The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-06-29
CLOSING IN THE CUBAN COAST.
BLOCKADE EATENDED fhoM
CAPES FRANCES TO CRUZ.

Nnr ira
the Extended Limits Given 80
NAYS TO Load and DeDart-San
Tuan. Porto Rico, Included in the
procIamation-New Order Length
ans blockade Line 500 MiIes-Very
Few Important Ports in the Linn
its.
washington, June 2S.-The President has
,es,.,l proclamation extending the
b,ockade of Cuba to the southern coast
from Cape Frances TO Cape Cruz, inclu-
sive. and also nlockading San Juan, Porto
Rico.
The proclamation is as follows
"NThereas for the reasons. set forth in
my proclamation of April p, 1893, block
ode Of ports on the southern coast of Cuba
from Cardenas to Bahia Honda, inclusive,
ana of the port of Cienfuegos on the south
coast of Cuba was declared to have been
instituted, and
Whereas ii has become desirable to ex-
tend the blockade to other southern ports,
Now. therefore, l, William Mckinley,
President of the United States, do hereby
declare and proclaim that, in addition to
the blockade of the ports, specified IN my
proclamation of April p, 1898, the United
States of America has instituted and will
maintain an effective blockade of ell of the
ports on the south coast of Cuba from
Cane Frances 10 Cape Cruz, inclusive, and
also OF the port of San Juan in the island
OF Iorto Rico.
Neutral vessels lying in any of the
ports to which the blockade is by the pres
ent proclamation extended, win be allow
ed thirty days to issue theVefrom with car
90.
In witness hereof. et".
''William Mckinley,
"President of the United States of Amer
fGG
June p, 1898
"T.y the President: ]. B. Moore, Acting
Secretary of State.
The assumption by the government of
the formidable task of blocl1ading about
800 miles of Cuban coast line in addition
to the sections already blockaded in
creases the extent of the blockade fully
four-fold, it having been confined hereto
fore to a stretch of a little more than 100
miles on the north and the single port of
Cienfuegos on the south coast of the is
land
The demands on the navy In the way of
ships TO patrol the coast, however, Will
not be nearly so heavy in proportion to
the territory to be covered as in the case
of the initial blockade for the reason that
the new blockaded coast line lies entirely
within the great blight on the south Gu
ban coast, in which the water is gener-
ally very shallow and the ports are few
into which a vessel of any draft could
enter. Inc most important oil these ports
are Manzanillo, Trinidad and Tunas.
West of Trinidad is Cienfuegos, which
Is already blockaded effectively. From
that point westward for nearly 140 miles
there is no point to be bockaded until
Batabano is reached. This port is distant
only about forty miles from Havana by
rail, and is said to have been the principal
source of food supplies for the Spanish
capital
For $50 miles west of this clear over
10 Cape Frances, the western edge of the
biockaded territory, there are no ports for
deep vessels of any considerable draft
and even if there were the country in the
interior, Pinar del Rio is in the hands of
the insurgents and supplies could not be
sent through to Havana.
The purpose of extending the blockade
westward to Cape Frances was to com,
mand the channel between the west side
OF the Isle of Pines and Cape Frances
and thus render much easier the task of
the blockading vessels
There has been no running of the block
ade Notwithstanding the Spanish stories
TO the contrary; all of the ships that have
entered Cuban ports with supplies have
done so at places not within the blockade
such as Batabano and Manzanillo.
The vessels for the additional blockade
service will be supplied almost entirely
from the patrol fleet, which, under Com
modore Howell, has been guarding the
North Atlantic coast from Maine to South
Carolina. This service has been aban-
doned because the only available Spanish
Warships are with Admiral Camara,
thousands of miles away from the near
est point on the Atlantic coast
The vessels are already on their way
southward, having been reinforced by
several OF the new torpedo boats which
are particularly adapted because of their
hsht draft for blockade duty in the shall
low waters lying behind the Isle of Pines
and Cuba
The blockade of San Juan proclaimed to-
Gay is in reality already in effect, hay
ahg been initiated by Capt Sigsbee last
week, when he turned back from that
port british steamer laden with sup
pies. The difficulty of maintaining the
Dlockade at this port, in the face of the
spanish forts and three Spanish war yes
seis IN the harbor, would be considerable
had not Capt. Sigsbee, by disabling the
only formidable one of these vessels. made
the task easier
AS II is, the character of vessels required
TO maintain the blockade at San Tuon
necessarily must be of type of the sshins
required for blockade on the southern
coast of Cuba. Probably some such vessel
as me Detroit or the Montgomery will be
assigned to the task
In defeating the Terror. Cant Siosheo
mas rendered a most important service 10
our navy, and, indeed, to all navies. He
mas NOT only deprived SIMPSONS fleet of
apprehension Of an attack in the rear
some dark night by this vicious little boat.
put ne has demonstrated that an auxiiia-
~ cruiser Is amply able to take care Of
nerseH against a torpedo gunboat show
ms ms that the offensive power of this craft
mas neen very much overrated
II IS SAID at the navy department that
i,s present intention is to start Commo-
tiago I'm A'"
ms however is subject to Admiral
1ampson's report upon the condition of
, me vessels selected and their needs in 4he
matter of supplies and euuipnent for. The |
lCng voyage ahead of them
A Ma - they need no more than can be sup
VIII start according to orders. from San. |
raso' out II further supplies and equip
~ ,lienI are needed, or if the vessels must
he s 1leaiieo hrst' then they probably will |
De sent north to Hampton Roads.
"ledhWnile there is no installing the
esIhesthess Of the navy department In |
pleparlos this squadron for the Euro |
pean service.