The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-04-05

$500
modore Keppel ordered their withdrawal.
They were in bad condition and had TO be
retired for repairs.
On July the English batteries again
opened on the Moro, and the next week
showed encouraging results. on the 18th
the English fire had Increased, while the
Moro could only reply with two guns. Tho
British commanders now determined that
il was time to prepare for an assault upon
the works The Moro was defended by a
ditch 50 feet deep and 40 feet wide, cut
through the solid rock, except in one place,
where narrow ledge had been left across
the ditch 10 shut out the water from the
sea. Along this ledge only one man could
pass at a time, but on July IS the English
sapDers and miners made a dash across it
and effected a Judgement in the wall of the
fortress.
The defense of the Moro had been com
mitted to Don Luis Velasco, a gallant
naval captain, who proved himself worthy
of the trust. Approaching the necessity of
driving the British miners from their posi-
ton, Nelasco sailed out with 1900 men,
in three divisions, but was promptly met
and repulsed with heavy loss In this
affair the battalion of Royal Americans,
who had just arrived, distinguished itself
greatly Under the immediate command
of Gen. Keppel, who led 1t in person, II
defeated one of the Spanish columns, driv-
ing them into the river. where $50 Span
iards were drowned
In the subsequent operations of the
siege, the American provincals $500
strong, consisting of the First Connect
| cut Regiment, New York Battalion and
| one from New Jersey, and two or three
| companies from Rhode Island. all under
| command of Gen. Phineas Lyman, did
| good service. Lyman was colonel of the
| Connecticut troop, but being the senior
| provincial officer, he took command of the
! brigade and his lieutenant colonel, Israel
| Putnam, the "Old Putt of our revolu-
ton, commanded the regiment. Putnam
with half of his regiment had been ship
wrecked in a storm off the coast of Cuba,
| about thirty miles from Havana. He
| managed to land his men on an island,
and they were afterward taken off and
Joined the main body at the siege. The
arrival of the Americans was a great re-
lief to the British army, as they came in
good health, while the English forces
were in large part Frustrated by the heat
| of the climate and endemic disease.
The Spaniards having failed in their sal
ly. the work of sapping went on without
interruption, and on JulysoS0 a sufficient
breach was made in the walls of the for
tress. Through this, on the afternoon of
that day, a storming party, headed by
Lieut.. Forbes of the Royals. entered the
works and took the Spanish by surprise.
| They madela desperate but brief defense.
Don Luis Velasco, rallying around him
about a hundred of his men, refused to
surrender until mortally wounded He died
day or two after. In recognition of bis
| gallantry the King of Spain created his
son Viconde del Moro, and ordered that
there should always be shipin the Span
ish navy called the Velasco, This order
is respected to this day. The Spanish
| cruiser of that name is now at the Phil
| ippine Islands. at3.s
The Morre taken, the fate of the city
was sealed. The Spanish governor, how
ever, held out to the last, and IL was not
until Aug. IL. when the British opened fire
on the city with forty-five heavy siege
guns, that he signifed his willingness to
capitulate. The British troops entered the
town of Havana on Aug. 10.
The Spanish land and sea forces availa-
bic for the defence of the city amounted
S, to about 10000 men. They had q fleet In
the harbor of Havana of twelve line-of-
battle ships, but instead of sailing out
and giving battle to the English ships, or
making an attempt to escape, they re-
manned there, to be caught like rats in a
hole. Three of the battleships were sunk
| to block the entrance to the harbor; the
other nine were surrendered to the Brit
| ish who also burned two more upon the
stocks.
The triumph was one of the most COM
| plete ever achieved by British arms The
value of captured property amounted to
$14000,000 Philip ii had given to Ha-
vana a coat of arms, in which was bla-
zoned golden key, TO signify that 1t was
"the key of the West Indies" England
now held that key, and had she been wise
she would have kept it. But, a few
months after it's surrender, peace was de-
clared, and England gave up Havana for
Florida. She lost Florida in our revolu-
ton; she might have held Havana, and
with IL she would have held the main
gate to the Gulf of Mexico and the
Isthmus.