The Kootenai herald. [volume] (Kootenai, Idaho) 1891-1904, 1898-05-14

and in their contempt for Spanish gun
merry, walked straight into the trap that
had been set for them. Had the Span
iards possessed their souls in patience
but five minutes longer not even the bad
gun practice would have saved our ships
and this morning two more of our vessels
would lie at the bottom within two
lengths of the Maine.
Lured the warships In.
Friday evening the Vicksburg and
Morrill,, cruising to the west of Moro
castle, were fired upon by the big guns
of the Cojimar batteries. Two shots
were fired at the Nicksburg and one at
the Morrill,. Both vessels, without re-
turning the fire, steamed out of range.
But yesterday morning the Spaniards
had better luck. The schooner they had
sent out before daylight ran off to the
eastward, hugging the shore and with
the wind on her starboard quarter. About
three miles east of the entrance of the
harbor she came over on the port tack.
A haze fringed the horizon and she was
not discovered until three miles off
shore, when the Mayflower made her out
and signalled the Morrill, and Vicksburg
Captain Smith of the Morrill, and Com
mander lilly of the Vicksburg immedi-
ately slapped on all steam and started in
pursuit. The schooner instantly put
about and ran for MORO castle before
the wind. In doing so she would, ac-
cording to the well-coneeived Spanish
plot, lead the two American warships di-
rectly under the guns of the Santa Cla
ia battery. These works are short
mile west of Moro and are a part of
the harbor defenses. There are two bat
teries, one at the shore. which has been
recently thrown up, of sand and mortar,
with wide embrasures for eight-inch
guns; the other is on rocky eminence
which juts out into the gulf at this
point. The upper battery mounts mod
ern l0-inch and l2-inch Krupp guns be-
hind a siX-foot stone parapet, in front
of which are 20 feet of earthworks and a
betting of railroad iron. This battery
is considered the most formidable of Ha-
vana's defenses except Moro castle. 1t
is masked and has not been absolutely To-
Gated by the American warships. 1t is
probably due to the fact that the Span
tion that the Vicksburg and Morrill, are
now ahOat.
Into the Harbor After Her.
The Morrill, and Vicksburg were about
chase began. They steamed after her
at full speed, the Morrill, leading until
within a mile and half of the Santa
Clara batteries. Commander Smith OF
the Nicksburg was the first TO realize
the danger into which the reckless pur-
suit had led them. He concluded it was
time to halt and sent a shot across the
bow of the schooner. The Spaniard in
stantly brought his vessel about, but
while she was still rolling in the trough
of the sea with her sails Tapping, an
eght-inch shrapnel shell came hurting
through the air from the water battery
mile and half away.
it passed over the Morrill, between the
pilot house and smokestack and exploded
less than 80 feet on the port quarter
The small shot ratified against her side
1t was close call. Two more shots
followed in quick succession. both
shrapnel. One burst close under the
starboard quarter, filling the engine
room with the smoke of the explosion Of
the shell and the other, like the first
passed over and exploded just beyond.
spaniards Had the Range.
The Spanish gunners had the range
and their time fuses were accurately set
The crews of both ships were at theii
guns Lieutenant Craig, who was il
charge Of the bow four-inch rapid fire