Evening star., 1898-06-15
Gen. Skaters Command Started from
Tampa for Cuba Monday.
THEY MADE an IMPOSING SIGHT
Transports Taken in Convoy by a
Squadron Of Warships.
WILL REACH CUBA SUNDAY
Special From a statr Correspondent.

Special From Stan Correspondent
TAMPA, Fla, June 14.-After much wait
ing the military expedition. which Is to oc-
cupy Cuban territory, is under way. The
troops which Sampson needs to attack
Santiago from the land side should reach
eastern Cuba by Sunday. General Shafter
and his staff are on the Segurancia, which
is the flagship Of the expedition. The trans
ports which have been loading here since
Sunday, were joined by others from Mo-
bile. The fleet of transports, with convoy
of gunboats, makes a magnificent sight,
swinging out into the gulf.
The places of troops which have en-
barked will be taken by new arrivals, and
the present expedition may be quickly du-
plicated. The District Volunteers, though
expected to form part of the expedition, are
not in the first division.
Troop ships fieck the waters for thirty
miles below Port Tampa to Egmont light.
All yesterday afternoon the transports drift
ed out All day the signals were flying
from the Segurancia. Above that vessel
floats the blue pennant which tells that it
is the flagship of the expedition and carries
General Shafter, the commander-in-chief of
the invading forces, and his staff. The
figure - in the center of the pennant
designates that the troops which lead the
advance on foreign territory have been or
ganized into the 9th Army Corps. There
are upward of 10000 of them, volunteers
and regulars.
Leaves I'm Perfect Order.
The expedition leaves in perfect order.
The delays have enabled its equipment to
be completed, and neither arms nor ammu-
milton are now lacking. The only invasion
of a hostile country by the soldiers of the
United States during fifty years-perhaps
the only one for fifty years to come-will
be begun with the prospect of full success.
A week should see it on Cuban soil. 1t may
not be earlier than that for the transport
fleet can only move with the speed of the
slowest, and not all of the vessels are swift
Some went out yesterday under sail. They
could be seen far down the bay, until they
were lost on the horizon, while the larger
troop ships steamed slowly out to follow
them. Most of the war craft which forms
the naval escort remained outside the bar
waiting for their convoy to come up. Those
that We're within the harbor Were the Cas-
tine. the Annapolis and other gunboats.
The war color of the navy contrasted
strangely with the black or white of the
merchant vessels which nave been turned
into transports. 1t has not been necessary
to disguise these SO that an enemy would
have trouble in seeing them for while the
transports carry a fighting force, they are
lot lighting ships
Transports in IL Squall.
Last night a score of the troopships were
out iE the bay, already under the wing of
the battle ships and gunboats. A storm
which threatened and made the eastern
sky purple developed into nothing more
than u rain squall and they escaped a toss
ing. They could be seen along the horizon,
going slowly. This morning the remaining
transports left their anchorage and moved
out towards the lower bay. The Seguran-
cia. flying the commanders pennant, was
one of the last to leave. That was the sig
nal that the expedition was off.
Outside the bay the squadron conveyed
by the navy, imposing in its strength and
beauty, takes up the escort A triple line
was formed, with the battle ships leading
the column, and the stars and stripes float
ing over a union Of army and navy forces
such as has not been seen in the history
of the country. The formation of the
squadrons that are to sweep through Cuban
waters in battle array is a splendid one
The troops on the transports went out
with an earnest Of patriotic good will. The
week of irksome life aboard the ships in
cramped quarters was forgotten the mo-
ment they were under way. They showed
It in their demonstrations, which were
hearty and spontaneous.
The military expedition is fairly off, It's
part In the war with Spain will soon be-
come daily chapter Of history.
PEPPER
List of the TransuOrts