent the invaders from setting foot in Cuba.
“Otherwise I shall not live,” he said, in conclusion. “Do you swear to
follow me to the fight?”
“Yes, yes, we do!” the crowd answered.
“Do you swear to give the last drop of blood in your veins before letting
a foreigner step his foot on the land we discovered, and place his yoke
upon the people we civilised?”
“Yes, yes, we do!”
“The enemy’s fleet is almost at Morro Castle, almost at the doors of
Havana,” General Blanco added. “They have money; but we have blood to
shed, and we are ready to shed it. We will throw them into the sea!”
[Illustration: CAPTAIN-GENERAL BLANCO.]
The people interrupted him with cries of applause, and he finished his
speech by shouting “_Viva Espana!_” “_Viva el Rey!_” “Long live the army,
the navy, and the volunteers!”
The Congress of the United States passed a joint resolution authorising
the President, in his discretion, to prohibit the exportation of coal and
other war material. The measure was of great importance, because through
it was prevented the shipment of coal to ports in the West Indies where it
might be used by Spain.
_April 22._ At half past five o’clock in the morning the vessels composing
the North Atlantic Squadron put to sea from Key West. The flag-ship _New
York_ led the way. Close behind her steamed the _Iowa_ and the _Indiana_.
Following the war-ships came the gunboat _Machias_, and then the
_Newport_. The _Amphitrite_, the first of the fleet, lying close to shore,
steamed out after the _Machias_, and then followed in order the
_Nashville_, the _Wilmington_, the _Castine_, the _Cincinnati_, and the
other boats of the fleet, save the monitors _Terror_ and _Puritan_, which
were coaling, the cruiser _Marblehead_, the despatch-boat _Dolphin_, and
the gunboat _Helena_.
After getting out of sight of land the flag of a rear-admiral was hoisted
over the _New York_, indicating to the fleet that Captain Sampson was
acting as a rear-admiral. When in the open sea the fleet was divided into
three divisions. The _New York_, _Iowa_, and _Indiana_ had the position of
honour. Stretching out to the right were the _Montgomery_, _Wilmington_,
_Newport_, and smaller craft; to the left was the _Nashville_ in the lead,
followed by the _Cincinnati_, _Castine_, _Machias_, _Mayflower_, and some
of the torpedo-boats.
At seven o’clock in the morning the first gun of the war was fired. The
_Nashville_, which had been sailing at about six knots an hour, in
obedience to orders, suddenly swung out of line. Clouds of black smoke
poured from her long, slim stacks, her speed was gradually increased until
the water ascended in fine spray on each side of the bow, and behind her
trailed out a long, creamy streak on the quiet waters.
She was headed for a Spanish merchantman, which was then about half a mile
away, apparently paying no heed to the monsters of war.
A shot from one of the 4-pounders was sent across the stranger’s bow, and
then, no attention having been paid to it, a 6-inch gun was discharged.
This last shot struck the water and bounded along the surface a mile or
more, sending up great clouds of spray.
The Spaniard wisely concluded to heave to, and within five minutes a boat
was lowered from the _Nashville_ to put on board the first prize a crew of
six men, under command of Ensign Magruder.
The captured vessel was the _Buena Ventura_, of 1,741 tons burthen; laden
with lumber, valued at eleven thousand dollars, and carrying a deck-load
of cattle.
The record of this first day of hostilities was not to end with one
capture.
Late in the afternoon, almost within gunshot of the Cuban shore, while the
United States fleet was standing toward Havana, with the _Mayflower_ a
mile or more in advance of the flag-ship _New York_, the merchant
steamship _Pedro_ hove in sight. The _Mayflower_ suddenly swung sharply to
the westward, and a moment later a string of butterfly flags went
fluttering to her masthead.
The _New York_ flung her answering pennant to the breeze, and, making
another signal to the fleet, which probably meant “Stay where you are
until I get back,” swung her bow to the westward and went racing for the
game that the _Mayflower_ had sighted. The big cruiser dashed forward,
smoke trailing in dense masses from each of her three big funnels, a hill
of foam around her bow, and in her wake a swell like a tidal wave. It was
a winning pace, and a magnificent sight she presented as she dashed
through the choppy seas with never an undulation of her long, graceful
hull.
When she was well inshore a puff of smoke came from the bow of the
cruiser, followed by a dull report, then another and another, until four
shots had been sent from one of the small, rapid-fire guns. The Spanish
steamer, probably believing the pursuing craft carried no heavier guns,
was trying to keep at a safe distance until the friendly darkness of night
should hide her from view. During sixty seconds or more the big cruiser
held her course in silence, and then her entire bow was hidden from the
spectators in a swirl of white smoke as a main battery gun roared out its
demand.
The whizzing shell spoke plainly to the Spanish craft, and had hardly more
than flung up a column of water a hundred yards or less in front of the
merchantman before she was hastily rounded to with her engines reversed.
A prize crew under Ensign Marble was thrown on board, and the steamer
_Pedro_, twenty-eight hundred tons burthen, suddenly had a change of
commanders.
_April 22._ The President issued a proclamation announcing a blockade of
Cuban ports, and also signed the bill providing for the utilising of
volunteer forces in times of war.
The foreign news of immediate interest to the people of the United States
was, first, from Havana, that Captain-General Blanco had published a
decree confirming his previous decree, and declaring the island to be in a
state of war.
He also annulled his former similar decrees granting pardon to insurgents,
and placed under martial law all those who were guilty of treason,
espionage, crimes against peace or against the independence of the nation,
seditious revolts, attacks against the form of government or against the
authorities, and against those who disturb public order, though only by
means of printed matter.
From Madrid came the information that during the evening a throng of no
less than six thousand people, carrying flags and shouting “_Viva
Espana!_” “We want war!” and “Down with the Yankees!” burned the stars and
stripes in front of the residence of Señor Sagasta, the premier, who was
accorded an ovation. The mob then went to the residence of M. Patenotre,
the French ambassador, and insisted that he should make his appearance,
but the French ambassador was not at home.
[Illustration: PREMIER SAGASTA.]
Correspondents at Hongkong announced that Admiral Dewey had ordered the
commanders of the vessels composing his squadron to be in readiness for an
immediate movement against the Philippine Islands.
_April 23._ The President issued a proclamation calling for one hundred
and twenty-five thousand volunteer soldiers.
In the new war tariff bill a loan of $500,000,000 was provided for in the
form of three per cent. 10-20 bonds.
The third capture of a Spanish vessel was made early in the morning by the
torpedo-boat _Ericsson_. The fishing-boat _Perdito_ was sighted making for
Havana harbour, and overhauled only when she was directly under the guns
of Morro Castle, where a single shot from the fortification might have
sunk either craft. After a prize-crew had been put on board Rear-Admiral
Sampson decided to turn her loose, and so she was permitted to return to
Havana to spread the news of the blockade.
During the afternoon the rum-laden schooner _Mathilde_ was taken, after a
lively chase, by the torpedo-boat _Porter_. Between five and six o’clock
in the evening the torpedo-boat _Foote_, Lieut. W. L. Rodgers commanding,
received the first Spanish fire.
She was taking soundings in the harbour of Matanzas, and had approached
within two or three hundred yards of the shore, when suddenly a masked
battery on the east side of the harbour, and not far distant from the
_Foote_, fired three shots at the torpedo-boat. The missiles went wide of
the mark, and the _Foote_ leisurely returned to the _Cincinnati_ to report
the result of her work.
At Hongkong the United States consul notified Governor Blake of the
British colony that the American fleet would leave the harbour in
forty-eight hours, and that no warlike stores, or more coal than would be
necessary to carry the vessels to the nearest home port, would be shipped.
The United States demanded of Portugal, the owner of the Cape Verde
Islands, that, in accordance with international law, she send the Spanish
war-ships away from St. Vincent, or require them to remain in that port
during the war.
_April 24._ The following decree was gazetted in Madrid:
“Diplomatic relations are broken off between Spain and the United States,
and a state of war being begun between the two countries, numerous
questions of international law arise, which must be precisely defined
chiefly because the injustice and provocation came from our adversaries,
and it is they who by their detestable conduct have caused this great
conflict.”
The royal decree then states that Spain maintains her right to have
recourse to privateering, and announces that for the present only
auxiliary cruisers will be fitted out. All treaties with the United States
are annulled; thirty days are given to American ships to leave Spanish
ports, and the rules Spain will observe during the war are outlined in
five clauses, covering neutral flags and goods contraband of war; what
will be considered a blockade; the right of search, and what constitutes
contraband of war, ending with saying that foreign privateers will be
regarded as pirates.
Continuing, the decree declared: “We have observed with the strictest
fidelity the principles of international law, and have shown the most
scrupulous respect for morality and the right of government.
“There is an opinion that the fact that we have not adhered to the
declaration of Paris does not exempt us from the duty of respecting the
principles therein enunciated. The principle Spain unquestionably refused
to admit then was the abolition of privateering.
“The government now considers it most indispensable to make absolute
reserve on this point, in order to maintain our liberty of action and
uncontested right to have recourse to privateering when we consider it
expedient, first, by organising immediately a force of cruisers, auxiliary
to the navy, which will be composed of vessels of our mercantile marine,
and with equal distinction in the work of our navy.
“_Clause 1_: The state of war existing between Spain and the United States
annuls the treaty of peace and amity of October 27, 1795, and the protocol
of January 12, 1877, and all other agreements, treaties, or conventions in
force between the two countries.
“_Clause 2_: From the publication of these presents, thirty days are
granted to all ships of the United States anchored in our harbours to take
their departure free of hindrance.
“_Clause 3_: Notwithstanding that Spain has not adhered to the declaration
of Paris, the government, respecting the principles of the law of nations,
proposes to observe, and hereby orders to be observed, the following
regulations of maritime laws:
“_One_: Neutral flags cover the enemy’s merchandise, except contraband of
war.
“_Two_: Neutral merchandise, except contraband of war, is not seizable
under the enemy’s flag.
“_Three_: A blockade, to be obligatory, must be effective; viz., it must
be maintained with sufficient force to prevent access to the enemy’s
littoral.
“_Four_: The Spanish government, upholding its rights to grant letters of
marque, will at present confine itself to organising, with the vessels of
the mercantile marine, a force of auxiliary cruisers which will coöperate
with the navy, according to the needs of the campaign, and will be under
naval control.
“_Five_: In order to capture the enemy’s ships, and confiscate the enemy’s
merchandise and contraband of war under whatever form, the auxiliary
cruisers will exercise the right of search on the high seas, and in the
waters under the enemy’s jurisdiction, in accordance with international
law and the regulations which will be published.
“_Six_: Defines what is included in contraband of war, naming weapons,
ammunition, equipments, engines, and, in general, all the appliances used
in war.
“_Seven_: To be regarded and judged as pirates, with all the rigour of the
law, are captains, masters, officers, and two-thirds of the crew of
vessels, which, not being American, shall commit acts of war against
Spain, even if provided with letters of marque by the United States.”
_April 24._ The U. S. S. _Helena_ captured the steamer _Miguel Jover_. The
U. S. S. _Detroit_ captured the steamer _Catalania_; the _Wilmington_ took
the schooner _Candidor_; the _Winona_ made a prize of the steamer
_Saturnia_, and the _Terror_ brought in the schooners _Saco_ and _Tres
Hermanes_.
_April 25._ Early in the day the President sent the following message to
Congress:
“I transmit to the Congress, for its consideration and appropriate action,
copies of correspondence recently had with the representatives of Spain
and the United States, with the United States minister at Madrid, through
the latter with government of Spain, showing the action taken under the
joint resolution approved April 20, 1898, ‘For the recognition of the
independence of the people of Cuba, demanding that the government of Spain
relinquish its authority and government in the island of Cuba, and
withdraw its land and naval forces from Cuba and Cuban waters, and
directing the President of the United States to carry these resolutions
into effect.’
“Upon communicating with the Spanish minister in Washington the demand,
which it became the duty of the executive to address to the government of
Spain in obedience with said resolution, the minister asked for his
passports and withdrew. The United States minister at Madrid was in turn
notified by the Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs, that the withdrawal
of the Spanish representative from the United States had terminated
diplomatic relations between the two countries, and that all official
communications between their respective representatives ceased therewith.
“I commend to your especial attention the note addressed to the United
States minister at Madrid by the Spanish Minister for Foreign Affairs on
the twenty-first instant, whereby the foregoing notification was conveyed.
It will be perceived therefrom, that the government of Spain, having
cognisance of the joint resolution of the United States Congress, and, in
view of the things which the President is thereby required and authorised
to do, responds by treating the reasonable demands of this government as
measures of hostility, following with that instant and complete severance
of relations by its action, which by the usage of nations accompanied an
existing state of war between sovereign powers.
“The position of Spain being thus made known, and the demands of the
United States being denied, with a complete rupture of intercourse by the
act of Spain, I have been constrained, in exercise of the power and
authority conferred upon me by the joint resolution aforesaid, to proclaim
under date of April 22, 1898, a blockade of certain ports of the north
coast of Cuba, lying between Cardenas and Bahia Honda, and of the port of
Cienfuegos on the south coast of Cuba, and further in exercise of my
constitutional powers, and using the authority conferred upon me by act of
Congress, approved April 22, 1898, to issue my proclamation, dated April
23, 1898, calling for volunteers in order to carry into effect the said
resolution of April 20, 1898. Copies of these proclamations are hereto
appended.
[Illustration: PRESIDENT WILLIAM MCKINLEY.]
“In view of the measures so taken, and other measures as may be necessary
to enable me to carry out the express will of the Congress of the United
States in the premises, I now recommend to your honourable body the
adoption of a joint resolution declaring that a state of war exists
between the United States of America and the kingdom of Spain, and I urge
speedy action thereon to the end that the definition of the international
status of the United States as a belligerent power may be made known, and
the assertion of all its rights and the maintenance of all its duties in
the conduct of a public war may be assured.
(Signed) “WILLIAM MCKINLEY.
“_Executive Mansion, Washington, April 25, 1898._”
The war bill was passed without delay, and immediately after it had been
signed the following notice was sent to the representatives of the foreign
nations:
“A joint resolution of Congress, approved April 20th, directed
intervention for the pacification and independence of the island of Cuba.
The Spanish government on April 21st informed our minister at Madrid that
it considered this resolution equivalent to a declaration of war, and that
it had accordingly withdrawn its minister from Washington and terminated
all diplomatic relations.
“Congress has therefore, by an act approved to-day, declared that a state
of war exists between the two countries since and including April 21st.
“You will inform the government to which you are accredited, so that its
neutrality may be assured in the existing war.”
Before the close of the day John Sherman, Secretary of State, had
resigned; Assistant Secretary William R. Day was appointed the head of the
department, with John B. Moore as his successor.
The United States squadron sailed from Hongkong, under orders to
rendezvous at Mirs Bay, and public attention was turned towards Manila, it
being believed that there the first action would take place.
During the evening the tiny steamer _Mangrove_, a lighthouse tender,
captured the richest prize of the war thus far, when she hove to the
_Panama_, a big transatlantic liner, and an auxiliary cruiser of the
Spanish navy, which had been plying between New York and Havana.
The _Mangrove_, Lieut.-Commander William H. Everett commanding, was
cruising along the Cuban coast about twenty miles from Havana when she
sighted the big steamer, which was armed with two 12-pounders. As the
latter came within range the _Mangrove_ sent a shot across her bow; but
the Spaniard gave no heed; another missile followed without result, and
the third whistled in the air when the two vessels were hardly more than a
hundred yards apart, Commander Everett shouting, as the report of the gun
died away, that unless the steamer surrendered she would be sunk
forthwith.
The only other ship of the fleet in sight was the battle-ship _Indiana_,
three miles to the rear. The _Mangrove’s_ officers admit that they
expected the enemy’s 12-pounders to open on them in response to the
threat, but the Spaniard promptly came to. Ensign Dayton boarded the
prize.
The _Indiana_ had seen the capture, and meanwhile drew up to the
_Mangrove_, giving her a lusty cheer. Lieutenant-Commander Everett
reported to Captain Taylor of the battle-ship, and the latter put a
prize-crew on board the captive, consisting of Cadet Falconer and fifteen
marines.
_April 26._ The President issued a proclamation respecting the rights of
Spanish vessels then in, or bound to, ports in the United States, and also
with regard to the right of search.
The United States gunboat _Newport_ carried into Key West the Spanish
schooner _Piereno_ and the sloop _Paquette_, which she captured off
Havana, while the monitor _Terror_ took to the same port the coasting
steamer _Ambrosia Bolivar_. This last prize had on board silver specie to
the amount of seventy thousand dollars, three hundred casks of wine, and a
cargo of bananas.
_April 27._ The steamers _New York_, _Puritan_, and _Cincinnati_ bombarded
the forts at the mouth of Matanzas Harbour. The engagement commenced at
12.57, and ceased at 1.15 P. M. The object of the attack was to prevent
the completion of the earthworks at Punta Gorda.
A battery on the eastward arm of the bay opened fire on the flag-ship, and
this was also shelled. Twelve 8-inch shells were fired from the eastern
forts, but all fell short. About five or six light shells were fired from
the half completed batteries. Two of these whizzed over the _New York_,
and one fell short.
The ships left the bay for the open sea, the object of discovering the
whereabouts of the batteries having been accomplished. In the
neighbourhood of three hundred shots were put on land from the three ships
at a range of from four thousand to seven thousand yards. No casualties on
the American side.
The little monitor _Terror_ captured her third prize, and the story of the
chase is thus told by an eye-witness:
[Illustration: U. S. S. PURITAN.]
“The Spanish steamer _Guido_, Captain Armarechia, was bound for Havana.
There was Spanish urgency that she should reach that port. Aboard was a
large cargo, provisions for the beleaguered city, money for the Spanish
troops—or officers. The steamer had left Liverpool on April 2d, and
Corunna on April 9th.
“Ten miles off Cardenas, in the early morning, the _Guido_, setting her
fastest pace, made for Havana and the guardian guns of Morro. Ten miles
off Cardenas plodded the heavy monitor. The half light betrayed the
fugitive, and the pursuit was begun.
“Slowly, very slowly, the monitor gained. It would be a long chase. Men in
the engine-room toiled like galley-slaves under the whip. There was
prize-money to be gained. The _Guido_ fled fast. Every light aboard her
was hid.
“Reluctantly the pursuer aimed a 6-pounder. It was prize aim, and the shot
found more than a billet in the _Guido’s_ pilot-house. It tore a part
away; the splinters flew.
“Another 6-pounder, and another. It was profitable shooting. The
pilot-house, a fair mark, was piece by piece nearly destroyed. Jagged bits
of wood floated in the steamer’s wake.
“The gunboat _Machias_, which was some distance away, heard the sound of
the firing, came up, and brought her 4-inch rifle into play, firing one
shot, which failed to hit the Spaniard. This, however, brought her to, and
Lieutenant Qualto and a prize-crew were put on board.”
A cablegram from Hongkong announced the capture of the American bark
_Saranac_ off Manila, by the Spanish gunboat _El Correo_.
By a conference of both branches of Congress a naval bill of $49,277,558
was agreed upon. It stands as the heaviest naval outlay since the civil
war, providing for the construction of three battle-ships, four monitors,
sixteen torpedo-boat destroyers, and twelve torpedo-boats.
The U. S. S. _Newport_ captured the Spanish sloop _Engracia_, and the
U. S. S. _Dolphin_ made a prize of the Spanish schooner _Lola_.
_April 29._ The flag-ship _New York_ was lying about two miles off the
harbour of Cabanas, having just completed a cruise of inspection. With her
were the torpedo-boats _Porter_ and _Ericsson_. On the shore could be seen
the white ruins of what may have been the dwelling of a plantation. No
signs of life were visible. It was as if war’s alarms had never been heard
on this portion of the island.
Suddenly a volley of musketry rang out, repeated again and again, at
regular intervals, and the tiny jets of water which were sent up by the
bullets told that, concealed near about the ruins of the hacienda, a troop
of Spanish soldiers were making what possibly they may have believed to be
an attack upon the big war-ship. It was much as if a swarm of gnats had
set about endeavouring to worry an elephant, and likely to have as little
effect; yet Rear-Admiral Sampson believed it was necessary to teach the
enemy that any playing at war, however harmless, was dangerous to
themselves, and he ordered that the port battery be manned.
Half a dozen shots from the 4-inch guns were considered sufficient,
although there was no evidence any execution had been done, and the big
vessel’s bow was turned eastward just as a troop of Spanish cavalry rode
rapidly away from the ruin. The horsemen served as a target for a 4-inch
gun in the starboard battery, and the troop dispersed in hot haste.
While this mimic warfare was being carried on off Cabanas, a most
important capture was made. The _Nashville_, _Marblehead_, and the _Eagle_
left the station on the north coast, April 25th, to blockade Cienfuegos,
arriving at the latter place on the twenty-eighth.
They spent the day reconnoitring, and, next morning, in order to get
better information, steamed close to the mouth of the harbour of
Cienfuegos. The _Eagle_ was to the eastward, and in the van. The
_Marblehead_ was slightly in the rear, and the _Nashville_ to the
westward.
All were cleared for action. Suddenly smoke was seen rising on the western
horizon, and the _Nashville_, because of her position, put on all steam in
that direction. Twenty minutes later she fired two shots across the bow of
the coming steamer, which promptly hove to. She was the _Argonauta_.
Ensign Keunzli was sent with a prize-crew of nine to take possession of
her.
Learning that Spanish soldiers were on board, word was given to send them
to the _Nashville_ immediately as prisoners of war, and when this had been
done arrangements were made to transfer the passengers and non-combatants
to the shore. The women and children were placed in the first boat, and
under cover of a flag of truce were soon bound toward the entrance to
Cienfuegos. A second crew took the other passengers and landed them about
noon.
The _Argonauta_ had on board Colonel Corijo of the Third Spanish Cavalry,
his first lieutenant, sergeant-major, seven other lieutenants, and ten
privates and non-commissioned officers. The steamer also carried a large
cargo of arms and Mauser ammunition. She was bound from Satabanao, Spain,
for Cienfuegos, stopping at Port Louis, Trinidad, and Manzanillo.
Half an hour later the _Eagle_ hoisted a signal conveying the intelligence
that she had been fired upon by Spanish boats coming out of the river. She
immediately returned the fire with the 6-pounders, and held her ground
until the _Marblehead_ came up. Both vessels then fired broadside after
broadside up the entrance to the river.
The boats coming down were two torpedo-boats and one torpedo-boat
destroyer. After twenty minutes of firing by the _Eagle_, during the last
five of which the _Marblehead_ participated, the Spanish vessels ceased
firing.
_April 29._ A cablegram from St. Vincent, Cape Verde, reported the
departure from that port of the Spanish squadron, consisting of the
first-class cruisers _Vizcaya_, _Almirante Oquendo_, _Infanta Maria
Teresa_, and _Cristobal Colon_, and the three torpedo-boat destroyers
_Furor_, _Terror_, and _Pluton_, bound westward, probably for Porto Rico.
_April 30._ The American schooner _Ann Louisa Lockwood_ was taken by the
Spaniards off Mole St. Nicolas.
The capture of a small Spanish schooner, the _Mascota_, near Havana, by
the torpedo-boat _Foote_, closed the record of the month of April.
Anxiously awaiting some word from Manila were the people of the United
States, and it was as if everything else was relegated to the background
until information could be had regarding that American fleet which sailed
from Mirs Bay, in the China Sea, on the afternoon of April 27th.
CHAPTER IV.
THE BATTLE OF MANILA BAY.
_May 1._ “Manila, May 1.—The squadron arrived at Manila at daybreak this
morning. Immediately engaged the enemy, and destroyed the following
Spanish vessels: _Isla de Cuba_, _Isla de Luzon_, _Reina Christina_,
_Castilla_, _Don Antonio d’Ulloa_, _Don Juan d’Austria_, _Velasco_,
_General Lezo_, _El Correo_, _Marques del Duero_, _Isla de Mindanao_, and
the water-battery at Cavite. The squadron is uninjured. Few men were
slightly injured. The only means of telegraphing is to American consulate,
Hongkong. I shall communicate with him.
“DEWEY.”
All the world loves a hero, but idolises him when he performs his deeds of
valour without too many preliminaries, and, therefore, when on the seventh
of May the telegram quoted above was flashed over the wires to an
anxiously expectant people, it was as if all the country remembered but
one name,—that of Dewey.
_April 25._ It was known to the public that the Asiatic Squadron had
sailed from Hongkong on the 25th of April to avoid possible complications
such as might arise in a neutral port, and had rendezvoused in Mirs Bay,
there to await orders from the government at Washington.
[Illustration: ADMIRAL GEORGE DEWEY.]
_April 26._ So also was it known that on the next day Commodore Dewey
received the following cablegram.
“WASHINGTON, April 26th.
“_Dewey, Asiatic Squadron_:—Commence operations at once, particularly
against Spanish fleet. You must capture or destroy them.
“MCKINLEY.”
_April 27._ On the twenty-seventh came information from Hongkong that the
squadron had put to sea, and from that day until the seventh of May no
word regarding the commodore’s movements had been received, save through
Spanish sources.
Then came a cablegram containing the bare facts concerning the most
complete naval victory the world had ever known. It was the first
engagement of the war, and a crushing defeat for the enemy. It is not
strange that the people, literally overwhelmed with joy, gave little heed
to the movements of our forces elsewhere until the details of this
marvellous fight could be sent under the oceans and across the countries,
thousands of leagues in distance, describing the deeds of the heroes who
had made their names famous so long as history shall exist.
During such time of waiting all were eager to familiarise themselves with
the theatre of this scene of action, and every source of information was
applied to until the bay of Manila had become as well known as the nearest
home waters.
For a better understanding of the battle a rough diagram of the bay, from
the entrance as far as the city of Manila, may not come amiss.(1)
Twenty-six miles from the entrance to the bay is situated the city of
Manila, through which the river Pasig runs, dividing what is known as the
old city from the new, and forming several small islands.
Sixteen miles from the sea is the town and arsenal of Cavite, which,
projecting as it does from the mainland, forms a most commodious and safe
harbour. Cavite was well fortified, and directly opposite its fort, on the
mainland, was a heavy mortar battery. Between the arsenal and the city was
a Krupp battery, at what was known as the Luneta Fort, while further
toward the sea, extending from Cavite to the outermost portion of Limbones
Point, were shore-batteries,—formidable forts, so it had been given out by
the Spanish government, such as would render the city of Manila
impregnable.
Between Limbones and Talago Point are two islands, Corregidor and Caballo,
which divide the entrance of the bay into three channels. On each of these
islands is a lighthouse, and it was said that both were strongly fortified
with modern guns. North of Corregidor, nearly opposite, but on the inner
shore, is the point of San José, where was another water-battery mounting
formidable guns. That channel between Corregidor and San José Point is
known as the Boca Grande, and is nearly two miles wide. The middle
channel, or the one situated between the two islands, is shallow, and but
little used. The third, which separates Caballo Island from Limbones
Point, is nearly three miles in width, at least twenty fathoms deep, and
known as the Boca Chica.
All of these channels, as well as the waters of the bay, were said to have
been thickly mined, and the enemy had caused it to be reported that no
ship could safely enter without the aid of a government pilot.
In addition to the vessels of the American fleet, as set down at the
conclusion of this chapter, were two transports, the steamers _Nanshan_
and _Zafiro_, which had come into the port of Hongkong laden with coal
shortly before Commodore Dewey’s departure, and had been purchased by him,
together with their cargoes, in anticipation of the declaration of war.
And now, the details having been set down in order that what follows may
be the better understood, we will come to that sultry Sunday morning,
shortly after midnight, when the American fleet steamed along the coast
toward the entrance to Manila Bay, the flag-ship _Olympia_ leading, with
the _Baltimore_, the _Raleigh_, the _Petrel_, the _Concord_, and the
_Boston_ following in the order named. In the rear of these came the two
transports, the _Nanshan_ and _Zafiro_, convoyed by the despatch steamer
_McCulloch_.
The commodore had decided to enter by the Boca Grande channel, and the
fleet kept well out from Talago Point until the great light of Corregidor
came into view.
Then the crews of the war-vessels were summoned on deck, the men ordered
to wash, and afterwards served with a cup of coffee. All lights were
extinguished except one on the stern of each ship, and that was hooded.
All hands were at quarters; all guns loaded, with extra charges ready at
hand; every eye was strained, and every ear on the alert to catch the
slightest sound.
Perhaps there was not a man from commodore to seaman, who believed it
would be possible for the war-vessels to enter the bay without giving an
alarm, and yet the big ships continued on and were nearly past Corregidor
Island before a gun was fired.
The flag-ship was well into the bay, steaming at a four-knot speed, when
from the smoke-stack of the little _McCulloch_ a column of sparks shot up
high into the air. In the run her fires had fallen low, and it became
necessary to replenish them. The firemen, perhaps fearing lest they should
not be in at the death, were more energetic than prudent, and thus a
signal was given to the sleepy garrison of Corregidor.
[Illustration: U. S. S. OLYMPIA.]
“Perhaps they will see us now,” the commodore remarked, quietly, as his
attention was called to this indiscretion.
A flash of light burst from the fort; there was a dull report, and in the
air could be heard that peculiar singing and sighing of a flying
projectile as a heavy missile passed over the _Olympia_ and the _Raleigh_.
The garrison on Corregidor was awakened, but not until after the last
vessel in that ominous procession had steamed past.
It was the first gun in the battle of Manila Bay, and it neither worked
harm nor caused alarm.
Again and again in rapid succession came these flashes of light, dull
reports, and sinister hummings in the air, before the American fleet gave
heed that this signal to heave to had been heard.
Then a 4-inch shell was sent from the _Concord_ directly inside of the
fortification, where it exploded.
The _Raleigh_ and the _Boston_ each threw a shell by way of salute, and
then all was silent.
The channel, which had been thickly mined, according to the Spanish
reports, was passed in safety, and the fleet, looking so unsubstantial in
the darkness, had yet to meet the mines in the bay, as well as the Spanish
fleet, which all knew was lying somewhere near about the city.
On the forward bridge of the _Olympia_ stood Commodore Dewey, his chief of
staff, Commander Lamberton, Lieutenant Rees, Lieutenant Calkins, and an
insurgent Filippino, who had volunteered as pilot.
In the conning-tower was Captain Gridley, who, much against his will, was
forced to take up his position in that partially sheltered place because
the commander of the fleet was not willing to take the chances that all
the chief officers of the ship should be exposed to death on the bridge.
The word was given to “slow down,” and the speed of the big ships
decreased until they had barely steerageway.
The men were allowed to sleep beside their guns.
The moon had set, the darkness and the silence was almost profound, until
suddenly day broke, as it does in the tropics, like unto a flash of light,
and all that bay, with its fighting-machines in readiness for the first
signal, was disclosed to view.
From the masthead of the American vessels rose tiny balls of bunting, and
then were broken out, disclosing the broad folds of the stars and stripes.
Cavite was hardly more than five miles ahead, and beyond, the city of
Manila.
The _Reina Christina_, flying the Spanish rear-admiral’s flag, lay off the
arsenal. Astern of her was moored the _Castilla_, her port battery ready
for action. Slightly to seaward were the _Don Juan de Austria_, the _Don
Antonio de Ulloa_, the _Isla de Cuba_ and _Isla de __Luzon_, the _El
Correo_, the _Marques del Duero_, and the _General Lezo_.
They were under steam and slowly moving about, apparently ready to receive
the fire of the advancing squadron. The flag-ship _Reina Christina_ also
was under way.
“Prepare for general action! Steam at eight-knot speed!” were the signals
which floated from the _Olympia_ as she led the fleet in, keeping well
toward the shore opposite the city.
The American fleet was yet five miles distant, when from the arsenal came
a flame and report; but the missile was not to be seen. Another shot from
Cavite, and then was strung aloft on the _Olympia_ a line of tiny flags,
telling by the code what was to be the American battle-cry: “Remember the
_Maine_,” and from the throat of every man on the incoming ships went up a
shout of defiance and exultation that the moment was near at hand when the
dastardly deed done in the harbour of Havana might be avenged.
Steaming steadily onward were the huge vessels, dropping astern and beyond
range the transports as they passed opposite Cavite Point, until, having
gained such a distance above the city as permitted of an evolution, the
fleet swung swiftly around until it held a course parallel with the
westernmost shore, and distant from it mayhap six thousand yards.
Every nerve was strained to its utmost tension; each man took a mental
grip upon himself, believing that he stood face to face with death; but no
cheek paled; no hand trembled save it might have been from excitement.
The ships were coming down on their fighting course when a shell from one
of the shore-batteries burst over the _Olympia_; the guns from the fort
and from the water-batteries vomited jets of flame and screaming missiles
with thunderous reports; every man on the American fleet save one believed
the moment had come when they should act their part in the battle which
had been begun by the enemy; but up went the signal:
“Hold your fire until close in.”
Had the American fleet opened fire then, the city of Manila would have
been laid in ashes and thousands of non-combatants slain.
The _Olympia_ was yet two miles from Cavite when, directly in front of the
_Baltimore_, a huge shaft of water shot high into the air, and with a
heavy booming that drowned the reports of the Spanish guns.
“The torpedoes!” some one on the _Olympia_ said, in a low tone, with an
indrawing of the breath; but it was as if Dewey did not hear. With
Farragut in Mobile Bay he had seen the effects of such engines of
destruction, and, like Farragut, he gave little heed to that which might
in a single instant send his vessel to the bottom, even as the _Maine_ had
been sent.
Then, so near the _Raleigh_ as to send a flood across her decks, another
spouting of water, another dull roar, and the much vaunted mines of the
Spaniards in Manila Bay had been exploded.
[Illustration: U. S. S. BALTIMORE.]
The roar and crackle of the enemy’s guns still continued, yet Dewey
withheld the order which every man was now most eager to hear.
The Spanish gunners were getting the range; the shells which had passed
over our fleet now fell close about them; the tension among officers and
men was terrible. They wondered how much longer the commodore would
restrain them from firing. The heat was rapidly becoming intense. The
guns’ crews began to throw off their clothes. Soon they wore nothing but
their trousers, and perspiration fairly ran from their bodies.
Still the word was not given to fire, though the ships steadily steamed on
and drew nearer the fort. Orders were given by the officers in low voices,
but they were perfectly audible, so great was the silence which was broken
only by the throbbing of the engines. The men hugged their posts ready to
open fire at the word.
A huge shell from Cavite hissed through the air and came directly for the
_Olympia_. High over the smoke-stack it burst with a mighty snap.
Commodore Dewey did not raise his eyes. He simply turned, made a motion to
a boatswain’s mate who stood near the after 5-inch gun. With a voice of
thunder the man bellowed an order along the decks.
“Remember the _Maine_!” yelled a chorus of five hundred gallant sailors.
Below decks in the engine-rooms the cry was taken up, a cry of defiance
and revenge. Up in the turrets resounded the words, and the threatening
notes were swept across the bay to the other ships.
“Remember the _Maine_!”
In that strange cry was loosed the pent-up wrath of hundreds of American
sailors who resented the cowardly death of their comrades. It bespoke the
terrible vengeance that was about to be dealt out to the defenders of a
detestable flag.
“You may fire when you are ready, Gridley,” was Commodore Dewey’s quiet
remark to the captain of the _Olympia_, who was still in the
conning-tower.
The _Olympia’s_ 8-inch gun in the forward turret belched forth, and an
instant later was run up the signal to the ships astern:
“Fire as convenient.”
The other vessels in the squadron followed the example set by the
_Olympia_. The big 8-inch guns of the _Baltimore_ and the _Boston_ hurled
their two hundred and fifty pound shells at the Spanish flag-ship and at
the _Castilla_.
The Spanish fleet fired fast and furiously. The guns on Cavite hurled
their shells at the swiftly moving vessels; the water-batteries added
their din to the horrible confusion of noises; the air was sulphurous with
the odour of burning powder, and great clouds of smoke hung here and
there, obscuring this vessel or that from view. It was the game of death
with all its horrible accompaniments.
One big shell came toward the _Olympia_ straight for the bridge. When a
hundred feet away it suddenly burst, its fragments continuing onward. One
piece struck the rigging directly over the head of Commander Lamberton. He
did not wince.
[Illustration: THE BATTLE OF MANILA BAY.]
The _Olympia_ continued on. It was evident Commodore Dewey was making
straight for the centre of the enemy’s line, which was the big cruiser
_Reina Christina_.
Being the nearest ship, the _Olympia_ received more attention from the
Spaniards than any of the other vessels.
The water was now getting shallow. Commodore Dewey did not wish to run
aground. He altered his course when about four thousand yards from the
Spanish vessels, and swung around to give them his broadside.
A small torpedo-boat was seen to emerge from the shore near the arsenal,
making for the coal-laden steamers at a high rate of speed. The secondary
batteries on the ships nearest were brought to bear upon her; it was a
veritable shower of shot and shell which fell ahead, astern, and either
side of her. To continue on would have been certain destruction, and,
turning in the midst of that deadly hail which had half disabled her, the
craft was run high and dry on the beach, where she was at once abandoned,
her crew doubtless fearing lest the magazines would explode.
“Open with all guns,” came the signal as the course of the American
vessels was changed, and soon all the port guns were at work.
The American fleet was steaming back and forth off Cavite Bay as if bent
on leaving such a wake as would form a figure eight, delivering broadside
after broadside with splendid results.
All this time the enemy’s vessels were keeping up a steady fire, the
smaller ships retreating inside the mole several times during the action.
The forts were not idle, but kept thundering forth their tribute with no
noticeable effect. The enemy’s fire seemed to be concentrated on the
_Baltimore_, and she was hit several times.
A 4.7-inch armour-piercing shell punctured her side on the main-deck line,
tore up the wooden deck, and, striking the steel deck under this, glanced
upward, went through the after engine-room hatch, and, emerging, struck
the cylinder of the port 6-inch gun on the quarter-deck, temporarily
rendering the gun unfit for use.
In its flight it also struck a box of 3-pounder ammunition, exploding one
shell, which in turn slightly wounded one of No. 4 gun’s crew.
One shell pierced her starboard side forward of No. 2 sponson, and lodged
in a clothes-locker on the berth-deck; another struck her port beam a
little above the water-line, and a few feet forward of, and above this,
another shell came crashing across the berth-deck, striking a steam-pipe
and exploding behind the starboard blower-engine, but with no serious
results. A fragment of a shell went through one of the ventilators, and
the colours of the mainmast were shot through.
[Illustration: U. S. S. BOSTON.]
The concussion from the 8-inch guns on the poop shattered the whaleboats,
and they had to be cut adrift. A fragment of a shell that burst over the
quarter-deck cut the signal halliards which Lieutenant Brumby held in his
hand.
On the _Boston_ a shell came through a port-hole in Ensign Doddridge’s
stateroom, and wrecked it badly. The explosion set a fire which was
quickly put out. Another shell struck the port hammock netting, where it
burst, setting fire to the hammocks. This was also soon extinguished.
Still another shell struck the _Boston’s_ foremast, cutting a great gash
in it. It came within twenty feet of Captain Wildes on the bridge.
The _Raleigh_ was forced inshore by the strong current, and carried
directly upon the bows of two Spanish cruisers. By all the rules of
warfare she should have been sunk; but instead, her commander delivered
two raking broadsides as she steamed back into place.
Three times the American ships passed back and forth, opening first with
one broadside and then with another as the ship swung around, and then the
_Reina Christina_, black smoke pouring from her stacks, and a vapour as of
wool coming from the steam-pipes, gallantly sallied out to meet the
_Olympia_.
Between the two flag-ships ensued a duel, in which the Spaniard was
speedily worsted to such a degree that she was literally forced to turn
and make for the shore. As she swung around, with her stern directly
toward the _Olympia_, an 8-inch shell struck her squarely, and the
explosive must have travelled directly through the ill-fated craft until
it reached the after boiler, where it exploded, ripping up the decks, and
vomiting forth showers of iron fragments and portions of dismembered human
bodies.
A gunboat came out from behind the Cavite pier, and made directly for the
_Olympia_. In less than five minutes she was in a sinking condition; as
she turned, a shell struck her just inside the stern railing, and she
disappeared beneath the waves as if crushed by some titanic force.
Navigator Calkins of the _Olympia_ had soundings taken, and told Commodore
Dewey that he could take the ship farther in toward the Spanish fleet.
“Take her in, then,” the commodore replied.
The ship moved up to within two thousand yards of the Spanish fleet. This
brought the smaller guns into effective play.
The rain of shell upon the doomed Spaniards was terrific.
The _Castilla_ was in flames from stem to stern. Black smoke poured up
from the decks of the _Isla de Cuba_, and on the flag-ship fire was
completing the work of destruction begun by the American shells.
It was 7.35 A. M. when the battle, which began at 5.41, came to a
temporary close. The first round was concluded.
There was yet ample time in which to finish the work so well begun, and
from the flag-ship _Olympia_ went up the signal:
“Cease firing and follow.”
The fleet was headed for the opposite shore, and, once partially beyond
range, “mess-gear” was sounded.
The only casualty worthy of mention which had occurred was the death of
Chief Engineer Frank B. Randall, of the steamer _McCulloch_, who died from
heart disease, probably superinduced by excitement, while the fleet was
passing Corregidor.
There were handshakings and congratulations on every hand as
smoke-begrimed friends, parted during the battle, met again, and loud were
the cheers that went up from the various ships in passing.
After breakfast had been served and the ships made ready for the second
round, or, in other words, at 10.15 in the forenoon, the Spanish flag-ship
_Reina Christina_ hauled down her colours, and the admiral’s flag was
transferred to the _Isla de Cuba_.
At 10.45 a signal was made from the _Olympia_:
“Get under way with men at quarters.”
Again the fleet stood in toward Cavite, the _Baltimore_ in the lead, but
the latter vessel’s course was quickly changed as a strange steamer was
observed entering the bay.
Not many moments were spent in reconnoitring; the signal flags soon told
that the stranger was flying the English ensign.
Then came the order for the _Baltimore_ to stand in and destroy the
enemy’s fortifications, and ten minutes later the battle was on once more.
Now the fire was slow and deliberate, the gunners taking careful aim, bent
on expending the least amount of ammunition with the greatest possible
execution.
The _Baltimore_ suffered most at the beginning of this second round,
because all the enemy’s fire was concentrated upon her.
Soon after this second half of the engagement had begun a Spanish shell
exploded on the _Baltimore’s_ deck, wounding five of the crew, and another
partially disabled three. It was as if every square yard of surface in
that portion of the bay was covered by a missile from the enemy’s guns,
and yet no further damage to the American fleet was done.
When the _Baltimore_ was within twenty-five hundred-yard range she poured
a broadside into the _Reina Christina_ which literally blew that craft
into fragments, and the smoke from the guns yet hung like a cloud above
the deck when the ill-fated flag-ship sank beneath the waters of the bay.
The _Don Juan de Austria_ was the next of the enemy’s fleet to be sunk,
and then a like fate overtook the _El Correo_.
The _General Lezo_ was run on shore and abandoned to the flames.
The cruiser _Castilla_ was scuttled by her crew lest the fire which was
raging fiercely should explode her magazine.
The _Velasco_ went down before all her men could escape to the boats. The
guns of the _Don Antonio de Ulloa_ were fought with most desperate
bravery, and even as she sank beneath the surface were the pieces
discharged by the brave Spaniards who stood at their posts of duty until
death overtook them.
The _Concord_ started after the _Mindanao_ lying close inshore, and was
soon joined by the _Olympia_, who poured 8-inch shells into the transport
until she was set on fire in a dozen places.
The entire Spanish fleet had been destroyed; not a vessel remained afloat,
and Commodore Dewey turned his attention to the Cavite battery.
It was 12.45 P. M. when the magazine in the arsenal was exploded by a
shell from the _Olympia_, or the _Petrel_, it is impossible to say which,
and the battle of Manila had been fought and won.
Not until the thirteenth of May was Commodore Dewey’s official report
received at the Navy Department, and then it was given to the public
without loss of time. It is copied below:
“FLAGSHIP OLYMPIA, CAVITE, May 4, 1898.
“The squadron left Mirs Bay on April 27th. Arrived off Bolinao on the
morning of April 30th, and finding no vessels there proceeded down the
coast and arrived off the entrance to Manila Bay on the same afternoon.
The _Boston_ and _Concord_ were sent to reconnoitre Point Subic.... A
thorough search of the port was made by the _Boston_ and the _Concord_,
but the Spanish fleet was not found....
“Entered the south channel at 11.30 P. M., steaming in column at eight
knots. After half the squadron had passed, a battery on the south side of
the channel opened fire, none of the shots taking effect. The _Boston_ and
_McCulloch_ returned the fire.
“The squadron proceeded across the bay at slow speed, and arrived off
Manila at daybreak, and was fired upon at 5.15 A. M. by three batteries at
Manila and two near Cavite, and by the Spanish fleet anchored in an
approximately east and west line across the mouth of Baker Bay, with their
left in shoal water in Canacoa Bay.
“The squadron then proceeded to the attack, the flag-ship _Olympia_, under
my personal direction, leading, followed at distance by the _Baltimore_,
_Raleigh_, _Petrel_, _Concord_, and _Boston_, in the order named, which
formation was maintained throughout the action. The squadron opened fire
at 5.41 A. M.
“While advancing to the attack two mines were exploded ahead of the
flag-ship, too far to be effective. The squadron maintained a continuous
and precise fire at ranges varying from five thousand to two thousand
yards, countermarching in a line approximately parallel to that of the
Spanish fleet. The enemy’s fire was vigorous, but generally ineffective.
[Illustration: U. S. S. CONCORD.]
“Early in the engagement two launches put out toward the _Olympia_, with
the apparent intention of using torpedoes. One was sunk and the other
disabled by our fire, and beached before an opportunity occurred to fire
torpedoes.
“At seven A. M. the Spanish flag-ship, _Reina Christina_, made a desperate
attempt to leave the line and come out to engage at short range, but was
received with such a volley of fire, the entire battery of the _Olympia_
being concentrated upon her, that she was barely able to return to the
shelter of the point. The fires started in her by our shell at this time
were not extinguished until she sank.
“The three batteries at Manila had kept up a continuous report from the
beginning of the engagement, which fire was not returned by this squadron.
“The first of these batteries was situated on the South Mole head, at the
entrance to the Pasig River, the second on the south bastion of the walled
city of Manila, and the third at Malate, about one-half mile farther
south. At this point I sent a message to the governor-general, in effect
that if the batteries did not cease firing the city would be shelled. This
had the effect of silencing them.
“At 7.35 A. M. I ceased firing and withdrew the squadron for breakfast.
“At 11.16 A. M. returned to the attack. By this time the Spanish flag-ship
and almost the entire Spanish fleet were in flames. At 12.30 P. M. the
squadron ceased firing, the batteries being silenced, and the ships sunk,
burned, and destroyed.
“At 12.40 P. M. the squadron returned and anchored off Manila, the
_Petrel_ being left behind to complete the destruction of the smaller
gunboats, which were behind the point of Cavite. This duty was performed
by Commander E. P. Wood in the most expeditious and complete manner
possible.
“The Spanish lost the following vessels:
“Sunk: _Reina Christina_, _Castilla_, _Don Antonio de Ulloa_.
“Burned: _Don Juan de Austria_, _Isla de Luzon_, _Isla de Cuba_, _General
Lezo_, _Marques del Duero_, _El Correo_, _Velasco_, and _Isla de
Mindanao_, transport.
“Captured: _Rapido_ and _Hercules_, tugs, and several small launches.
“I am unable to obtain complete accounts of the enemy’s killed and
wounded, but believe their losses to be very heavy.
“The _Reina Christina_ alone had 150 killed, including the captain, and
ninety wounded.
“I am happy to report that the damage done to the squadron under my
command was inconsiderable. There were none killed, and only seven men in
the squadron were slightly wounded.
“Several of the vessels were struck, and two penetrated, but the damage
was of the slightest, and the squadron is in as good condition now as
before the battle.
“I beg to state to the department that I doubt if any commander-in-chief
was ever served by more loyal, efficient, and gallant captains than those
of the squadron now under my command.
“Capt. Frank Wildes, commanding the _Boston_, volunteered to remain in
command of his vessel, although his relief arrived before leaving
Hongkong. Assistant Surgeon Kindleberger of the _Olympia_ and Gunner J. C.
Evans of the _Boston_ also volunteered to remain after orders detaching
them had arrived.
“The conduct of my personal staff was excellent. Commander B. P.
Lamberton, chief of staff, was a volunteer for that position, and gave me
most efficient aid. Lieutenant Brumby, flag lieutenant, and Ensign W. P.
Scott, aid, performed their duties as signal officers in a highly
creditable manner.
“The _Olympia_ being short of officers for the battery, Ensign H. H.
Caldwell, flag secretary, volunteered for and was assigned to a
subdivision of 5-inch battery. Mr. J. L. Stickney, formerly an officer in
the United States navy, and now correspondent of the _New York Herald_,
volunteered for duty as my aid, and did valuable service.
“I desire specially to mention the coolness of Lieut. C. G. Calkins, the
navigator of the _Olympia_, who came under my personal observation, being
on the bridge with me throughout the entire action, and giving the ranges
to the guns with an accuracy that was proved by the excellence of the
firing.
“On May 2d, the day following the engagement, the squadron again went to
Cavite, where it remained.
“On the 3d, the military forces evacuated the Cavite arsenal, which was
taken possession of by a landing party. On the same day the _Raleigh_ and
_Baltimore_ secured the surrender of the batteries on Corregidor Island,
paroling the garrison and destroying the guns.
“On the morning of May 4th the transport _Manila_, which had been aground
in Baker Bay, was towed off and made a prize.”
List of the two fleets engaged at the battle of Manila Bay, together with
the officers of the American fleet:(2)
AMERICAN FLEET.
The U. S. S. _Olympia_, protected cruiser, 5,870 tons, speed, 21.6 knots.
Battery: four 8-inch rifles, ten 5-inch rapid-fire guns, fourteen
6-pounder rapid-fire guns, six 1-pounder rapid-fire cannon, four Gatlings,
with six torpedo tubes, and eight automobile torpedoes.
The U. S. S. _Baltimore_, protected cruiser, 4,600 tons, speed, 20.09
knots. Battery: four 8-inch, six 6-inch rifles, four 6-pounder, two
3-pounder rapid-fire guns, two 1-pounder rapid-fire cannon, four
37-millimetre Hotchkiss cannon, and two Gatlings.
The U. S. S. _Boston_, protected cruiser, 3,189 tons, speed, 15.6 knots.
Battery: two 8-inch, six 6-inch rifles, two 6-pounder, two 3-pounder
rapid-fire guns, two 1-pounder rapid-fire cannon, two 47-millimetre
Hotchkiss cannon, and two Gatlings.
The U. S. S. _Raleigh_, protected cruiser, 3,213 tons, speed, nineteen
knots. Battery: one 6-inch, ten 5-inch rapid-fire guns, eight 6-pounder
rapid-fire guns, four 1-pounder rapid-fire cannon, and two Gatlings.
The U. S. S. _Concord_, gunboat, 1,710 tons, speed, 16.8 knots. Battery:
six 6-inch rifles, two 6-pounder, two 3-pounder rapid-fire guns, two
37-millimetre Hotchkiss cannon, and two Gatlings.
The U. S. S. _Petrel_, gunboat, 892 tons, speed, 11.7 knots. Battery: four
6-inch rifles, one 1-pounder rapid-fire gun, two 37-millimetre Hotchkiss
cannon, and two Gatlings.
The U. S. S. _McCulloch_, revenue cutter, 1,500 tons, speed, fourteen
knots. Battery: four 4-inch guns.
The _Nanshan_ and _Zafiro_, supply ships.
SPANISH FLEET.
The _Reina Maria Christina_, 3,520 tons, speed, seventeen knots. Battery:
six 6.2-inch hontoria guns, two 2.7-inch and three 2.2-inch rapid-fire
rifles, six 1.4-inch, and two machine guns.
The _Castilla_, 3,342 tons. Battery: four 5.9-inch Krupp rifles, two
4.7-inch, two 3.3-inch, four 2.5-inch rapid-fire, and two machine guns.
The _Velasco_, 1,152 tons. Battery: three 5.9-inch Armstrong rifles, two
2.7-inch hontorias, and two machine guns.
The _Don Antonio de Ulloa_ and _Don Juan de Austria_, each 1,130 tons,
speed, fourteen knots. Battery: four 4.7-inch hontorias, three 3.2-inch
rapid-fire, two 1.5-inch, and two machine guns.
The _General Lezo_, and _El Correo_, gun vessels, 524 tons, speed, 11.5
knots. The _General Lezo_ had two hontoria rifles of 4.7-inch calibre, one
3.5-inch, two small rapid-fire, and one machine gun; the _El Correo_ had
three 4.7-inch guns, two small rapid-fire, and two machine guns.
The _Marques del Duero_, despatch-boat, 500 tons. Battery: one smooth
bore, six 6.2-inch calibre, two 4.7-inch and one machine gun.
The _Isla de Cuba_ and the _Isla de Luzon_ were both small gunboats, 1,030
tons. Battery: four 4.7-inch hontorias, two small guns, and two machine
guns.
The _Isla de Mindanao_, auxiliary cruiser, 4,195 tons, speed, 13.5 knots.
Two torpedo-boats and two transports.
Officers of the U. S. Asiatic Squadron: Acting Rear Admiral George Dewey,
commander-in-chief; Commander B. P. Lamberton, chief of staff; Lieut. T.
M. Brumby, flag lieutenant; Ensign H. H. Caldwell, secretary.
U. S. S. _Olympia_, flag-ship: Captain, Charles V. Gridley;
Lieutenant-Commander, S. C. Paine; Lieutenants, C. G. Calkins, V. S.
Nelson, G. S. Morgan, W. C. Miller, S. M. S. Strite; Ensigns, M. M.
Taylor, F. B. Upham, W. P. Scott, A. G. Kavagnah; Medical Inspector, A. S.
Price; Passed Assistant Surgeon, J. E. Page; Assistant Surgeon, C. P.
Kindleberger; Pay Inspector, D. A. Smith; Chief Engineer, J. Entwistle;
Assistant Engineers, E. H. Delaney, J. F. Marshall, Jr.; Chaplain, J. B.
Frasier; Captain of Marines, W. P. Biddle; Gunner, L. J. G. Kuhlwein;
Carpenter, W. McDonald; Acting Boatswain, E. J. Norcott.
U. S. S. _Raleigh_: Captain, J. B. Coghlan; Lieutenant-Commander, F.
Singer; Lieutenants, W. Winder, B. Tappan, H. Rodman, C. B. Morgan;
Ensigns, F. L. Chidwick, P. Babbit; Surgeon, E. H. Marsteller; Assistant
Surgeon, D. N. Carpenter; Passed Assistant Paymaster, S. R. Heap; Chief
Engineer, F. H. Bailey; Passed Assistant Engineer, A. S. Halstead;
Assistant Engineer, J. R. Brady; First Lieutenant of Marines, T. C.
Treadwell; Acting Gunner, G. D. Johnstone; Acting Carpenter, T. E. Kiley.
U. S. S. _Boston_: Captain, F. Wildes; Lieutenant-Commander, J. A. Norris;
Lieutenants, J. Gibson, W. L. Howard; Ensigns, S. S. Robinson, L. H.
Everhart, J. S. Doddridge; Surgeon, M. H. Crawford; Assistant Surgeon, R.
S. Balkeman; Paymaster, J. R. Martin; Chief Engineer, G. B. Ransom;
Assistant Engineer, L. K. James; First Lieutenant of Marines, R. McM.
Dutton; Gunner, J. C. Evans; Carpenter, I. H. Hilton.
U. S. S. _Baltimore_: Captain, N. M. Dyer; Lieutenant-Commander, G.
Blocklinger; Lieutenants, W. Braunersreuther, A. G. Winterhalter, F. W.
Kellogg, J. M. Ellicott, C. S. Stanworth; Ensigns, J. H. Hayward, M. D.
McCormick; Naval Cadets, D. W. Wurtsburgh, I. Z. Wettenzoll, C. M. Tozer,
T. A. Karney; Passed Assistant Surgeon, F. A. Heiseler; Assistant Surgeon,
R. K. Smith; Pay Inspector, R. E. Bellows; Chief Engineer, A. Kirby;
Assistant Engineers, H. B. Price, H. I. Cone; Naval Cadet, C. P. Burt;
Chaplain, T. S. K. Freeman; First Lieutenant of Marines, D. Williams;
Acting Boatswain, H. R. Brayton; Acting Gunner, L. J. Waller; Carpenter,
O. Bath.
U. S. S. _Concord_: Commander, A. S. Walker; Lieutenant-Commander, G. P.
Colvocoresses; Lieutenants, T. B. Howard, P. W. Horrigan; Ensigns, L. A.
Kiser, W. C. Davidson, O. S. Knepper; Passed Assistant Surgeon, R. G.
Broderick; Passed Assistant Paymaster, E. D. Ryan; Chief Engineer, Richard
Inch; Passed Assistant Engineer, H. W. Jones; Assistant Engineer, E. H.
Dunn.
U. S. S. _Petrel_: Commander, E. P. Wood; Lieutenants, E. M. Hughes, B. A.
Fiske, A. N. Wood, C. P. Plunkett; Ensigns, G. L. Fermier, W. S.
Montgomery; Passed Assistant Surgeon, C. D. Brownell; Assistant Paymaster,
G. G. Seibles; Passed Assistant Engineer, R. T. Hall.
Revenue Cutter _McCulloch_: Captain, D. B. Hodgdon.
American loss: Two officers and six men wounded.
Spanish loss: About three hundred killed, and six hundred wounded.
CHAPTER V.
NEWS OF THE DAY.
_May 2._ In Manila Bay, on Monday, the second of May, there was much to be
done in order to complete the work so thoroughly begun the day previous.
Early in the morning an officer came from Corregidor, under flag of truce,
to Commodore Dewey, with a proposal of surrender from the commandant of
the fortifications. The _Baltimore_ was sent to attend to the business;
but when she arrived at the island no one save the commanding officer was
found. All his men had deserted him after overthrowing the guns.
The _Baltimore_ had but just steamed away, when Commander Lamberton was
ordered to go on board the _Petrel_ and run over to Cavite arsenal in
order that he might take possession, for on the previous day a white flag
had been hoisted there as a signal of surrender.
To the surprise of Lamberton he found, on landing, that the troops were
under arms, and Captain Sostoa, of the Spanish navy, was in anything
rather than a surrendering mood. On being asked as to the meaning of
affairs, Sostoa replied that the flag had been hoisted for a truce, not as
a token of capitulation. He was given until noon to decide as to his
course of action, and the Americans withdrew. At 10.45 the white flag was
again hoisted, and when Lamberton went on shore once more he found that
the Spaniard had marched his men away, taking with them all their arms.
This was the moment when the insurgents, who had gathered near the town,
believed their opportunity had come, and, rushing into Cavite, they began
an indiscriminate plunder which was not brought to an end until the
American marines were landed.
The navy yard was seized; six batteries near about the entrance of Manila
Bay were destroyed; the cable from Manila to Hongkong was cut, and
Commodore Dewey began a blockade of the port.
Congress appropriated $35,720,945 for the emergency war appropriation
bill.
Eleven regiments of infantry, one of cavalry, and ten light batteries of
artillery were concentrated at Tampa and Port Tampa. General Shafter
assumed command on this date.
The _Newport_ captured the Spanish schooner _Pace_.
By cablegram from London, under date of May 2d, news regarding the
condition of affairs in Madrid was received. The Spanish public was
greatly excited by information from the Philippines, and the authorities
found it necessary to proclaim martial law, the document being couched in
warlike language beginning:
“_Whereas_, as Spain finds herself at war with the United States, the
power of civil authorities in Spain is suspended.
“_Whereas_, it is necessary to prevent an impairment of the patriotic
efforts which are being made by the nation with manly energy and veritable
enthusiasm;
“_Article 1._ A state of siege in Madrid is hereby proclaimed.
“_Article 2._ As a consequence of article one, all offences against public
order, those of the press included, will be tried by the military
tribunals.
“_Article 3._ In article two are included offences committed by those who,
without special authorisation, shall publish news relative to any
operations of war whatsoever.”
Then follow the articles which prohibit meetings and public
demonstrations.
Commenting upon the defeat, the _El Nacional_, of Madrid, published the
following article:
“Yesterday, when the first intelligence arrived, nothing better occurred
to Admiral Bermejo (Minister of Marine) than to send to all newspapers
comparative statistics of the contending squadrons. By this comparison he
sought to direct public attention to the immense superiority over a
squadron of wooden vessels dried up by the heat in those latitudes.
“But in this document Spain can see nothing kind. Spain undoubtedly sees
therein the heroism of our marines; but she sees also and above all the
nefarious crime of the government.
“It is unfair to blame the enemy for possessing forces superior to ours;
but what is worthy of being blamed with all possible vehemence is this
infamous government, which allowed our inferiority without neutralising it
by means of preparations. This is the truth. Our sailors have been basely
delivered over to the grape-shot of the Yankees, a fate nobler and more
worthy of respect than those baneful ministers, who brought about the
first victory and its victims.”
_El Heraldo de Madrid_ said: “It was no caprice of the fortunes of war.
From the very first cannon-shot our fragile ships were at the mercy of the
formidable hostile squadron. They were condemned to fall one after another
under the fire of the American batteries, powerless to strike, and were
defended only by the valour in the breasts of their sailors.
“What has been gained by the illusion that Manila was fortified? What has
been gained by the intimation that the broad and beautiful bay on whose
bosom the Spanish fleet perished yesterday had been rendered inaccessible?
What use was made of the famous island of Corregidor? What was done with
its guns? Where were the torpedoes? Where were those defensive
preparations concerning which we were requested to keep silence?”
_May 2._ Late in the afternoon the _Wilmington_ destroyed a Spanish fort
on the island of Cuba, near Cojimar.
The government tug _Leyden_ left Key West, towing a Cuban expedition under
government auspices to establish communication with the Cuban forces in
Havana province. The expedition was accompanied by Lieutenant-Colonel
Acosta. Under him were five other Cubans. Colonel Acosta formerly
commanded a cavalry troop in Havana province.
_May 4._ A telegram from Key West gave the following information:
“Acting Rear-Admiral Sampson sailed this morning with all the big vessels
of his blockading squadron on some mysterious mission.
“In the fleet were the flag-ship _New York_, the battle-ships _Iowa_ and
_Indiana_, the cruisers _Detroit_, _Marblehead_, and _Cincinnati_, the
monitor _Puritan_, and the torpedo-gunboat _Mayflower_.
“The war-ships are coaled to the full capacity of their bunkers, and all
available places on the decks are piled high with coal.”
On the same day the Norwegian steamer _Condor_ arrived with twelve
American refugees and their immediate relatives from Cienfuegos, Cuba.
Dr. Herman Mazarredo, a dentist, who had been practising his profession in
Cienfuegos for eight months, after six years’ study in the United States,
was one of the passengers. He gave the following account of himself:
“Because the Spaniards hated me as intensely as if I had been born in
America, I was obliged to flee for my life. I left my mother, six sisters,
and five brothers in Cienfuegos. I consider that their lives are in
danger. May heaven protect them! What was I to do?
“There are now about two hundred Americans at Cienfuegos clamouring to get
away. They are sending to Boston and New York for steamers, but without
avail. Owen McGarr, the American consul, told me on his departure that the
Spanish law would protect me. Other Americans would have come on the
_Condor_, but Captain Miller would not take them. There was not room for
them. The Spanish soldiers have not yet become personally insulting on the
streets, but a mob of Spanish residents marched through the city four days
before the _Condor_ left, shouting, ‘We want to kill all Americans.’
“There are between four thousand and six thousand Spanish troops
concentrating at Cienfuegos under command of Major-General Aguirre. They
have thrown up some very poor breastworks. Three ground-batteries look
toward the open sea.”
Bread riots broke out in Spain. In Gijon, on the Bay of Biscay, the
rioters made a stand and were fired upon by the troops. Fourteen were
killed or wounded, yet the infuriated populace held their ground, nor were
they driven back until the artillery was ordered out. Then a portion of
the soldiers joined the mob; a cannon with ammunition was seized, and
directed against the fortification. A state of siege was declared, and an
order issued that all the bread be baked in the government bakeries,
because the mob had looted the shops.
At Talavera de la Reina, thirty-six miles from Toledo, a mob attacked the
railroad station, entirely destroying it, setting fire to the cars, and
starting the engines wild upon the track. They burned several houses owned
by officials, and sacked a monastery, forcing the priests to flee for
their lives. Procuring wine from the inns, they grew more bold, and made
an attack upon the prison, hoping to release those confined there; but at
this point they were held in check by the guard.
The miners of Oviedo inaugurated a strike, commencing by inciting riots.
At Caceres several people were killed. At Malaga a mob rode down the
guards and looted the shops. The British steam yacht _Lady of Clonmel_,
owned by Mr. James Wilkinson, of London, was attacked as she lay at the
pier. Stones smashed her skylights, and a bomb was thrown aboard, but did
not explode. The yacht put hurriedly to sea, and from Gibraltar reported
the outrage to London.
_May 5._ The government tug _Leyden_, which on the second day of May left
Key West with a Cuban expedition, returned to port, giving the following
account of her voyage:
She proceeded to a certain point near Mariel, and landed five men, with
four boxes of ammunition and two horses.
General Acosta penetrated to the interior, where he communicated with the
forces of the insurgents.
The _Leyden_ lay to outside the harbour until five o’clock in the morning,
when, observing a troop of Spanish infantry approaching, she put to sea
and got safely away.
[Illustration: U. S. S. TERROR.]
She proceeded to Matanzas, and on the afternoon of the third landed
another small party near there.
Fearing attack by the Spaniards, she looked for the monitors _Terror_ and
_Amphitrite_, which were on the blockade in that vicinity, but being
unable to locate them the _Leyden_ returned to the original landing-place,
reaching there early on the morning of the fourth.
There she was met by Acosta and about two hundred Cubans, half of whom
were armed with rifles. They united with the men on the tug, and an
attempt was made to land the remaining arms and men, when two hundred of
the Villa Viscosa cavalry swooped down on them, and an engagement of a
half hour’s duration followed.
The Cubans finally repulsed the enemy, driving them into the woods. The
Spanish carried with them many wounded and left sixteen dead on the field.
During the engagement the bullets went through the _Leyden’s_ smoke-stack,
but no one was injured.
The little tug then went in search of the flag-ship, found her lying near
Havana, and reported the facts.
Rear-Admiral Sampson sent the gunboat _Wilmington_ back with the _Leyden_.
The two vessels reached the scene of the landing on the afternoon of the
fourth, and found the Spanish cavalry in waiting to welcome another
attempted invasion.
The _Wilmington_ promptly opened fire on a number of small houses marking
the entrance to the place.
The gunboat fired four shots, which drove back the Spaniards, and Captain
Dorst, with the ammunition, landed safely, the _Leyden_ returning to Key
West.
_May 6._ Orders were given from Washington to release the French mail
steamer, _Lafayette_, and to send her to Havana under escort. The capture
of the Frenchman by the gunboat _Annapolis_ was an unfortunate incident,
resulting from a mistake, but no protest was made by the representatives
of the French government in the United States. It appeared that, before
the _Lafayette_ sailed for Havana, the French legation in Washington was
instructed to communicate with the State Department. This was done and
permission was granted to the steamer to enter and discharge her
passengers and cargo, with the understanding that she would take on
nothing there. Instructions for the fulfilment of such agreement were sent
from Washington to Admiral Sampson’s squadron, and it was only learned
after the capture was made that they were never delivered.
The War Department issued an order organising the regular and volunteer
forces into seven army corps.
The following letter needs no explanation:
“597 FIFTH AVENUE, NEW YORK.
“TREASURER OF THE UNITED STATES,
Washington, D. C.
“_Dear Sir_:—Some days ago I wrote President McKinley offering the
government the sum of $100,000 for use in the present difficulty with
Spain. He writes me that he has no official authority to receive moneys in
behalf of the United States, and he suggests that my purpose can best be
served by making a deposit with the assistant treasurer at New York to the
credit of the treasurer of the United States, or by remitting my check
direct to you at Washington. I, therefore, enclose my check for the above
amount, drawn payable to your order on the Lincoln National Bank. Will you
kindly acknowledge the receipt of the same?
“Very truly,
“HELEN MILLER GOULD.
“_May 6, 1898._”
It was replied to twenty-four hours later:
“Treasury Department of the United States.
“Office of the Treasury.
“WASHINGTON, D. C., May 7, 1898.
“MISS HELEN MILLER GOULD,
597 Fifth Avenue, New York, N. Y.
“_Madam_:—It gives me especial pleasure to acknowledge the receipt of your
letter under date of May 6, 1898, enclosing your check for $100,000,
according to your previous offer to President McKinley, for the
government. This sum has been placed in the general fund of the treasury
of the United States as a donation from you, for use in the present
difficulty with Spain. Permit me to recognise the superb patriotism which
prompts you to make this magnificent gift to the government. Certificates
of deposit will follow in due course. Respectfully yours,
“ELLIS H. ROBERTS,
“_Treasurer of the United States._”
_May 6._ The torpedo-boats _Dupont_ and _Hornet_ shelled the blockhouse
near the lighthouse at Point Maya, at the mouth of the harbour of
Matanzas, and Fort Garcia, which is an old hacienda used as a blockhouse,
lying three and one-half miles to the east.
As the _Dupont_ was leaving her position off the lighthouse point, a big
shell was fired from the middle embrasure of a battery on the other side
of the harbour, called Gorda. The line was perfect, but the elevation was
bad, and the range too long. The shell fell a thousand yards short. The
_Hornet_ was ordered to use her 6-pounders on the blockhouse. The first
shell failed of its purpose; but the second hit the target fairly, and the
Spanish soldiers hurriedly left it for shelter among the neighbouring
trees.
The _Hornet_ fired twelve shells, six of which struck the mark. The
_Dupont_, after ascertaining that Point Maya was being made too warm for
Spanish occupation, steamed down to a blockhouse opposite, called Garcia
Red, and a prominent landmark to the eastward, and turned loose her
1-pounders.
Here, as in the other place, the infantry had urgent business behind the
forest woods and hills. After making certain they had gone to stay, the
_Dupont_ resumed patrol duty. Cavalry afterward appeared at Fortina, but
remained there only long enough to see the torpedo-boat’s menacing
attitude.
_May 6._ The cruiser _Montgomery_, Captain Converse, was the first ship of
the American squadron to acquire the distinction of capturing two prizes
in one day, which she did on the sixth. The captives were the _Frasquito_
and the _Lorenzo_, both small vessels of no great value as compared with
the big steamers taken during the first days of the war.
The _Montgomery_ was cruising about fifty miles off Havana when the
_Frasquito_, a two-master, came bowling along toward the Cuban capital.
When the yellow flag of the enemy was sighted the helm was swung in her
direction, and a blank shot was put across her bow. The Spaniard hove to
and the customary prize-crew was put on board. It was found that the
_Frasquito_ was bound from Montevideo to Havana with a cargo of jerked
beef. She was of about 140 tons register and hailed from Barcelona. The
prize-crew took her to Havana waters, and the _Annapolis_ assigned the
cutter _Hamilton_ to carry her into Key West.
A few minutes afterwards the _Montgomery_ encountered the _Lorenzo_, a
Spanish bark, bound from Barcelona to Havana with a cargo of dried beef.
She was taken just as easily, and Ensign Osborn, with several “Jackies,”
sailed her into port.
_May 7._ Quite a sharp little affair occurred off Havana, in which the
_Vicksburg_ and the cutter _Morrill_ were very nearly enticed to
destruction.
A small schooner was sent out from Havana harbour shortly before daylight
to draw some of the Americans into an ambuscade.
She ran off to the eastward, hugging the shore with the wind on her
starboard quarter. About three miles east of the entrance of the harbour
she came over on the port tack.
A light haze fringed the horizon, and she was not discovered until three
miles off shore, when the _Mayflower_ made her out and signalled the
_Vicksburg_ and _Morrill_. Captain Smith of the _Vicksburg_ immediately
clapped on all steam and started in pursuit.
The schooner instantly put about and ran for Morro Castle before the wind.
On doing so, she would, according to the plot, lead the two American
war-ships directly under the guns of the Santa Clara batteries.
These works are a short mile west of Morro, and are a part of the defences
of the harbour. There were two batteries, one at the shore, which had been
recently thrown up, of sand and mortar, with wide embrasures for 8-inch
guns, and the other on the crest of the rocky eminence which juts out into
the waters of the gulf at the point. The upper battery mounted modern 10
and 12-inch Krupp guns, behind a six-foot stone parapet, in front of which
were twenty feet of earthwork and belting of railroad iron.
The American vessels were about six miles from the schooner when the chase
began. They steamed after her at full speed, the _Morrill_ leading, until
within a mile and a half of the Santa Clara batteries.
Commander Smith of the _Vicksburg_ was the first to realise the danger
into which the reckless pursuit had led them. He concluded it was time to
haul off, and sent a shot across the bow of the schooner.
The Spanish skipper instantly brought his vessel about, but while she was
still rolling in the trough of the sea with her sails flapping, an 8-inch
shrapnel shell came hurtling through the air from the water-battery, a
mile and a half away.
It passed over the _Morrill_, between the pilot-house and the smoke-stack,
and exploded less than fifty feet away on the port quarter.
Two more shots followed in quick succession, both shrapnel. One burst
close under the starboard quarter, filling the engine-room with the smoke
of the exploding shell, and the other, like the first, passed over and
exploded just beyond.
The Spanish gunners had the range, and their time fuses were accurately
set.
The crews of both ships were at their guns. Lieutenant Craig, who was in
charge of the bow 4-inch rapid-fire gun of the _Morrill_, asked for and
obtained permission to return the fire.
At the first shot the _Vicksburg_, which was in the wake of the _Morrill_,
slightly inshore, sheered off and passed to windward under the _Morrill’s_
stern. In the meantime Captain Smith also put his helm to port, and was
none too soon, for as the _Morrill_ stood off a solid 8-inch shot grazed
her starboard quarter and kicked up tons of water as it struck a wave one
hundred yards beyond.
All the guns of the water-battery were now at work. One of them cut the
Jacob’s-ladder of the _Vicksburg_ adrift, and another carried away a
portion of the rigging.
As the vessels steamed away their aft guns were used, but only a few shots
were fired.
The _Morrill’s_ 6-inch gun was elevated for four thousand yards, and
struck the earthwork repeatedly. The _Vicksburg_ discharged only three
shots from her 6-pounder.
The Spaniards continued to fire shot and shell for twenty minutes, but
none of the latter shots came within one hundred yards.
Later in the day the _Morrill_ captured the Spanish schooner _Espana_,
bound for Havana, and towed the prize to Key West.
[Illustration: JOHN D. LONG, SECRETARY OF NAVY.]
The _Newport_ added to the list of captures by bringing in the Spanish
schooner _Padre de Dios_.
_May 7._ The United States despatch-boat _McCulloch_ arrived at Hongkong
from Manila, with details of Commodore Dewey’s victory.
Secretary Long, after the cablegram forwarded from Hongkong had been
received, sent the following despatch:
“The President, in the name of the American people, thanks you and your
officers and men for your splendid achievement and overwhelming victory.
In recognition he has appointed you acting admiral, and will recommend a
vote of thanks to you by Congress as a foundation for further promotion.”
_May 8._ A brilliant, although unimportant, affair was that in which the
torpedo-boat _Winslow_ engaged off Cardenas Bay.
The _Winslow_ and gunboat _Machias_ were on the blockade off Cardenas.
In the harbour, defended by thickly strewn mines and torpedoes, three
small gunboats had been bottled up since the beginning of the war.
Occasionally they stole out toward the sea, but never venturing beyond the
inner harbour, running like rabbits at sight of the American torpedo
boats.
Finally a buoy was moored by Spaniards inside the entrance of the bay to
mark the position for the entrance of the gunboats. The signal-station on
the shore opposite was instructed to notify the gunboats inside when the
torpedo-boats were within the limit distance marked by the buoy.
The scheme was that the gunboats could run out, open fire at a one-mile
range thus marked off for them, and retreat without the chance of being
cut off. The men of the _Winslow_ eyed this buoy and guessed its purpose,
but did not attempt to remove it.
On the afternoon of the eighth the _Machias_ stood away to the eastward
for a jaunt, and the _Winslow_ was left alone to maintain the blockade.
In a short time she steamed toward Cardenas Harbour. There was great
excitement at the signal-station, and flags fluttered hysterically. The
three gunboats slipped their cables and went bravely out to their safety
limit.
Three bow 6-pounders were trained at two thousand yards. In a few minutes
the shore signals told them that the torpedo-boat was just in range. Every
Spaniard aboard prepared to see the Americans blown out of the water.
Three 6-pounders crackled, and three shells threw waterspouts around the
_Winslow_, but she was not struck. Instead of running away, she upset
calculations by driving straight ahead, attacking the boats, and
Lieutenant Bernado no sooner saw the first white smoke puffs from the
Spanish guns than he gave the word to the men already stationed at the two
forward 1-pounders, which barked viciously and dropped shot in the middle
of the flotilla.
On plunged the _Winslow_ to within fifteen hundred yards of the gunboats,
while the row raised by the rapid-fire 1-pounders was like a rattling
tattoo.
The Spaniards were apparently staggered at this fierce onslaught,
single-handed, and fired wildly. The _Winslow_ swung around broadside to,
to bring her two after guns to bear as the Spanish boats scattered and
lost formation.
The _Winslow_ soon manœuvred so that she was peppering at all three
gunboats at once. The sea was very heavy, and the knife-like torpedo-boat
rolled so wildly that it was impossible to do good gun practice, but
despite this big handicap, the rapidity of her fire and the remarkable
effectiveness of her guns demoralised all three opponents, which, after
the _Winslow_ had fired about fifty shells, began to gradually work back
toward the shelter of the harbour.
They were still hammering away with their 6-pounders, but were wild.
Several shells passed over the _Winslow_. One exploded a hundred feet
astern, but the others fell short.
At last a 1-pounder from the _Winslow_ went fair and true, and struck the
hull of the _Lopez_ a little aft of amidships, apparently exploding on the
inside.
The _Winslow_ men yelled. The _Lopez_ stopped, evidently disabled, while
one of her comrades went to her assistance. By this time the Spanish boats
had retreated nearly inside, where they could not be followed because of
the mines. The _Lopez_ got under way slowly and limped homeward with the
help of a towline from her consort.
During this episode the _Machias_ had returned, and when within a two-mile
range let fly two 4-inch shells from her starboard battery, which
accelerated the Spanish flight. But the flotilla managed to creep back
into Cardenas Harbour in safety, and under the guns of the shore-battery.
The Spanish gunboats that lured the _Winslow_ into the death-trap were the
_Antonio Lopez_, _Lealtad_, and _Ligera_. During the fight the two former
retreated behind the wharves, and the _Ligera_ behind the key. It was the
_Antonio Lopez_ that opened fire on the _Winslow_ and decoyed her into the
channel. The Spanish troops formed on the public square, not daring to go
to the wharves. All the Spanish flags were lowered, as they furnished
targets, and the women and children fled to Jovellanos.
Off Havana during the afternoon the fishing-smack _Santiago Apostal_ was
captured by the U. S. S. _Newport_.
The U. S. S. _Yale_ captured the Spanish steamer _Rita_ on the eighth, but
did not succeed in getting the prize into port until the thirteenth. The
_Rita_ was loaded with coal, from Liverpool to Porto Rico.
The bread riots in Spain continued throughout the day. At Linates a crowd
of women stormed the town hall and the civil guard fired upon them,
killing twelve. _El Pais_, the popular republican newspaper in Madrid, was
suppressed; martial law was declared at Badajos and Alicante.
_May 9._ Congress passed a joint resolution of thanks to Commodore Dewey;
the House passed a bill increasing the number of rear-admirals from six to
seven, and the Senate passed a bill to give Dewey a sword, and a bronze
memorative medal to each officer and man of his command.
The record of the navy for the day was summed up in the capture of the
fishing-smack _Fernandito_ by the U. S. S. _Vicksburg_, and the capture of
the Spanish schooner _Severito_ by the U. S. S. _Dolphin_.
The rioting in Spain was not abated; martial law was proclaimed in
Catalonia.
_May 10._ The steamer _Gussie_ sailed from Tampa, Florida, with two
companies of the First Infantry, and munitions and supplies for Cuban
insurgents.
Rioting in Spain was the report by cable; in Alicante the mob sacked and
burned a bonded warehouse.
_May 11._ Running from Cienfuegos, Cuba, at daybreak on the morning of May
11th, were three telegraph cables. The fleet in the neighbourhood
consisted of the cruiser _Marblehead_, which had been on the station three
weeks, the gunboat _Nashville_, which had been there two weeks, and the
converted revenue cutter _Windom_, which had arrived two days before. The
station had been a quiet one, except for a few brushes with some Spanish
gunboats, which occasionally ventured a very little way out of Cienfuegos
Harbour. They had last appeared on the tenth, but had retreated, as usual,
when fired on.
Commander McCalla of the _Marblehead_, ranking officer, instructed
Lieutenant Anderson to call for volunteers to cut the cable early on the
morning of the eleventh. Anderson issued the call on both the cruiser and
the gunboat, and three times the desired number of men offered to serve.
No one relented, even after repeated warnings that the service was
especially dangerous.
“I want you men to understand,” Anderson said, “that you are not ordered
to do this work, and are not obliged to.”
The men nearly tumbled over one another in their eagerness to be selected.
In the end, the officer had simply the choice of the entire crew of the
two ships.
A cutter containing twelve men, and a steam launch containing six, were
manned from each ship, and a guard of marines and men to man the 1-pounder
guns of the launches, were put on board. In the meantime the _Marblehead_
had taken a position one thousand yards offshore opposite the Colorado
Point lighthouse, which is on the east side of the narrow entrance to
Cienfuegos Harbour, just east of the cable landing, and, with the
_Nashville_ a little farther to the west, had begun shelling the beach.
The shore there is low, and covered with a dense growth of high grass and
reeds. The lighthouse stood on an elevation, behind which, as well as
hidden in the long grass, were known to be a large number of rifle-pits,
some masked machine guns, and 1-pounders. These the Spaniards deserted as
fast as the ships’ fire reached them. As the enemy’s fire slackened and
died out, the boats were ordered inshore.
They advanced in double column. The launches, under Lieutenant Anderson
and Ensign McGruder of the _Nashville_, went ahead with their
sharpshooters and gunners, looking eagerly for targets, while the cutters
were behind with the grappling-irons out, and the men peering into the
green water for a sight of the cables. At a distance of two hundred feet
from shore the launches stopped, and the cutters were sent ahead.
The first cable was picked up about ninety feet offshore. No sooner had
the work of cutting it been begun than the Spanish fire recommenced, the
soldiers skulking back to their deserted rifle-pits and rapid-fire guns
through the high grass. The launches replied and the fire from the ships
quickened, but although the Spanish volleys slackened momentarily, every
now and then they grew stronger.
The men in the boats cut a long piece out of the first cable, stowed it
away for safety, and then grappled for the next. Meantime the Spaniards
were firing low in an evident endeavour to sink the cutters, but many of
their shots fell short. The second cable was finally found, and the men
with the pipe-cutters went to work on it.
Several sailors were kept at the oars to hold the cutters in position, and
the first man wounded was one of these. No one else in the boat knew it,
however, till he fainted in his seat from loss of blood. Others took the
cue from this, and there was not a groan or a complaint from the two
boats, as the bullets, that were coming thicker and faster every minute,
began to bite flesh.
The men simply possessed themselves with heroic patience, and went on with
the work. They did not even have the satisfaction of returning the Spanish
fire, but the marines in the stern of the boat shot hard enough for all.
The second cable was finally cut, and the third, a smaller one, was
grappled and hoisted to the surface. The fire of the Spanish had reached
its maximum. It was estimated that one thousand rifles and guns were
speaking, and the men who handled them grew incautious, and exposed
themselves in groups here and there.
“Use shrapnel,” came the signal, and can after can exploded over the
Spaniards, causing them to break and run to cover.
This cover was a sort of fortification behind the lighthouse, and to this
place they dragged a number of their machine guns, and again opened fire
on the cutter. The shots from behind the lighthouse could not be answered
so well from the launches, and the encouraged Spaniards fired all the
oftener.
Man after man in the boats was hit, but none let a sound escape him. Like
silent machines they worked, grimly hacking and tearing at the third
cable. During half an hour they laboured, but the fire from behind the
lighthouse was too deadly, and, reluctantly, at Lieutenant Anderson’s
signal, the cable was dropped and the boats retreated.
The work had lasted two hours and a half.
The _Windom_, which had laid out of range with a collier, was now ordered
in, and the surgeon called to attend the wounded. The _Windom_ was
signalled to shell the lighthouse, which had not been fired on before,
according to the usages of international law. It had been used as a
shelter by the Spaniards. The revenue cutter’s rapid-fire guns riddled the
structure in short order, and soon a shell from the 4-inch gun, which was
in charge of Lieut. R. O. Crisp, struck it fair, exploded, and toppled it
over.
With the collapse of their protection the Spaniards broke and ran again,
the screaming shrapnel bursting all around them.
At the fall of the lighthouse the _Marblehead_ signalled, “Well done,” and
then a moment later, “Cease firing.”
The only man killed instantly was a marine named Eagan. A sailor from one
of the boats died of his wounds on the same day. Commander Maynard of the
_Nashville_ was grazed across the chest, and Lieutenant Winslow was
wounded in the hand.
The list of casualties resulting from this display of heroism was two
killed, two fatally and four badly wounded. The Spanish loss could not be
ascertained, but it must necessarily have been heavy.
[Illustration: U. S. S. CHICAGO.]
CHAPTER VI.
CARDENAS AND SAN JUAN.
_May 11._ The Spanish batteries in Cardenas Harbour were silenced on May
11th, and at the same time there was a display of heroism, on the part of
American sailors, such as has never been surpassed.
A plan of action having been decided upon, the _Wilmington_ arrived at the
blockading station from Key West on the morning of the eleventh. She found
there, off Piedras Bay, the cruiser _Machias_, the torpedo-boat _Winslow_,
and the revenue cutter _Hudson_, which last carried two 6-pounders.
Shortly after noon the _Wilmington_, _Winslow_, and _Hudson_ moved into
the inner harbour of Cardenas, and prepared to draw the fire of the
Spanish batteries on the water-front. The _Wilmington_ took a range of
about twenty-five hundred yards.
The Cardenas land defences consisted of a battery in a stone fortification
on the mole or quay, a battery of field-pieces, and of infantry armed with
long-range rifles. The gunboats were equipped with rapid-fire guns.
Firing commenced at one o’clock, and when the Cardenas batteries were
silenced at two in the afternoon, the _Wilmington_ had sent 376 shells
into them and the town. Her 4-inch guns had been fired 144 times. She had
aimed 122 shots from her 6-pounders, and 110 from her 1-pounders, over six
shots a minute.
When the _Wilmington_ ceased firing she had moved up to within one
thousand yards range of the Spanish guns, and there were only six inches
of water under her keel. The _Wilmington_ draws nine feet of water forward
and ten and a half feet aft. When the soundings showed that she was almost
touching, her guns were in full play, and the Spaniards had missed a
beautiful opportunity. The Spanish gunners must have miscalculated her
distance and misjudged her draught, else they would have done more
effective work at a range of two thousand yards.
During the engagement, when the commander of the _Winslow_ found that he
could not approach close enough to the Spanish gunboats to use his
torpedo-tubes to any advantage, he remained under fire. At that time he
could have got out of harm’s way by taking shelter to the leeward of the
_Wilmington_.
Captain Todd, from his post of duty in the conning-tower of the
_Wilmington_, saw a Spanish shell, aimed for the torpedo-boat, do its
deadly work. The shell struck the water, took an up-shoot, and exploded on
the deck of the _Winslow_. There is little room for men anywhere on a
torpedo boat, and if a shot strikes at all it is almost sure to hit a
group. Such was the case in the _Winslow_. The exploding shell cost the
lives of Ensign Bagley and four seamen; it also crippled the craft by
wrecking her steam-steering gear. Later her captain and one of his crew
were wounded by separate shots.
[Illustration: THE TRAGEDY OF THE WINSLOW.]
Ensign Bagley was killed outright, two of the group of five died on the
deck of the disabled torpedo-boat, and the other two died while being
removed to the _Wilmington_.
The signal, “Many wounded,” went up from the staff of the _Winslow_, and
Passed Assistant Surgeon Cook of the _Wilmington_ boarded the
torpedo-boat.
The _Hudson_ tied up to the _Winslow_ and towed her out of danger,
escaping unscathed. The wounded men were tenderly cared for on the
cruiser, and that night the revenue cutter steamed out of Cardenas Bay,
bearing the dead and wounded to Key West.
William O’Hearn, of Brooklyn, N. Y., one of the _Winslow’s_ crew, thus
tells his story of the battle to a newspaper correspondent:
“From the very beginning,” he said, “I think every man on the boat
believed that we could not escape being sunk, and that is what would have
happened had it not been for the bravery of the boys on the _Hudson_, who
worked for over an hour under the most terrific fire to get us out of
range.”
“Were you ordered to go in there?” he was asked.
“Yes; just before we were fired upon the order was given from the
_Wilmington_.”
“Was it a signal order?”
“No; we were near enough to the _Wilmington_ so that they shouted it to us
from the deck, through the megaphone.”
“Do you remember the words of the commander who gave them?”
“I don’t know who shouted the order; but the words as I remember them
were, ‘Mr. Bagley, go in and see what gunboats there are.’ We started at
once towards the Cardenas dock, and the firing began soon after.
“The first thing I saw,” continued O’Hearn, “was a shot fired from a
window or door in the second story of the storehouse just back of the dock
where the Spanish gunboats were lying. A shell then went hissing over our
heads. Then the firing began from the gunboat at the wharf, and from the
shore. The effect of shell and heavy shot the first time a man is under
fire is something terrible.
“First you hear that awful buzzing or whizzing, and then something seems
to strike you in the face and head. I noticed that at first the boys threw
their hands to their heads every time a shell went over; but they soon
came so fast and so close that it was a roaring, shrieking, crashing hell.
“I am the water-tender, and my place is below, but everybody went on deck
when the battle began. John Varvares, the oiler, John Denif and John Meek,
the firemen, were on watch with me, and had they remained below they would
not have been killed.
“After the firing began I went below again to attend to the boiler, and a
few minutes later a solid shot came crashing through the side of the boat
and into the boiler, where it exploded and destroyed seventy of the tubes.
“At first it stunned me. When the shell burst in the boiler it threw both
the furnace doors open, and the fuse from the shell struck my feet. It was
a terrible crash, and the boiler-room was filled with dust and steam. For
several seconds I was partially stunned, and my ears rang so I could hear
nothing. I went up on the deck to report to Captain Bernadou.
“I saw him near the forecastle gun, limping about with a towel wound
around his left leg. He was shouting, and the noise of all the guns was
like continuous thunder. ‘Captain,’ I cried, ‘the forward boiler is
disabled. A shell has gone through it.’
“‘Get out the hose,’ he said, and turned to the gun again. I made my way
to the boiler-room, in a few minutes went up on the deck again, and the
fighting had grown hotter than ever. Several of the men were missing, and
I looked around.
“Lying all in a heap on the after-deck in the starboard quarter, near the
after conning-tower, I saw five of our men where they had wilted down
after the shell struck them. In other places were men lying groaning, or
dragging themselves about, wounded and covered with blood. There were big
red spots on the deck, which was strewn with fragments and splinters.
“I went to where the five men were lying, and saw that all were not dead.
John Meek could speak and move one hand slightly. I put my face down close
to his.
“‘Can I do anything for you, John?’ I asked, and he replied, ‘No, Jack, I
am dying; good-bye,’ and he asked me to grasp his hand. ‘Go help the
rest,’ he whispered, gazing with fixed eyes toward where Captain Bernadou
was still firing the forward gun. The next minute he was dead.
“Ensign Bagley was lying on the deck nearly torn to pieces, and the bodies
of the other three were on top of him. The coloured cook was a little
apart from the others, mangled, and in a cramped position. We supposed he
was dead, and covered him up the same as the others. Nearly half an hour
after that we heard him calling, and saw that he was making a slight
movement under the clothes. I went up to him, and he said:
“‘Oh, boys, for God’s sake move me. I am lying over the boiler and burning
up.’
“The deck was very hot, and his flesh had been almost roasted. He
complained that his neck was cramped, but did not seem to feel his
terrible wound. We moved him into an easier position, and gave him some
water.
“‘Thank you, sir,’ he said, and in five seconds he was dead.”
Ensign Bagley had been fearfully wounded by a shot, which practically tore
through his body. He sank over the rail, and was grasped by one of the
enlisted men, named Reagan, who lifted him up and placed him on the deck.
[Illustration: U. S. S. AMPHITRITE.]
The young officer, realising that the wound was fatal, and that he had
only a short time to live, allowed no murmur of complaint or cry of pain
to escape him, but opened his eyes, stared at the sailor, and simply said:
“Thank you, Reagan.”
These were the last words he spoke.
_May 12._ The forts of San Juan, the capital of Porto Rico, were bombarded
by a portion of Rear-Admiral Sampson’s fleet on Thursday morning, May
12th. The vessels taking part in the action were the battle-ships _New
York_, _Iowa_, _Indiana_, the cruisers _Detroit_ and _Montgomery_, and the
monitors _Terror_ and _Amphitrite_.
The engagement began at 5.15 and ended at 8.15 A. M., resulting in a loss
to the Americans of one killed and seven wounded, and the death of one
from prostration by heat. The Spanish loss, as reported by cable to
Madrid, was five killed and forty-three wounded.
Admiral Sampson’s orders were to refrain from making any land attack so
long as the batteries on shore did not attempt to molest his ships; but in
case the Spaniards fired on his vessels, to destroy the offending
fortifications.
These orders were not issued until the Spanish fire at different Cuban
ports became so irritating to the American bluejackets that discipline
was, in a measure, threatened; but as soon as the men learned that they
were no longer to remain passive targets for the Spaniards, but were to
return any shots against them, all grumbling against inaction ceased.
It was not Admiral Sampson’s original intention to attack San Juan. He was
looking for bigger game than the poorly defended Porto Rican capital. His
orders from the Navy Department were to find and capture or destroy the
Spanish squadron that was en route from the Cape Verde Islands, and it was
this business that took him into the neighbourhood of San Juan, he being
desirous of learning if the Spanish squadron were there.
The fleet arrived off San Juan before daybreak on Thursday. The tug
_Wampatuck_ was ordered to take soundings in the channel, and at once
proceeded to do so. She was fully half a mile ahead of the fleet when she
entered the channel, and those aboard of her kept the lead going at a
lively rate.
It is supposed that Admiral Sampson had no intention at that time of
entering the harbour itself, his object, when he found that the Spanish
squadron was not at San Juan, being to learn for future use exactly how
much water there was in the channel, and if any attempt had been made to
block the way.
At all events, while the _Wampatuck_ was engaged in this work she was seen
by the sentries at the Morro, and a few minutes later was fired on.
Then, and not until then, did Admiral Sampson determine to teach the
Spaniards a lesson regarding the danger of firing on the American flag.
“Quarters!” rang out aboard the war-ships almost before the report of the
Morro gun had died away, the flag-ship having signalled for action.
The _Iowa_ opened the bombardment with her big 12-inch gun, the missile
striking Morro Castle squarely, and knocking a great hole in the masonry.
Then the _Indiana_ sent a 13-inch projectile from the forward turret, and
one after the other, with but little loss of time, the remaining vessels
of the fleet aided in the work of destruction.
The French war-ship _Admiral Rigault de Genoailly_ was at anchor in the
harbour, and a shell exploded within a few hundred feet of where she lay,
but worked no injury.
The French officers thus reported the action:
“The American gunners were generally accurate in their firing, while the
marksmanship of the Spaniards was inferior. Some of the American shells,
however, passed over the fortifications into the city, where they did
terrible damage, crashing straight through rows of buildings before
exploding, and there killing many citizens.
“The fortifications were irreparably injured. Repeatedly masses of masonry
were blown skyward by the shells from the American guns. Fragments from
one shell struck the commandante’s residence, which was situated near the
fortifications, damaging it terrifically.”
Morro Castle was speedily silenced, and then the guns of the fleet were
turned on the land-batteries and the fortifications near the government
buildings.
The inhabitants fled in terror from the city; the volunteers,
panic-stricken, ran frantically in every direction, discharging their
weapons at random, until they were a menace to all within possible range.
The crashing of the falling buildings, the roar of the heavy guns, the
shrieks of the terrified and groans of the wounded, formed a horrible
accompaniment to the work of destruction.
Three times the line of American ships passed from the entrance of the
harbour to the extreme eastward battery, sending shot and shell into the
crumbling forts. Clouds of dust showed where the missiles struck, but the
smoke hung over everything. The shells screeching overhead and dropping
around were the only signs that the Spaniards still stuck to their guns.
At 7.45 A. M. Admiral Sampson signalled, “Cease firing.”
“Retire” was sounded on the _Iowa_, and she headed from the shore.
The _Terror_ was the last ship in the line, and, failing to see the
signal, banged away alone for about half an hour, the concert of shore
guns roaring at her and the water flying high around her from the
exploding shells. But she possessed a charmed life, and reluctantly
retired at 8.15.
[Illustration: THE BOMBARDMENT OF SAN JUAN, PORTO RICO.]
_May 13._ In the Spanish Cortes, Señor Molinas, deputy for Porto Rico,
protested against the bombardment of San Juan without notice, as an
infringement of international usage.
To this General Correa, Minister of War, replied that the conduct of the
Americans was “vandalism,” and that the government “will bring their
outrageous action under the notice of the powers.” He echoed Señor
Molinas’s eulogy of the bravery of the Spanish troops and marines, and
promised that the government would send its thanks.
An authority on international law thus comments upon the bombardment, in
the columns of the New York _Sun_:
“There is nothing in the laws of war which requires notice of bombardment
to be given to a fortified place, during the progress of war. When the
Germans threatened to bombard Port au Prince, a few months ago, they gave
a notice of a few hours, but in that case no state of war existed. Again,
when Spain bombarded Valparaiso, in 1865, an hour’s interval was allowed
between the blank charge that gave the notice, and the actual bombardment.
But that interval was intended to allow Chili an opportunity to do the
specific thing demanded, namely, to salute the Spanish flag, in atonement
for a grievance. Besides, Valparaiso was wholly unfortified, and the guns
were directed, not at military works, but at public buildings.
“The case of San Juan was far different. Hostilities had been going on in
Gulf waters for weeks, while, as Doctor Snow, the well-known authority on
international law, says, ‘In case of war, the very fact of a place being
fortified is evidence that at any time it is liable to attack, and the
non-combatants residing within its limits must be prepared for a
contingency of this kind.’ This is true, also, of the investment of
fortified places by armies, where ‘if the assault is made, no notice is
given, as surprise is essential to success.’ In the same spirit Halleck
says that ‘every besieged place is for a time a military garrison; its
inhabitants are converted into soldiers by the necessities of
self-defence.’
“Turning to the official report of Admiral Sampson, we find him saying
that, as soon as it was light enough, he began ‘an attack upon the
batteries defending the city. This attack lasted about three hours, and
resulted in much damage to the batteries, and incidentally to a portion of
the city adjacent to the batteries.’ It is, therefore, clear that this
latter damage was simply the result of the proximity of the defensive
works to some of the dwellings. The same thing would occur in bombarding
Havana. Can any one imagine that the Spaniards, if they suddenly appeared
in New York Bay, would be obliged to give notice before opening fire on
Fort Hamilton and Fort Wadsworth, for the reason that adjacent settlements
would suffer from the fire? The advantage of suddenness in the attack upon
a place, not only fortified, but forewarned by current events, cannot be
renounced. Civilians dwelling near defensive works know what they risk in
war.
“In the Franco-German war of 1870 there were repeated instances, according
to the authority already quoted, of deliberately firing on inhabited towns
instead of on their fortifications, and ‘there were cases, like that of
Peronne, where the town was partially destroyed while the ramparts were
nearly intact.’ The ground taken was that which a military writer, General
Le Blois, had advocated five years before, namely, that the pressure for
surrender exercised by the people becomes greater on subjecting them to
the loss of life and property. ‘The governor is made responsible for all
the disasters that occur; the people rise against him, and his own troops
seek to compel him to an immediate capitulation.’ At San Juan there was no
attempt of this sort, the fire being concentrated upon the batteries, with
the single view of destroying them. The likelihood that adjacent buildings
and streets would suffer did not require previous notice of the
bombardment, and, in fact, when the Germans opened fire on Paris without
notification, and a protest was made on behalf of neutrals, Bismarck
simply replied that no such notification was required by the laws of war.”
CHAPTER VII.
FROM ALL QUARTERS.
_May 11._ A state of siege proclaimed throughout Spain. In a dozen cities
or more continued rioting and sacking of warehouses. The seacoast between
Cadiz and Malaga no longer lighted. The second division of the Spanish
navy, consisting of the battle-ship _Pelayo_, the armoured cruiser _Carlos
V._, the protected cruiser _Alphonso XIII._, the converted cruisers
_Rapido_ and _Patria_, and several torpedo-boats, remain in Cadiz Harbour.
_May 12._ The story of an attempt to land American troops in Cuba is thus
told by one of the officers of the steamer _Gussie_, which vessel left
Tampa on the tenth.
“In an effort to land Companies E and G of the first U. S. Infantry on the
shore of Pinar del Rio this afternoon, with five hundred rifles, sixty
thousand rounds of ammunition, and some food supplies for the insurgents,
the first land fight of the war took place. Each side may claim a victory,
for if the Spaniards frustrated the effort to connect with the insurgents,
the Americans got decidedly the better of the battle, killing twelve or
more of the enemy, and on their own part suffering not a wound.
[Illustration: U. S. S. MIANTONOMAH.]
“After dark last evening the old-fashioned sidewheel steamer _Gussie_ of
the Morgan line, with troops and cargo mentioned, was near the Cuban
coast. At sunrise she fell in with the gunboat _Vicksburg_ on the blockade
off Havana. Other blockading vessels came up also. The converted revenue
cutter _Manning_, Captain Munger, was detailed to convoy the _Gussie_,
and, three abreast, the steamers moved along the coast.
“The Cuban guides on the _Gussie_ took their machetes to a grindstone on
the hurricane-deck. Our soldiers gathered around to see them sharpen their
long knives, but only one could be induced to test the edge of these
barbarous instruments with his thumb.
“By the ruined walls of an old stone house Spanish troops were gathered.
Several shots were fired by the gunboat _Manning_, and presently no troops
were visible. It had been decided to land near here, but the depth of
water was not favourable.
“Just west of Port Cabanas Harbour the _Gussie_ anchored, the _Manning_
covering the landing-place with her guns, and the torpedo-boat _Wasp_ came
up eager to assist. The first American soldier to step on the Cuban shore
from this expedition was Lieutenant Crofton, Captain O’Connor with the
first boatload having gone a longer route. A reef near the beach threw the
men out, and they stumbled through the water up to their breasts. When
they reached dry land they immediately went into the bush to form a
picket-line. Two horses had been forced to swim ashore, when suddenly a
rifle-shot, followed by continuous sharp firing, warned the men that the
enemy had been in waiting.
“The captain of the transport signalled the war-ships, and the _Manning_
fired into the woods beyond our picket-line. Shrapnel hissed through the
air like hot iron plunged in water. The _Wasp_ opened with her small guns.
The cannonade began at 3.15 and lasted a quarter of an hour; then our
pickets appeared, the ships circled around, and, being told by Captain
O’Connor, who had come from shore with the clothing torn from one leg,
where the Spaniards were, a hundred shots more were fired in that
direction.
“‘Anybody hurt, captain?’ some one asked.
“‘None of our men, but we shot twelve Spaniards,’ he shouted back.
“The soldiers on board the _Gussie_ heard the news without a word, but
learning where the enemy were situated, gathered aft on the upper deck,
and sent volleys toward the spot.
“The pickets returned to the bush. Several crept along the beach, but the
Spaniards had drawn back. It was decided that the soldiers should reëmbark
on the _Gussie_, and that the guides take the horses, seek the insurgents,
and make a new appointment. They rode off to the westward, and disappeared
around a point.
“‘Say,’ shouted a man from Company G after them, ‘you forgot your
grindstone.’”
_May 12._ On Thursday morning, May 12th, the gunboat _Wilmington_ stood in
close to the coast, off the town of Cardenas, with her crew at quarters.
She had come for a specific purpose, which was to avenge the _Winslow_,
and not until she was within range of the gunboats that had decoyed the
_Winslow_ did she slacken speed. Then the masked battery, which had opened
on the American boat with such deadly effect, was covered by the
_Wilmington’s_ guns.
There were no preliminaries. The war-vessel was there to teach the
Spaniards of Cardenas a lesson, and set about the task without delay.
The town is three miles distant from the gulf entrance to the harbour,
therefore no time need be wasted in warning non-combatants, for they were
in little or no danger.
During two weeks troops had been gathering near about Cardenas to protect
it against American invasion; masked batteries were being planted,
earthworks thrown up, and blockhouses erected. There was no lack of
targets.
Carefully, precisely, as if at practice, the _Wilmington_ opened fire from
her 4-inch guns, throwing shells here, there, everywhere; but more
particularly in the direction of that masked battery which had trained its
guns on the _Winslow_, and as the Spaniards, panic-stricken, hearing a
death-knell in the sighing, whistling missiles, fled in mad terror, the
gunboats’ machine guns were called into play.
It is safe to assert that the one especial object of the American sailors’
vengeance was completely destroyed. Not a gun remained mounted, not a man
was alive, save those whose wounds were mortal. The punishment was
terrible, but complete.
Until this moment the Spaniards at Cardenas had believed they might with
impunity open fire on any craft flying the American flag; but now they
began to understand that such sport was in the highest degree dangerous.
During a full hour—and in that time nearly three hundred shells had been
sent on errands of destruction—the _Wilmington_ continued her bombardment
of the defences.
When the work was completed two gunboats had been sunk so quickly that
their crews had no more than sufficient time to escape. Two schooners were
converted into wrecks at their moorings. One blockhouse was consumed by
flames, and signal-stations, masked batteries, and forts were in ruins.
While this lesson was in progress the Spaniards did their best to bring it
to a close; but despite all efforts the _Wilmington_ was unharmed. There
was absolutely no evidence of conflict about her when she finally steamed
away, save such as might have been read on the smoke-begrimed faces of the
hard-worked but triumphant and satisfied crew.
[Illustration: ADMIRAL SCHLEY.]
_May 13._ An English correspondent, cabling from Hongkong regarding the
Spaniards in the Philippine Islands, made the following statement:
“They are in a position to give the Americans a deal of trouble. There are
twenty-five thousand Spanish soldiers in the garrison at Manila, and one
hundred thousand volunteers enrolled. Scores of coasting steamers are
imprisoned on the river Pasig, which is blocked at the mouth by some
sunken schooners.
“Mr. Wildman, the American consul here, tells me that, according to his
despatches, a flag of truce is flying over Manila, and the people are
allowed to proceed freely to and from the ships in the harbour.
“The Americans are on duty night and day on the lookout for boats which
endeavour to run the blockade with food supplies. The hospital is
supported by the Americans. The Spaniards are boasting that their big
battle-ship _Pelayo_ is coming, and will demolish the Americans in ten
minutes.”
On the afternoon of May 13th the flying squadron, Commodore W. S. Schley
commanding, set sail from Old Point Comfort, heading southeast. The
following vessels comprised the fleet. The cruiser _Brooklyn_, the
flag-ship, the battle-ships _Massachusetts_ and _Texas_, and the
torpedo-boat destroyer _Scorpion_. The _Sterling_, with 4,000 tons of
coal, was the collier of the squadron. At eight o’clock in the evening the
_Minneapolis_ followed, and Captain Sigsbee of the _St. Paul_ received
orders to get under way at midnight.
_May 14._ Eleven steamers, chartered by the government as troop-ships,
sailed from New York for Key West. At San Francisco, the cruiser
_Charleston_, with supplies and reinforcements for Admiral Dewey’s fleet
at Manila, had been made ready for sea.
At Havana General Blanco had shown great energy in preparing for the
expected siege by American forces. The city and forts were reported as
being provisioned sufficiently for three or four months, and Havana was
surrounded by entrenchments for a distance of thirty miles. The troops in
the garrison numbered seventy thousand, and a like number were in the
interior fighting the insurgents.
The condition of the reconcentrados in Havana had grown steadily worse.
The mortality increased among this wretched class, who had taken to
begging morsels of food.
Nobody in Havana except a few higher officers knew that the Spanish fleet
was annihilated at Manila, and the story was believed that the Americans
were beaten there.
At Madrid in the Chamber of Deputies Señor Bores asked the government to
inform the house of the condition of the Philippines. After the
pacification of the islands, he said, outbreaks had occurred at Pansy and
Cebu and even in Manila. Was this a new rebellion, he asked, or a
continuation of the old one? If it was a continuation of the old
rebellion, then General Prima de Rivera’s pacification of the islands had
been a perfect fraud. General Correa, Minister of War, replied that the
old insurrection was absolutely over. The present one, he said, arose from
the incitements of the Americans.
Señor Bores retorted that he had received a private letter from the
Philippines, dated April 10th, prior to the arising of any fear of war
with the United States, giving pessimistic accounts of the risings there,
and passengers arriving by the steamer _Leon III._ had told similar
stories. Now, he declared, the Spanish troops in the Philippines were in a
terrible condition, being between two fires, the natives and the
Americans. Señor Bores’s remarks created a profound sensation.
The cruiser _Charleston_ was reported as being ready to sail from San
Francisco for Manila. Three hundred sailors and marines to reinforce
Admiral Dewey’s fleet were to be sent on the cruiser.
The U. S. S. _Oregon_, _Marietta_, and _Nictheroy_ arrived at Bahia,
Brazil.
The Spanish torpedo-boat _Terror_, of the Cape Verde fleet, reported as
yet remaining at Port de France, Martinique.
A press correspondent gives the following spirited account, under the date
of May 14th, of a second attempt to entice the American blockading
squadron within range of the Santa Clara battery guns:
“Captain-General Blanco, two hours before sunset to-night, attempted to
execute a ruse, which, if successful, would have cleared the front of
Havana of six ships on that blockading station.
“Unable to come out to do battle, he adopted the tactics of the spider,
and cunningly planned to draw the prey into his net, but, though a clever
and pretty scheme as an original proposition, it was practically a
repetition of the trick by which the gunboat _Vicksburg_ and the little
converted revenue cutter _Morrill_ were last week decoyed by a
fishing-smack under the big Krupp guns of Santa Clara batteries.
“Thanks to bad gunnery, both ships on that occasion managed to get out of
range without being sunk, though some of the shells burst close aboard,
and the _Vicksburg’s_ Jacob’s-ladder was cut adrift.
“Late this afternoon the ships on the Havana station were dumfounded to
see two vessels steam out of Havana Harbour and head east. Dense smoke was
streaming like black ribbons from their stacks, and a glance showed that
they were under full head of steam.
“By aid of glasses Commander Lilly of the _Mayflower_, which was flying
the pennant, made out the larger vessel of the two, which was two hundred
feet long and about forty-five hundred tons displacement, to be the
cruiser _Alphonso XII._, and the small one to be the gunboat _Legaspi_,
both of which were known to be bottled up in Havana Harbour.
“At first he supposed that they were taking advantage of the absence of
the heavy fighting-ships, and were making a bona-fide run for the open
sea.
“As superior officer, he immediately signalled the other war-ships on the
station, the _Vicksburg_, _Annapolis_, _Wasp_, _Tecumseh_, and _Osceola_.
The little squadron gave chase to the flying Spaniards, keeping up a
running fire as they advanced. The _Alphonso_ and her consort circled
inshore about five miles below Havana, and headed back for Morro Castle.
“Our gunboats and the vessels of the mosquito fleet did not follow them
in. Commander Lilly saw that the wily Spanish ruse was to draw them in
under the guns of the heavy batteries, where Spanish artillery officers
could plot out the exact range with their telemeters. So the return was
made in line ahead, parallel with the shore.
“Commander Lilly had not been mistaken. As his ships came abreast of Santa
Clara battery the big guns opened, and fired thirteen shells at a distance
of about five miles. The range was badly judged, as more than half the
missiles overshot the mark, and others fell short, some as much as a mile.
“The big _Alphonso_ and her convoy steamed swiftly from the dark shadow of
the harbour’s mouth, and, turning sharply east, ran along the coast as
though to slip through the cordon of blockade.
“It was a bold trick and not at first transparent, although the folly of
it created a suspicion.
“The Spanish boats crowded on steam and stood along the coast as long as
they dared, to give zest to the chase. The _Mayflower_ signalled her
consorts, ‘Close in and charge.’
“Seeing that the bait had apparently taken, the Spaniards veered about,
and, bringing their stern-chasers to bear on the Americans, doubled back
for Morro.
“Two of the shells from the _Vicksburg_ burst in the rigging of the
_Alphonso_, and some of it came down, but it was, of course, impossible to
know whether any fatalities occurred. The American fire was much more
accurate than the Spanish, as every shell of the latter fell short of
their pursuers.
“The Spaniards were a mile off Morro, and our ships fully four miles out,
when flame leaped from the batteries of the Santa Clara forts, and clouds
of white smoke drifted up the coast. Half a minute later a dull, heavy
roar of a great gun came like a deep diapason of an organ on high treble
of smaller guns. It was from one of the 12-inch Krupp guns mounted there,
and an 85-pound projectile plunged into the water half a mile inside of
the American line, throwing up a tower of white spray. It ricochetted and
struck again half a mile outside.
“The mask was now off. Maddened by the failure of their plot, the
Spaniards continued to fire at intervals of about ten minutes. In all,
thirteen shots were fired, but not one struck within two hundred yards of
our ships.
“As soon as the battery opened, Commander Lilly signalled, and his fleet
stood offshore. Captain McKensie, on the bridge of the _Vicksburg_,
watched the fall of the shells, but he considered it useless to waste
ammunition at that distance. He appeased the desire of the men at the
guns, however, by letting go a final broadside at the Spanish ships, in
the chance hope of making them pay for their daring before they gained the
harbour, but they steamed under Morro’s guns untouched, and, as they
disappeared, discharged several guns.
“Half a dozen shots were sent after them at that moment by the
_Annapolis_, which dropped inside the harbour, probably creating
consternation among scores of boats on the water-front.”
_May 15._ The Spanish cruisers _Maria Teresa_, _Vizcaya_, _Almirante
Oquendo_, and _Cristobal Colon_, and torpedo-boat destroyers, which
arrived off the port of Curacoa, sailed at sunset on the 15th, after
having purchased coal and provisions.
The flying squadron under command of Commodore Schley arrived off
Charleston, S. C.
Admiral Sampson’s squadron passed Cape Haytien.
All the members of the Spanish Cabinet have resigned.
A report from Ponce, Porto Rico, under date of May 15th, describes the
inhabitants of the island as living in constant fear of a renewal of the
bombardment of San Juan by Admiral’s Sampson’s fleet. There are no
submarine mines in the harbour of Ponce, and the generally unprotected
condition of the place is a cause of much anxiety.
_May 16._ Freeman Halstead, an American newspaper correspondent, arrested
at San Juan de Porto Rico, while in the act of making photographs of the
fortifications. He was sentenced by a military tribunal to nine years’
imprisonment.
In a general order issued at the War Department, the assignments to the
different corps and other important commands were announced. The order is
as follows:
“The following assignments of general officers to command is hereby made
by the President:
“Maj.-Gen. Wesley Merritt, U. S. A., the Department of the Pacific.
“Maj.-Gen. John R. Brooke, U. S. A., the first corps and the Department of
the Gulf.
“Maj.-Gen. W. M. Graham, U. S. Volunteers, the second corps, with
headquarters at Falls Church, Va.
“Maj.-Gen. James M. Wade, U. S. Volunteers, the third corps, reporting to
Major-General Brooke, Chickamauga.
“Maj.-Gen. John J. Coppinger, U. S. Volunteers, the fourth corps, Mobile,
Ala.
“Maj.-Gen. William R. Shafter, U. S. Volunteers, the fifth corps, Tampa,
Fla.
“Maj.-Gen. Elwell S. Otis, U. S. Volunteers, to report to Major-General
Merritt, U. S. A., for duty with troops in the Department of the Pacific.
“Maj.-Gen. James H. Wilson, U. S. Volunteers, the sixth corps,
Chickamauga, reporting to Major-General Brooke.
“Maj.-Gen. Fitzhugh Lee, U. S. Volunteers, the seventh corps, Tampa, Fla.
“Maj.-Gen. Joseph H. Wheeler, U. S. Volunteers, the cavalry division,
Tampa, Fla.”
Orders were given by Admiral Sampson to Captain Goodrich of the _St.
Louis_, on May 15th, to take the fleet tender in tow and proceed to
Santiago de Cuba to cut the cables at that point. The grappling implements
were secured from the tug _Wampatuck_ on May 16th, and at eleven P. M. the
expedition, in the small boats, left the cruiser for the entrance of
Santiago. It was then perfectly dark and hazy, but the Santiago light was
burning brightly. Moonrise was not until 3.45 A. M. At three A. M. on May
17th the expedition returned with part of one cable, but it had failed to
find a
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