The record-union. [volume] (Sacramento, Calif.) 1891-1903, 1898-05-22

Juan were current 1t was reported
soon after the fleet had retired that
sixty had met death, but later reports
put the number at six. These six it
was said. were the men at the guns.
Several shells struck the town, but
I have not been able to learn that any
persons were killed by them. Another
shell went through a large warehouse
on a dock, shattering a timber pile ana
lodging in the side plates of the Span
ish mail steamship Manuella. It nearly
sunk her.
TT seemed 90 me that the American
fleet did not continue the lombard
ment until all the Notifications were
demolished The pilot who boarded US
off Sandy Hook said that the fleet had
gone to San Juan to engage the Span
ish fleet, and his statement goes TO eX-
plain several incidents of the attack.
"A quantity of small shot was fired
in the harbor at first to draw out as
now understand, any Spanish Warshlps
that might have been there. Although
there were in San Juan at the time the
cruisers Isabel II. and Alfonso XIII.
and the gunboat Concho, not one OF
them took any part in the engagement.
After it was all over the Alfonso
XIII put to sea to give chase to the
American liner Paris, as was learned
afterWard. She returned in three hours
alone. We saw the same liner fifteen
miles away, off Fajarado on Friday
morning She was cruising to the
southeast.
There was much surprise in San
Juan when the American fleet retired.
If the warshps had continued their at
tack two hours longer the town would
have surrendered The authorities,
both naval and military, were unable
to learn how much damage had re-
suited to the American ships, but 1t
was not generally believed in San Juan
that the fleet had been compelled to
withdraw under the fire from the forti-
fications.
There was much disappointment,
too, that. the Spanish fleet had not ar
rived to protect the town. The war
ships had been looked for every day
for two weeks preceding the bonn
| bardment, and there were several Brit
ish vessels unloading coal for the fleet
when we were at San Juan. The guns
which we saw on the Notifications on
entering the harbor seemed to be of
ancient design, and 1 am told that
what modern guns the American fleet
left are not in fighting order. Several
Krupp guns, which were landed at San
Juan a year ago, were not removed
from the wharf until couple of weeks
ago.
Under Spanish sovereignty affairs
in Porto Rico are anything but pros
porous. There is little money in circu-
lation, and there has been many fail
ures during the last two years. There
is a strong feeling among the business
men Of the islands in favor of self-rule,
q protectorate under some foreign Pow
er or anything that Wal end Spanish
rule
THE masses are densely ignorant the
great majority being unable to either
read or write.
subscriptions are being sought all
over the island for carrying on the war.
There are 5000 regular troops and
about 5000 volunteers in Porto Rico.
They are armed with Remington rifles.
The Civil Guards, 800 strong and
mounted, have great power The vol
unteers could be put to shame, so far
as discipline and drill are concerned,
by the school cadets of this country.
1.-The military authorities bought large
quantities Of food when war was immi-
nent, and it is supposed they have
enough for three months rations for
the troops. Other people have to pay
double now for their provisions"
Mr. Drake left the island from Maya
guez on May ID. upon warning from
the British Consul at San Juan. There
had been no hostile demonstrations
against him up to the time Of leaving,
although the Consular agent at Maya
guez. M. Vadrene. had been threatened
frequently. Three times were mobs
dispersed by the authorities, as they
were preparing to attack his house.
Since April Dist, when it was learned
that war had begun, the affairs of the
Consulate had been looked after by the
British Consul at Mayaguez.
Mr. CantreH, another of the Arka-
dia's passengers, was the chief electri-
clan for an electric light company in
Ponce He said the authorities there
took all the wire from the works to
mine the harbor and then seized all
the coal. Because he spoke English,
he was taken for an American, and at
Farjado. where he went ashore with
Mr.. Megwinoff, he was nearly mobbed,
and was forced to take refuge in
warehouse.
Regarding the bombardment, Mr..
Cantrell said that one of the shells
from an American gun entered the
mouth of a gun on the Notifications,
smashing it into pieces and killing q
man at the breech. One corner of Nor
TO had been Knocked off and siX-inch
shells could be seen imbedded in the
Notifications. The Spanish steamer
Paulina. he learned, was chased by an
American warship four days before the
bombardment, and when being over
hauled displayed the French colors. At
San Juan he learned that a Porto Ri
can had been put to death on the charge
of leading a revolution and another
had been imprisoned for life on the
same charge.
Porto Rican papers, Mr.. Cantren
said, contained the most ridiculous
statements of Spanish valor and sue
cess in the war. One paper said that
the Brooklyn bridge had been blown up
by a torpedo boat, while another de-
clared that two American warships had
been captured and thirty-two men