The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1898-05-17

Americans Have the Shorter Distance
30 co. Hut Spain Could Put Odds
Against Dewey.
Baltimore SUM-

II Spain is TO huly her armada from
Cadiz TO Manila. conveying a fleet Of
transports carrying a large force Of
troops, she will probably lose in a race
with the American war vessels ard
transports which will leave San Fran
cisco for Manila.
On the other hand, SPANS armada.
judging by the size and efficiency OF
the vessels alone. should be able to
crush the American fleet in the Pa
ciic.
The United States has only two war
vessels available for the relief of
Dewey. These are the Charleston and
Philadelphia. which are at San Fran
cisco The monitors Monadnock and
monterey are also on the Pacific coast.
but these are designed for harbor de-
tense and woul not likely be dispatch
ed on a long voyage.
Admiral Dewey's feet. after il is re-
inforced by the second-class protected
cruisers Philadelphia and Charleston.
WOULD be almost as inferior 10 the Ca
diZ fleet as the Spanish feet at Manila
was to Dewey's. The Philadelphia has
a displacement of 1924 tons. She is 3l5
feet long and has a speed of 1876 knots.
She has twelve 6-inch guns, twelve
small rapid-fire guns, six 3 and
1-pounders, and seven machine guns.
The Charleston is 800 feet long $3.50
tons displacement. has a speed OF 1871
knots and an armament of two s-inch
guns, six 6-inch, eight small rapid-ire
guns and six machine guns
With these two ships added to his
fleet Admiral Dewey will have seven
war ships, including the little gunboat
Petrol and the revenue cutter McCul-
loch, aggregating a tonnage of 27,5OO.
and mounting 167 guns large and small.
His largest guns are Of the S-inch size,
of which he will have twelve. and he
will also have fifty 5-inch and 6-inch
guns.
The CadiZ feet consists Of fourteen
vessels, besides transports, aggrega-
ting about S. 900 tons. They mount
twenty-five guns, far more powerful
tina any in the American fleet at Ma
Mia, namely, 10, II and 12.5-inch. The
complement of men on this fleet is
about 5000, while that of the American
fleet, including the Charleston and
Philadelphia, is about 1000 or a little
more.
The names of the vessels comprising
the Spanish fleet are the PeIayo, Carlos
', Alfonso XIII, Numancia, Maria
Teresa, LefantO, Almirante Oquendo,
Vizcaya, Cristobal Colon, Destructor,
Molina, Furor, Terror and Pluton. The
PelayO, Carlos V, Alfonso XIII, Maria
Teresa, OQuendO, ViZcaya and Colon
all out class the Olympia, the largest
of Dewey's vessels in size, armor and
A fight between Dewey's fleet and
the Cadiz feet would manifestly be at
heavy odds. Americans, however,
would enjoy the advantage which the
Spaniards had at the battle of Manila.
They would have the shore batteries,
which had a number of good Krupp
guns. If the steamer City of Pekin
should arrive at Manila with 5000 SOL
diers in time to man these batteries,
to cooperate with the fleet, the odds
would be greatly diminished. The
American fleet might also orange
some sort Of defense with torpedoes.
The race to reach Manila, should the
CadiZ fleet and the two American cruz
sers start about the same time, would
be won by the Americans. But the
movements of the Spanish ships can
not be told accurately. The S~paniards
would sail eastward through the Med
~iterranean sea, the Suez canal n the
Indian ocean,, a distance of about
0,e00 miles. The Americans would
sail westward across the Pacific ocean
via Honolulu, a distance of 1000 miles.
The Americans would stop but once
to coal. The Spaniards would have to
stop a number Of times and would
lose nearly a day by the reduction of
speed through the Suez canal.
The speed of the fleets would be gov
erned by the sloWest vessel. The
Charleston is rated at 1877 knots, and
the Philadelphia at 1876. Such a speed
however, could not be maintained in
so great a distance, and it would likely
TAX about twenty-five days from San
Francisco to Manila.
The slowest vessel of the Spanish
fleet is the Numancia, Of eight knots.
This is an old broadside battle ship,
built in 1863, and would probably be
left at home. The PelayO, a powerful
battle ship, has SO comparatively small
a coal capacity that she also wOuld
probably remain in Spain. None of the
other vessels is rated at less than 20
knots, or about tWenty-three miles.
Giving them fifteen miles an hour
speed for the voyage it would require
twenty-seven days of steaming to cover
the distance. Including the time lost
in the canal and in taking or coal. the
time for reaching Manila would be
nearly forty days. This would give
Dewey considerable time to prepare.
1t is also possible that several cruz
sers of the North Atlantic squadron,
selected for their speed and coal capac-
ity, might follow the Spaniards through
the Mediterranean and arrive at Ma
Mia almost as soon. The United
States government would get timely
notice from Gibralter of the start Of
the Spanish fleet to the East.