The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1898-04-29
STORY OF COMMANDMENT
How Sampson Silenced the Bat
toriee at Old MatanBas.
DID IT WITH GREAT EASE
Pun Of Smoke From the Fort at Pre-
ouent Intervals. But the Missiles
FAN ehort-The Dirt and
Rocks Fly High.

New York, April ga dispatch via
Key West from a correspondent of the
Herald who saw a witness of the bonn
bardment of Matanzas by the Ameri-
can ships. says:
Admiral Sampson this afternoon
bombarded. silenced and pretty well
destroyed the Spanish batteries I'm po-
sition and In course OF construction ut
the entrance Of the harbor Of Matan-
York. the monitor Puritan and the
cruiser Cincinnati. Not one Of the
American ships were struck. the Span
ish gunnery being wild. There is as
yet nc means OF knowing the number
OF dead n wounded on the spanish
side. Ii must be considerable.
While the New York, Puritan and
Cincinnati were reconnoiteriny the
formidable defenses being constructed.
the nagship was fired on by the batter
len on Point Rubalieva and Point
Maya, guarding the entrance to the
harbor. The New York replied. firing
her forward s-inch gun on the port
side. She steamed boldly in between
the batteries and Don blazed away
with both broadsides at them. The
Puritan steamed i'm behind the New
York and engaged the fortification on
Point Maya, while h New York
went to ~starboard close up to the land
and poured her shells into Point Ruba-
lieva. The Cincinnati, which had re-
manned well astern under orders. sig
nailed for permission to engage and re-
ceived IL, and soon was firing her guns
at the forts on the west side Of the
bay.
The batteries fred explosive shells
and most OF them fell wide OF the
mark. One burst just beyond the stern
Of the New York and a %shrapnel shell
exploded above her. 1t took the three
ships Just IS minutes to silence the
batteries. The last shot that was fired
by the Spanish came from Point Ru-
balieva. The Puritan replied with
M Of her 12-inch guns. The shef
struck the battery with wonderful ac-
curacy and blew up "A portion of IL.
After waiting in vain for the Spanish
to renew the engagement, the ships
withdrew, leaving both batteries in
ruins
When Rear Admiral Sampson on the
flagship New York left the cruising
ground to pay a visit to Matanzas and
Cardenas he made up his mind that
something had to be one with the
very aggressive Spanish artillerymen
who were manning the batteries out
hat way. They had twice fired pom
the torpedo boat Foote and were very
busy erecting Notifications n placing
guns in position. At Matanzas the
New York found the monitor Puritan
and the cruiser Cincinnati. that have
been blockading the port. Admiral
Sampson decided TO make a reconnois-
sance in force for the three-fold pur-
pose of locating the batteries, discov-
ering the 1 of guns they mounted
and If possible stopping the work of
fertilization.
M%atanZas lies at the head of a bay
about our miles from the sea. This
bay at it's mouth is three miles wide.
on the west side OF the bay Is Point
Rubalieva and on the east side Point
Maya. The points rave a very slight
elevation above the sea. but the confg-
uration of the harbor is such as to give
the batteries on them a commanding
position. Stretching back from these
batteries are towering hills, and IL was
believed the guns had been mounted
somewhere there concealed non the
shrubbery.
The New York led the way into the
bay OF Matanzas. The Puritan was a
few hundred yards astern on the port
side and the Cincinnati remained be-
hind a slight distance astern on the