The Appeal. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. ;) 1889-19??, 1898-06-25

around to give us brOadside. :inr su,.s
in the port battery got the range on the
Isle de Cuba, and sent In a-rshot that
struck in anidships and made her tremble
from stem to stern. I was watching at
the portfolio at the time. The other guns
port gunner, and for a few minutes it
seemed as though the Isle de Cuba was
crumbling to pieces like a falling build
ing in an earthquake. We turned and
the starboard guns did equally good work,
and when the Spanish flag came tumbling
down we let OUT a yell that was heard
around the world. figuratively speaking,
if not literally.
can never forget the scene after the
battle. The forts were smoking, and
scattered all through the bay We're the
hulks of once magnificent Spanish ships.
Some We're drifting helplessly about, as
though the men on board seemed not to
know what, to do and had lost their heads
entirely. Rigging was trailing in the
water and only remnants remained of the
lifeboats. Over at one edge Of the bay
was the wreck of the once magnificent
Reina Christina. Further along were
smoking hulks, and here and there could
only be seen the masts and rigging above
water. sf - III. ....:. -
To add. to the horror Of the scene,
hundreds of corpses came floating by,
and it seemed as though the bay was
full of dead Spaniards, although be-
lieve less than a thousand were killed.
really think that the sight in the har-
Dor that afternoon impressed men more
with the horrors 81 war than did any
thing which occurred during the actual
battle. ~
It would take volumes to tell the little
incidents of the battle; but all through
the fight my men acted as though they
were only on inspection, and were work
ing for time honors," to see which
crew could hoist the ammunition and get
it in place the quickest! 1t was not I'M
til it was all over and we began to re-
count the Incidents of the fight that any
of US realized the danger we had passed
through.
During all the fight my men, except
for little while during the interval for
breakfast, were stripped to the bare
skin, and wore only their shoes. The
thermometer was over one hundred, and
to this was added the heat of the fire
of the guns. until it made ones blood
fairly boil. After the battle 1 secured
a small Spanish flag which came floating
by, ard which had belonged to Admiral
Montojo's launch, in attendance on the
flagship Reina Christina. value it as
almost priceless.
: To me, one Of the funniest incidents
of the whole fight was when next day
the Spanish admiral sent word. to Cap
tain Wilds, of the Boston, that while he
had surrendered, the Spanish general
claimed he had not been defeated. Both
the admiral and the general. each with
two Of their stan, came on board OF the
Boston and wanted to. see the COM
Misunderstanding OF the feet 4@rss &; 81
Car Wild Is reply was that Dewey
would not see any one The general re-
torted that he would only treat with
Dewey, ard they all started for the
flagship. On their way they met the
Petrol, or which was Capt. 3. P. Lam
Derton, Dsweys chief of staff. The Span
ish general was again informed that
there was no use trying to see Dewey,
ana the whole party returned to the
Boston coming up on the starboard side.
J To me the humorous act of the day
was when Capt Lamberton told the /
Spanish general all the proceedings must