The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-11-01
Copyrighted, 1896, by walter Wood.

chant cruiser of y 900 tons and 10000 horse
mower, was doing her best to show her
heels to the vicious Spaniard, and the en-
gine-room staff were sweating in the
depths of her hull to get one more half
knot out Of her.
The State of Georgia had the first battal-
ion of the Hawkshire regiment on board,
reinforcements for the garrison at Gibral-
tar but in spite of the red-eoats and their
I,ee-Metfords the steamer was bound to
fall prey to the armored pursuer unless
she could show that she was the quicker
of the two Her enemy was the f1eetest
vessel Of the Spanish navy and she was
getting over the Bay of Biscay just a shade
faster than the crack Atlantic greyhound.
Never in the keenest race across the
pond had those on board the State of Geor-
gia worked as they were working now.
The stoxers shoveled the coal into the hun
qrv mouths of the furnaces until they
swooned under the fierce heat and the toll
of it, Then they were hauled away for a
breath of air and a draught of strong
liouor. and other men stepped into their
nlaces and piled the flames with more Of
the black food which they so ravenously
consumed.
The chief engineer watched his charge
with a loving eye. The State Of Georgia
was the idol of his soul; she was his god,
his deity, and he worshipped her before all
things else on earth. There was not a
working part that he did not see to himself,
not a man that he did not scrutinize with
jealousy. The furnaces were choked with
roaring flames, but when he went into the
stoke-hole he said that room could be
found for few more shovelfuls, and the
fremen got them in. The pressure on the
boilers was already 200 pounds to the
square inch, but they had been tested up
10 go and his heart rejoiced as he saw the
steam-gauge slowly turning towards go.
Even if there had been no hydraulic test
he would have put the pressure on all the
same This was not time to stick at
what had been done on scientific princi-
pies; it was the hour for practical expert
ment and he meant to run the engines Tor
every ounce of power they were worth
when the 250s touched" said stoker,
who was resting a moment from his Ia
bors, She'll bust, an we shall all be
blown to blazes'
1--WE might as we'll be blown by the
State of Georgia's boilers as the shot OF
the Spanish cruiser" said the chief, who
had overheard him. IT'S more homely,
because we're used to it. Put some more
fuel on, and shove her along shade
faster. We shall all go together if we go
at all. Think of that, and be comforted."
I'm game" muttered the stoker, and
he stuffed a furnace until he reeled. Then
they removed him until he came round,
and another man took his place.
The chief went to the upper bridge for
a moment to speak with the captain, who
had sent for him.
The captain greeted him with a mono
syllable. "Well?" he asked.
She's doing twenty-four knots" said
the chief, wiping his brow. THE fur
mace doors are red hot, and they're car
rylng the stokers away as they tumble
n over and putting other men to relieve
them. She can't do another yard. It's
more than we've got out of her BEFORE"
Half a knot would do it," said the cap
tain, longingly. Half a knott isn't
much"
It's the last straw" said the chief. at
can't be done. If L could do it by feed
ing fires with my own body I'd do IT.
Tor the honor of the State of Georgia.
This speed" he added with glow of en-
thusiasm, has never been touched by any
merchant craft that ever sailed the seas.
It's full three-quarters more than we got
out of her when we licked the new yankee
New York. The American would have
gone long before this, for the Spaniard's
scorcher." He jerked his head as he
spoke, to indicate the cruiser.
The captain thought for a moment,
then he turned to a wiry little man at
ms SIDE and said: We'll, colonel. you
near, she's doing every inch we can get
out OF her, and the cruisers making half
Knot an hour more. She'll be up with
US before nightfall. We can't escape.
what are we to do?"
herl"
The captain laughed. 1T would with
Oh yes,n interrupted the captain, 1--WE
can do It, I've thought it all out-not as
nautical man. but as a strategist.''
She's the fastest cruiser in the Spanish
navy said the captain. "And she carries
a couple of 22-ton guns for'ard that would
dow US out of the water in two min
utes Water tight bulkheads won't count
once she gets the range of u.s. Our
weapons are useless against her armored
Sues We could pepper her as hard as
we liked and couldn't hurt her. AS for
her shot, why, one of them could be sent
IN at the port side and go out at the
starboard side-through the whole hull
Just like going through sheets of paper"
what's her crew." asked the colonel
tain.
I've thousand men of my own on
BOARD" said the colonel; ''as smart and
nne battalion as ever left England
and that's saying much"
It's better than having five thousand"
SAID the captain.
Why?" demanded the colonel
ltll be all the less to send to the bot
tom"
I've no intention that they shall go
there"
Then we shall have to strike" said
the captain. Its either strike or sink.
It's perfectly hopeless to think of coming
10 fight with. the cruiser. I'm no cow
ard"
God forbid" Interposed the colonel
u fervently.
In"
Cave inl Cave inl" repeated the colo
mel. That sounds bad for Englishmen-
ana TO Spaniards Think Of the degrada-
ton Of IT,"
TITS the fortune OF war" said the cap
tain. He tried to speak philosophically,
but his heart was heavy within him at
the prospect of surrendering the property