The Cape Girardeau Democrat. (Cape Girardeau, Mo.) 1876-1909, 1898-07-09

Ten MILES WEST OF THE ENTRANCE
OF THE HARBoR OF SANTIAGO DE CUBA,
July 3, P. NJ, by the Associated Press
Dispatch Boat Wanda, to Port Antonio,
Jamaica, July Admiral Cervera's
feet, consisting of the armored cruis-
ers Cristobal Colon, AImirante Oquen-
do, Infanta Maria Teresa and Vizcaya
and two torpedo-boat ~destroyers, the
Furor and Pluton, which had been
held in the harbor of Santiago de
Cuba for six weeks past by the COM
bined %squadrons of Rear-Admiral
Sampson and Commodore Schley, lies
to-day at the bottom of the Caribbean
sea off the south coast of Cuba.
Cervera Taken Prisoner.
The Spanish admiral is a prisoner of
war on the auxiliary gunboat Glouces-
ter formerly j.. P~ierpont Morgan's
yacht Corsair), and 1000 to 1,5OO other
Spanish officers and sailors, all who es-
capped the frightful carnage caused by
the shells from the American war
ships, are also held as prisoners of war
by the United States navy.
The American Victory Complete.
The American victory is complete
~obtainable at this time, the American
vessels were practically untouched and
only one man was killed, though the
ships were subjected to the heavy fire
&c 4Ia Cron,o-lo oil tla fippn fhp Int-
tie lasted.
A Gallant Dash for Liberty.
Admiral Cervera made as gallant a
dash for liberty and for the preserva-
ton of his ships this morning as has
ever occurred in the history of naval
warfare. In the face of overwhelming
odds, with nothing before him but in
evitable destruction, or surrender if he
remained any longer in the trap in
which the American fleet held him, he
made a bold dash from the harbor at
the time the Americans least expected
him to do SO, and, fighting every inch
of his way, even when his ship was
.ablaze and sinking, he tried to escape
the doom which was written on the
muzzle of every American gun trained
upon his vessels.
Commenced the Work of Destruction.
The Americans saw him the moment
he left the harbor, and commenced the
work of destruction Immediately. For
an hour or two they followed the fly
ing Spaniards to the westward along
the shore line, sending shot after shot
into their blazing hulls, tearing great
holes in their steel sides and covering
their decks with the blood of the killed
and wounded.
Nc Signals of Surrender.
At no time did the Spaniards show
any indication that they Intended to do
otherwise than fight to the last. They
showed no signals of surrender even
when their ships commenced to sink,
and the great clouds of smoke pouring
from their sides showed they were on
fire. But they turned their heads to-
ward the shore, less than a mile away,
and ran them on the beach and rocks,
where their destruction was o com
}pleted.
Threw Themselves Upon the Mercy of
Their CaptOrs.
The officers and men on board then
escaped to the shore as well as they
could, with the assistance of boats
sent from the American men-of-war
and then threw themselves upon the
mercy of their captors, who not only
extended to them the gracious hand of
American chivalry, but sen them a
guard to protect them from the muir
derous bands of Cuban soldiers hiding
in the bush on the hillside, eager to
rush down and attack the unarmed,
defeated but v~alorous foe.
An Awful Rain of Shells.
One after another of the Spanish ships
became victims to an awful rain OF
shells which the American battleships,
cruisers and gunboats poured upon
them, and two hours after the fleet had
started out of Santiago harbor, three
cruisers and two torpedo-boat destroy
ers were lying on the shore 10 to Is
miles west of MORO castle, pounding
to pieces, smoke and fame pouring
from every part of them and covering
the entire coast line with a mist which
could be seen for miles.
Heavy Explosions OF Ammunition.
Heavy explosions of ammunition oc-
CURED every few minutes sending
scurls of dense white smoke 100 feet in
the air and causing a shower of broken
iron and steel to fall in the water on
every side. The bluffs and coast line
echoed with the roar of every explo-
sion and these Spanish ships sank
deeper and deeper into the sand or else
the rocks ground their hulls to pieces
as they rolled or pitched forward or
sideways, with every wave that was
washed upon them from the open sea.
Surrendered Himself and His Command.
Admiral Cervera escaped to the shore
in a boat sent to the assistance of the
.Infanta Maria Teresa, and as soon as
he touched the beach he surrendered
himseE and his command to Lieut..