Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1892-06-15

most and said that his orders were N
prevent that vessel from going IN
sea, by force if necessary. Cant
"hlte emptied his glass and quietly
informed his guest that it was his in
tentlon To fire on any vessel that in
tcrfered with her. With this pleas
ant understanding and mutual good
"lshes the pair separated.
Hardly had the Spaniard's gig left
the gangway before the shrill notes Of
the ooatswain were heard calling the
crew to muster on the quarter deck.
Nhen they had all assembled aft
capt. White made a brief address
telling them of his intention and ask
Ing them to stand by him. The crew
was very small and the odds were
lnuch against them, but there was
not craven soul within those ribs Of
OAK, and when the address was fin
lshed, the captain felt sure that he
could depend upon his small but va
llent crew. The captain of the Vir-
ginius was formally notified that his
vessel would be escorted to sea the
next day at noon sharp.
The preparations for sea were
quietly conducted. As soon as night
fall concealed the movement the guns
or the Kansas were run in, charged
with tive-second shell and run out
again ready for firing. The eleven
inch gun was pivoted so as to bear on
the Spaniard, and the pivot ports
which masked it were made ready ior
knocking away at moments notice.
All the usual preparations for battle
were made and no precautions neg
lected. The Spanish captain had said
his orders were TO fire on the Nir-
ginius if she attempted to leave the
hdrOOr, and there was no reason to
suppose that he would diSObey them.
On the other hand, the Commancer
of the Kansas saw his duty plain.
This virtually amounted to the sacri-
fee of his ship and crew, for he knew
that there would be nothing left
above the water line of his little yes-
sci after she had received the Span
iard's brOadside. His only chance was
to disable her with the first shot from
the eleyen-inch.
At ll:30 in the forenoon everything
was ready on board the two Amcri-
can ships. The engineers stood lever
in hand, and forward were a group Of
men with axes ready to cut the ropes
which held the cable. The gun .rews
were quietly assembled around their
respective pieces, primers placed in
the vents, and the locks thrown back.
When all was complete a boat was
lowered and an officer dispatched to
the Spanish ship officially TO notify
her captain that the Nirginins would
90 TO sea at noon.
The message had hardly been de-
livered before signs of excitement
were noted on board. They had not
observed the preparations and were
taken completely by surprise.
! The boat did not delay a moment,
and as soon as she was alongside again
she was hooked on and run up to her
dayits like a flash. A moment later
the bell struck the nOontide hour. At
its first stroke the ak descended upon
the rope, the engineer threw the
throttle wide open, and in less time
than 1t takes to record it the Kansas
was interpOsed between the Spaniard
and the Nirginius and both vessels
were steaming out to sea. The men,
clustered around their guns, awaited
the fire Of the PiZarrO heToiCally, but
it did not come. The latter was ly-
4 ing in such position that none of her
guns could be brought to bear on
either Of the American ships. To
make matters verse for her. she had
fOuled her cable, and much time
elapsed before she could get her anchor
up. When she finally did get under
way both vessels were well out to sea.
The Kansas was no more remark
able for speed than she was for size,
and the pursuing ship rapidly lessened
the distance between them. The
Virginius, however, was very fast,
and was rapidly becoming a mere
speck upon the horizon. The men
of the Kansas watched the foam as it
rolled from the bow of the pursuing
frigate, but they soon saw that she
stood 40 chance Of catching the Nir-
gilus As she swept by the Kansas,
almost grazing her guns, Capt.
White politely doffed his cap to her
commander, but the salutatiOn was
not returned. The next morning the
three vessels were 200 miles apart
New York Times.