The record-union., 1898-06-20
Some of the Batteries Were Demol-
ished Beyond Repair.
Vultures CircIing Over the Hills After the
Firing Ceased Furnish Gruesome
Evidence Of the Fatality
Among the Spanish.

ON BOARD THE ASSOCIATED
PRESS DISPATCH BOAT DAUNT-
LESS. OFF SANTIAGO DE CUBA,
Saturday, June IS, noon. Via Kings
ton. Jamaica, Sunday, June 10, noon.)
Copyright, 1898, by the Associated
Press. "A careful inspection Of the for
tifications along the crest of the hills
defending Santiago de Cuba harbor
since the bombardment Thursday morn
ing shows that the American gunners
spread wreck and ruin everywhere.
Some of the batteries are demolished
beyond repair
The vultures which circled over the
hills as thick as swallows around
chimney, for hours after the firing
ceased, furnished gruesome evidence of
the fatality among the Spanish SOL
diers. Hundreds of troops could be
seen from the ships. digging in mounds
of earth piled up by the explosions of
the projectiles from the heavy guns,
for bodies, while their heads We're
famed by the wings of the black scav-
engers of the battlefield There We're
two spots, one on the east and the other
on the west of the harbor entrance.
which We're denuded of the foliage. The
hilltops seem literally blown away.
These marked the places where the 200
pound charges of gun-cotton, blown by
the Vesuvius landed.
But the most omnous token of death
fav
flag of Spain was half-masted for sew
eral hours. The significance of this
is not known. 1t is not customary to
half-mast flags, but possibly some
Spanish leader was killed by the heavy
fire of the guns, though some officers
of the squadron believe that the flag
was half-masted as a notification to
the Americans that Lieutenant Hobson
and his brave men We're dead. If such
is the case they must have been wan
tonly murdered The Spanish might
seek to lay their death to the lombard
ment but not a shot from the Amer
leans struck the fortress. Neither Ad-
miral Sampson nor Commodore Schley
believe that Lieutenant Hobson and his
party have been killed.
We have seventeen prisoners, taken
at Guantanamo, including a Lieuten-
ant, besides a number in the United
States, for reprisals or exchange.
There was evident decentralization
bombardment. Officers could be seen.
with drawn swords, driving the men to
the guns; but even then they could not
be forced to stay so long as our fire
was directed at them. Fifteen min
utes' night work of the Vesuvius had
shattered their nerves. 1t is believed
by some that the thirteen-inch projec-
tile fired from the Texas, which was
reported to have exploded the powder
magazine in one OF the western bat
teries, did not fall in the battery, but
went beyond and blew up one of the
ships in the harbor
A dramatic incident of the lombard
ment was the act OF a Spanish officer,
who bravely ran along the parapet un-
der a heavy fire, encouraging his men
rained around him, and after one ter
rifle explosion he was seen no more.
and the parapet had disappeared He
could not have escaped death.
From the foretop of the Brooklyn
$500 yards distant. the men in the
grounds could be noticed, but a minute
later dust and flying debris would take
their places, and when the smoke raised
away only spot of red earth could be
seen-guns and gunners had been swept
away. 1t was the most deadly and de-
structive bombardment of the war thus
far. Scarcely a shot from the big guns
from the squadron went astray. The
aim of the gunners was superb. and
not only We're the coast forts annihilat-
ed, but the batteries on Cayo Smith,
up the harbor, We're destroyed Had
all the ships used smokeless powder,
as did the New Orleans, there would
remain no sign of Notifications to
INDICATE that there had ever been any
defenses there.
There were no casualties in our fleet,
though our ships held a fixed position
The half-stripped gunners never
worked with more enthusiasm. The
words of Rear Admiral Sampson were: