The gold leaf. [volume] (Henderson, N.C.) 1881-1911, 1889-03-21

HENDERSON. N c.. THURSDAY. MARCH 2l, 1889.

them, because while doing SO shc would
expose herself to the danger Of being run
down by the other. But tho presence Of
two of these almost submerged engines of
destruction entirely changed the sltua-
tion.
But the commanders of tho British
ships were brave men. They had started
to run down the strangely armored Amer
lean craft. and run her down they would,
if they could They put on more steam
and went ahead at greater speed. In
such furious onslaught the crabs might
not dare to attack them.
But they did not understand the ma
turo nor the powers Of these enemies.
In less than twenty minutes Crab A had
laid hold of one Of the men-of-war, and
Crab B of the other. The rudders of
both were shattered and torn away; and
while the blades of one propeller were
crushed to pieces, the other, with nearly
half its shaft, was drawn out and dropped
into the ocean. Helplessly the two men,
of-war rose and fell upon the waves.
In obedience to orders from the re-
peller, each crab took hold of one Of the
disabled vessels and towed it near the
mouth of the harbor, where It was left.
Tho city was now in state of feverish
excitement, which was intensified by the
fact that a majority of the people did not
understand what had happened, while
those to whom this had been made plain
could not comprehend.why such a thing
should have been allowed to happen.
Three Of her majesty's ships of war,
equipped and ready for action, had sailed
out of the harbor. and an apparently in
significant enemy, without firing gun,
had put them into such a condition that
they were utterly unfit for service and
must be towed into a dry dock. How
could the government, the municipality,
the army, or the navy, explain this?
The anxiety. the excitement. the ner-
vous desire to know what had happened,
and what might be expected next, spread
that evening to every part of the Domin-
1n reached by telegraph.
The military authorities in charge Of
the defcnses of the city were as much
disturbed and amazed by what had hap
pened as any civilian could possibly be,
but they had no fears for the safety Of
the place, for the enemy's vessels could
not possibly enter. nor even approach,
the harbor. Tho Notifications on the
heights mounted guns much heavier than
those on the men en-of-war, and shots from
these fired from Oh elevation might sink
even those "under water devils" But,
more than on the forts, they relied upon
their admirable system Of torpedoes and
submarine batteries. With these in po-
sition and ready for action, as they now
were, it was impossible for an enelny's
vessel, floating on the water, or under it,
to enter the harbor without certain de-
structiou.
Bulletins to this effect were posted in
the city, and somewhat allayed the popu-
lar anxiety, although many people who
were fearful Of what might happen next,
left by tho evening trains for the interior.
That night the news of this extraordinary
affair was cabled to Europe, and thence
back to the United States. and all over
the world. In many quarters the ac-
count was disbelieved, and in no quarter
was it thoroughly understood, for it
must be borne in mind that the methods
of operation employed by the crabs were
not evident even to those on board the
disabled vessels. But everywhere there
was tho greatest desire to know what
would be done next.
1t was the general opinion that the two
armored vessels were merely tenders
to the submerged machines, which had
done tho mischief. Having fired no guns,
nor taken any active part in the combat,
there was every reason to believe that
they were intended merely as bomb proof
store ships for their formidable consorts.
AS these submerged vessels could not at
tack town, nor reduce Notifications,
but could exercise their power only
against vessels af!oat, it was plain enough
to see that the object of the American
syndicate was to blockade the port.
That they would he able to maintain tho
blockade when the full power of the
British navy should be brought to bear
upon them was generally doubted, though
it was conceded in the most wrathful
circles that until the situation should be
altered, it would be unwise to risk valu-
able war vessels in encounters with the
diabolical sea monsters now lying of the
port.
In the New York Office Of tho syndi-
cato there was great satisfaction. The
news received was incorrect and imper-
feet. but it was evident that, SO far,
everything had gone well.
About o'clock the next morning Re
peller No. 1, with her consort half a mile
astern, and preceded by the two crabs,
one on either bow. approached to within
two miles of the harbor mouth. The
crabs, quarter of a mile ahead of the
repeller. moved slowly, for between then,
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