The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1898-06-14
THE BATTLE Of SANTIAGO.
Description of the Bonn.
bardment.
DEMORALIzING EFFECT

or the Big Shells on the Sp~aniard, I'm
the Forts-They Flee from the Portf-
fcations with the Guns Still stand.
ins-The Warships Move Forward i'm
Two Columns Difficulties Under
Which our Vessels Fight-Their De.
structive Work
Copyrighted by Associated Pressl
Off Santiago de Cuba, June. 6.-via
Kingston, ia, June I'll a. m.-De-
layed in transmission).-The Spanish
water batteries defending Santiago de
Cuba were badly wrecked today by the
American fleet in a b~ombardment last
ing from shortly after Z o'clock until
sone time after 10 O'clock this morn
ing. Orders for the attack were issued
on Sunday night. All the men were
warned to retire early and preparations
were made for breakfast at $50 O'Clock
a. m.
That the fire from the Spanish forts
would be severe was generally conced-
| ed, but snatches of sons and the strum-
ming OF guitars and mandolins from the
Ships gave anything but an impression
of deadly warfare.
Early on the morrow the officers
gathered on the quarterdecks and dis
cussed the situation and he possible
effect Of the shots. 1t was agreed that
the earth works would be hard to de-
stroy n that a great deal of ammu-
milton would be wasted, especially as
the forts were Situated on high ground.
The fact that the ships were not to
move and Were to stand in at 3. 900
yards made them a good target and it
was judged that the drop of shots from
the forts would be disastrous in case
Of hits.
The distance fought at, made the
secondary batteries of rapid fire guns
useless and they were silenced.
THE LINE OF BATTLE.
The line of battle planned was the
same as in the movement of Saturday
afternoon. The big Ibattleships Texas.
Massachusetts, Oregon and Iowa moved
in on a straight line from the south.
h Brooklyn, Marblehead and Vixen
moved in a line on a slight angle, the
Vixen close in shore and the Brooklyn
next to the Texas, in the most danger
Gus place on the line, because, both she
and the Texas faced up the harbor,
III IOuLOS IIOIl1edSl. On the Otner
angle to the west were the New York,
New Orleans and Yankee. These faced
the earthWork battery opposite Morro
cactle, while the Brooklyn, Marblehead
and Vixen faced the Estrella battery,
MORO castle, the Catalina battery and
two earthWOrk batteries on the west
ern bank and a couple of new shore
batteries.
The morning opened with heavy
showers and mn throo1a mt n avon
BILE outlook, because the dense smoke
from the big guns would hang over the
ships like a pail and disarrange the
aim O. the gunners, while the shore
batteries, having snrokeless powder
would be able to fire at the patches of
smoke with little Inconvenience.
Toward $50 the skies frightened and
a good breeze came along. AT 6:32
o'clock the order to move in to land was
given and as the columns formed a
beautiful and inspiring sight was wit
messed.
Forming in two columns at a distance
Of six miles the ships moved toward the
entrance Of the harbor, the Brooklyn
leading one column and the New York
the other. Slowly they moved up I'M
| til within four miles of the forts. Then
they turned, the Brooklyn to the west
| followed by the Marblehead, Texas and
MASSACHUSETTS, duu lHe view 1OIh leu
to the east followed by the New Or
leans, Yankee, Iowa and Oregon.
When the ships had all turned into this
| new formation they moved in battle
line to within 5000 yards of the bat
teries in the positions originally de-
tailed.
The Vixen and the Suwanee went on
the left flank to look out for rifiemen
or rifle pits. and the Dolphin and the
torpedo boa Porter did similar duty on
the right flank.
THE FIRST GUN.
The forts remained silent but at pre-
cisely 7:41 O'Clock a 2-inch gun IN the
Iowa shattered the silence and from
one end of the line to the other there
was am instant response to the firing.
Through clouds of smoke the 12-inch
shell of the Iowa could he seen striking
on the base of the Estrelfa battery.
Some of the batteries on the hills
opened at once, but their good aim of
last week seemed destroyed by the
shower of the shells from the fleet, for
the return shots flew far from the
mark.
The great difficulty seemed, so far as
the American ships were concerned, to
he the dense loud of smoke which
obscured the gunners' and range find
ers' aim, but even with that great diff
| SOllSy IC IIOOAlIS was SpI1IlAlos
The 13-inch shells from the Massa-
chusetts and Oregon struck into the
hills near the batteries and threw up
mountains of earth. Even when they
fell a trifle short the moral effect of
their terrible power must have been
great, for battery after battery was de-
| serted by the Spanish.
The Texas, with two 12-inch guns,
and the Iowa with her four big guns,
raked the entire hillside, while the
Brooklyn and the New York poured in
a heavy fire from their destructive s
and 5-inch guns.
The Brooklyn headed in further with
her squadron of fighters when the
smoke became too dense and then, OBJ
tanning a new range, the ships poured
in a deadly rain of S-inch and 5-inch
shells.
In the meantime the shells from a lit
| tie Spanish fort on the water front,
| two miles west of Moro castle opened