The times., 1898-07-20
SPANISH SUPPLY SHIP BURNED
The Gunboat Eagle Destroys the
SuntO DomiurO

| Key West. July 19.-The cruiser Nash
vile arrived today and reported the de-
| struction of the Spanish steamship Santo
| Domingo, near Cape Francis, on July r.
! by the auxiliary gunboat Eagle, COM
manded by Lieut.. Sutherland.
| The Santo Domingo was a vessel of D.
400 tons, drawing 20 feet of water She
was laden with fifty head of cattle and
| large cargo of grain. She carried, mount
ed on deck. several twe-inch guns and IN
her hold two twelve-inch guns
Early in the morning of July y the
Eagle, while off Cape Francis, saw a
Spanish vessel running close inshore. The
gunboat put for her. firing as she went.
and soon the Santo Domingo ran ashore
in twenty feet Of water.
The Eagle pounded away. firing seventy
shots, but receiving no reply. The crew
We're seen deserting the Spaniard In
boats. A boat was sent TO the Spaniard
! and she was found deserted. AT this time
! a small flat-bottomed Spanish gunboat
! poked her nose out of a nearby bay. The
Eagle sent few shots at her and she
| fed. The boarding party found the Span
lard so hard aground that ii was impo5si-
BILE to pull her off. They set the cattle
| free and fired the ship. Inc Eagle lay by
! three days while the Spaniard burned
/ 1t is supposed that the SantO Domingo
was making from one of the West Indian
| ports to cienfuegos.
The Santo Domingo. with the Monte
| video. entered Havana Harb0r just be-
| fore the war was declared and both were
| held there by the blockading vessels until
four weeks ago. when on dark night,
| while the blockading force was weak.
| lively the only vessels that have got out
| of the harbor No vessel has gone in
| The Santo Domingo went to Vera Cruz
! Our government learned that she had
| taken on there 4 great quantity of stores
and two Pinch guns for the Havana
batteries and would try to run the block
ade. The ships off Havana were notified
| 20 be especially vigilant.
| On the evening of July the large
steamship was sighted near Havana by
! the Castine, San Francisco, and Bancroft.
| She was headed in. but seeing that she
| could not pass the line she turned and
! put westward. Several vessels chased
! her. but the Santo Domingo with a speed
| OF about fifteen knots. escaped. The ves-
| sells on the south coast were watching
! for her too. and she fell into the hands
! of the Eagle. Her destruction is regard
! cd as most important.
| The vessel was q converted cruiser. She
| Is said at one time TO have mounted six
| or eight 4.7-inch guns. The Eagles Of
| ficers found but two of these on her.
The fact that vessel mounting two 40
| inch guns ran away from the little Eagle
| carrying only few 6-poUnders. is taken
TO indicate that Spains heart is broken
| and that the Spanish sailor prefers flight
| to experimenting with American gun
merry.
! The Eagles conduct in attacking so
! large a vessel and known to be we'll arm
| ed is considered here very pIucky. The
vessel was beached at a point twelve
| miles west of Cape Francis
She was heavily laden with food sup
! plies Besides the cattle she had on board
| a great number Of chickens. The hold and
| all the staterooms were stuffed fun of
| grain. -four and food supplies Of all kinds.
The two Finch guns lie low in twelve feet
! of water