The San Francisco call., 1898-08-14
HI BY 4 SHOT
 FROM THE CASTLE Cruiser San Francisco
 Damaged. TREATED TO 4 SURPRISE
TREATED TO A SURPRISE
HAVANA BATTERIES OPEN ON
 THE BLoCKADERS.
Before the Flagship Can Get Out of Range a Shell From Sullen Moro Tears a Hole
 in Her Stern.
Special Dispatch to The Call.

KEY WEST, Fla, Aug. 13.-The flag ship San Francisco, the monitor Milan tonomoh and the auxiliary yacht Silvia were fired upon by the Havana batter ies shortly before o'clock yesterday morning. One ten or twelve inch shell struck the San Francisco's stern as she turned to get away out of range, and tore a hole about a foot in diameter, completely wrecking Commodore How els quarters and smashing his book case into fragments. Nobody was in jured, and, being under orders not to attack the batteries, the ships retreat ed as fast as their engines would carry them.
 The flagship and the Silvia lay par allel to each other, not more than a mile from Morro Castle, and separated from each other by a distance of be- tween three -eighths and a quarter of a mile. The Miantonomoh lay about quarters of a mile to the rear of the others. All were within range of the Spanish batteries and the tempta- tiOn was too strong for the Spaniards to resist. The first glimmer of dawn was breaking through the eastern skies when the lookout on the flagship saw a jet of smoke puff from one of Morro's big guns. Almost before he could pull himself together sufficiently to make a report of the incident ten and twelve inch shells were screaming all around.
 The Spaniards had the range and ap- parently were grimly in earnest In their last efforts to wreak injury on their too mighty enemy. Shells fell be- tween the San Francisco and the Sil- via; some fell short; a few went over them. The flagship signaled the Silvia to get out of range without delay, and both ships swung around and made for the sea.
 It was then that the shell struck the San Francisco's stern. Commodore Howell was on deck with Captain Leary when the shell struck. With the utmost speed the fleet moved out about three miles. Here the men on the flagship patched up the ragged hole in the vessels stern.
 All the shells fired at the vessel fell around the ships. One of the Silvia's men stood calmly on the deck of the yacht, watch in hand, and counted them. Morro Castle fired several of the missiles, but how many Is not known. The others came from two sand batteries near Morro.
 The firing lasted twenty minutes.
 The one-sided engagement had scarcely ended when the men of the Silvia were treated to another sur prise. The little yacht gunboat is manned by the New York naval militia. Her crew had barely recovered from the excitement when the flagship called the vessel over and Captain Bellers was given a packet of private docu- ments which he was ordered to take into Havana under a flag of truce. The white flag was hoisted over the Silvia and she steamed toward the guns which had just given her such a noisy greeting. As the Sllvia approached to within mile of Morro the character of the flag floating from her foremast was discerned and the castle signaled:
 What is your purpose?"
 To this the Silvia answered:
 We have papers to deliver"
 Morro did not resume the conversa- tion and for some little time the gun boat rocked on the waters almost under the still smoking cannon of the enemy. Presently. however, a Spanish gunboat drew cut of the harbor and came close to the Silvia. It was the Martin Pinzon and carried a much stronger battery than the American ship.
 The customary formal salutations were exchanged and Lieutenant Will liam G. Ford, the executive officer of the Silvia, boarded the Pinzon and de- livered the documents. The ceremony occupied no more time than the phy- sical act involved. The American of ficer returned to his ship and the yes sels went on their respective ways.