Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1898-06-28
SANTIAGO IN SIGHT.
ONLY FOUR MILES AND HALF
FROM our 0UTPosTs.
GREAT BATTLE IMMINENT.
Army Only Awaiting the
Arrival OF Artillery and Food sup
piies-Cuban. worti.Iex.-whceses
EnergeticaIiy Planting Batteries.

Copyright 1893. by the Associated Press.l
ON THE RIO GUIANA. Sunday. June
26. Noon. via KINGSTON. JAMAICA.
June H--9 A. M.-The advance force OF
the American army rests oR this stream.
with the city OF Santiago de- Cuba four
and a half miles westward. in plain sight.
Last night the ogtposts. consisting OF
two companies OF the Seventh Infantry.
under Major Coolidge. occupied positions
at right angles to the road, guarding the
crossing a mile and half beyond Saba
niIla, where three regiments OF General
Lawton's division camped-the First
Fourth and Seventeenth. the Eighth, Sc
cond and Twenty-second Massachusetts,,
with the Rough Riders. Tenth Cavalry.
and portions Of several other regiments
strung out behind them towards Jura-
qua. About eight hundred Cubans. under
General Gonzales. were camped around
General Lawton's headquarters. but less
than fifty OF them did scout duty last
| night.
General Wheeler to-day. with the Firsr,
Second. and Tenth Cavalry, and the
Rough Riders, with dynarnite-guns. moved
up to where General Lawton's outposts
were last night, and four batteries OF the
| Third Artillery and four Gatling guns,
with a special detail under lieutenant
| Parker, were brought up and planted on
the brow OF a Hill overlooking the basin
| in which Santiago de Cuba lios.
LINES CLOSE TOGETHER.
| Not a shot was fred from the American
side last night, though the front OF the
| American line was not 2,SOo yards from
| the intrenchments where the Spaniards
propose 10 combat the advance on San
| tlago de Cuba.
| Three cannon shots were heard during
the night. They seemed 10 come from
the distant Spanish batteries, or, perhaps.
| from seawaYd
The top of every Hill and mountain
| north and east of Santiago is occupied by
| blockhouses. from whence the Spaniards
| can view the movements OF the Ameri-
| can army. as 1t advances beyond Saba
| nilla, while to the eastward OF the city,
grasping every knoll and bit Of high
| ground. are Spanish entrenohments.
SPANISH DEFENCEs STRONG.
The correspondent OF tho Associated
Press, from an elevation TO the riZat OF
the American line. to-day counted thirty
four OF these entrenchments. completely
fencing every approach to the city. The
J trenches have been dug as the couforma-
ton of the ground admitted The ends
of the trenches overlap, where breaks In
: the line occur thus securing compara-
lively safe retreat from riao ore. In
| case parts of the trenches are captured.
| IJpon one Of these works modern guns
have been mounted. They can be plainly
seen with the naked eye.
Spies report that inside the intrenoh-
ments are four parallel line OF rife-pits,
shoulder deep and in front of them are
marked ranges and several rows OF
| barbed-wire fences.
MORE ARTILLERY NECESSARY.
The general opinion Is that more artil-
lery will be necessary before II VIII be
| safe to attempt tosmake an assault upon
the Spanish works, as the IRE OF the rifle
| pits much necessarily be deadly and sum-
; Client to demoraIize any force, no mates
how brilliant in its courage, when halted
) by wire distractions
The problem now confronting the army
| is the transportation OF supplies. Tor the
roads 10 the front are still impassable
for wagons, but are being improved. in
3 the mean time, pack-trains are bein2
used. The first OF these left Juragua
last night, and others left to-day. The
officers and men were completely out ol
rations Yesterday. The Seventh received
haIf-rations, and to-day they received
nothing
cUBANs WORTHLESS.
: The Cubans With the advance force, II
a. snIte OF the good behavior Of their com
}. rades al Guantanamo seem 10 be utterl,
worthless All day they sit in the shad'
= ~ their palm-thatched camps. and a
night they smoke cigarettes and gorg'
on Vncle Sans rations. while In sign
a of them. Uncle Sans boys. with ompf'
=, stomachs. and not a bit Of tobacco 10
a their pipes. build roads all, day under tn
4 blazing sun. and sieep on their rifle
/ under the star-ht sky at night.
= The outlook hero is threatening. Every
= body believes great battle is Imminent
WIN the Spanish and American adyanc
r posTE almost close enough 10 see IN
). whites OF each others eyes, a coilisiol
y may occur at any moraent.
u s~-~n~---s.--.s