Evening journal., 1898-05-20
LITTER FROM THE WILMINGTON
INTERESTING PEN PICTURE OF
THE BOMBARDMENT OF CARDE-


MAS.
New York, May 2O-An interesting
pen picture of the bOmbardment of
Cardenas. Cuba, in which the torpedo
boat Winslow was disabled, has been
received by Mrs NJ Il. Darcy, Of No.
253 West Thirty-siXth street, from her
son, James G. Darcy, a first-class fire
man on the gunboat Wilmington. The
letter was headed as follows:
Remember us-1lth of May.
We have remembered the Maine.
u. S. Wilmington, off Cardenas, May
y, 1898.
Dearest Mother:
Although / do not know when this
will reach you, / am going to write, mt
any rate, and l suppose when this does
get to you the papers Will be full Of the
gunboat Wilmington.
We have fought about the first battle
cf the war on the Atlantic side of The
house; that is. If It can be called bat
tie. The morning Of the nth Of May
was a bright sunshiny day. We had
been out from Key West two days. and
had aboard three Cuban officers, and
had proceeded here. when we met the
gunboat Machas, which had been
blockading this port. When our cap
tain asked him about his intention OF
going into Cardenas, the Machlas' cap
tain said:
81 am most too heavN owing to the
depth OF water | draw, and ! do not
think / could get in"
Then our captain said: I'm going if
! get blown to h."
Captain Todd is a Kentuckian, and
all the crew answered with wild
cheer
So, with the torpedo boat Winsow
and the tugbOat Hudson, which is a
gunboat now, we went in by another
channel and got right into the harbOr
without any trouble.
The Dons ran up Spanish colOrs and
fired a solid shot. but it fell short
We loaded with shell and let drive.
There was a cloud of bricks and stones
In the air as the shell burst. Then the
orders came to fire at Will, and then
the boys let her 60
For about an hour there was a wild
scene. The Winslow ran in close and
was fired on with shell. and her steer
ing gear was shot away, leaving her
helpless. The same shot entered her
forward boiler room, but fortunately
there was no steam on in this boiler
As a shell crossed the deck and burst
il struck a barrel of green paint and
one or two pieces went into the fire
room and tore the back out Of one man.
just at the hips. Another piece passed
through both thighs. Another piece,
shot the entire leg off below the knee
of another man, besides passing
through his hips Another piece went
through his shoulder blades.
An officer by the name Of Bagloy,
who was an ensign. was shot in the
back. The piece of shell, which was
about the size OF a mans fist. passed
through him entirely. lie dropped and
got up again. with n smile on his face.
ran about fifteen feet and dropped
dead.
In about fifteen minutes the port en-
gine of the Winslow was crippled She
was helpless under the terrible fire OF
the shore batteries. The Hudson ran in
close and opened fire with her six
FOUNDER guns. The way they poured
fire into the Spaniards was a warning
TO the government to hurry up and
make more shot, or they would shoot
all they had away
The damage to the Winslow wac
all done in about five minutes. The
Hudson ran in under a storm OF flyine
shell, put a line on the WinslOw and
dragged her cut OF the way. She had
uNt hllltu III one hnOI.
Meanwhile the little Winslow was
where we could not get to her on ac-
count Of the shallow water The Span.
iards had few guns in a stone build
ing. We settled it, set IL on fire and In
n few minutes the whole front of tho
city was in a raging fire, but our bows
were hot, and the sight Of the fire only
made them wild. We poured fOur-inci
shells into thee ity and a small gun.
boat. There was a train with two fla
cars trying to get away. and either by
accident or design, more likely design
shot struck the side of il and lifted
the whole train of the track.
BY this time the building which wa!
on fire blew up with an awful repor
and scattered embers on all sides
starting new fires. We silenced tn,
forts. and then steamed away. as w,
could not take the city because we haC
no troops.
The Hudson towed the Winslow on
and the worst of the whole thing hap
pened; and that was the transferrin,
OF the wounded 10 our ship as tn,
WinslOw was too small for them.
When the wounded men were brough
over TO lis, willing hands helped al
that they could, The most pitiful sigh
was the colored boy. the cook, about .
years old. His left leg was hanging b,
sinews only, and in his agony he asket
for water He was handed a cup o
cold water, and the doctors gave hin
ether TO deaden pain. He would tr.