The herald., 1898-06-05
BRAVERY RECOGNIZED
BY THE ADMIRAL OF SPANS
SQUADRON
SIMPSONS SCHEME SUCCEEDS
The Seven Men Who Sunk the Merri-
mac at Santiago Are Now Pris-
oners Of War
Associated Press Special Wire

Associated Press Special Wire
WASHINGTON, June 4.-The navy
. department has posted the following
. bulletin:
The navy department at o'clock re-
Q ceived the following dispatch:
MOLE, Hayti, June 4.-Succeeded IN .
Q sirLing the Merrimac in the channel
. of Santiago at p. m. June 3. This
. was carried out most gallantly under
Q the command of Naval Constructor .
Q Hobson and seven men. By flag OF .
. truce from the Spanish Admiral, Ger
Q vera sent in recognition of their brav-
. cry, 1 am informed all are prisoners
Q of war, two slightly wounded. Re- .
. quest authority to approve exchange, .
Q If possible, between these and prison
. ers at Atlanta. Six of the Spanish .
q squadron in the harbor of Santiago
. unable to avoid being captured or de- .
. stroyed. SAMPSON. .
Called for Volunteers
ON BOARD THE ASSOCIATED .
Q PRESS DISPATCH BOAT DAUNT- .
. LESS, OFF SANTIAGO, June 4. via .
. Kingston, June r. Rear-Admiral .
. Sampson, during Friday morning, de- .
. cided to close the narrow harbor en- .
. trance to Santiago de Cuba by sink .
Q ing the collier Merrimac, loaded with .
COAL in the channel. He called for
. volunteers to go to almost certain .
Q death, and 1000 men offered them .
. selves. Lieutenant Hobson and six .
men were chosen, and at 3 a. m. .
. Friday morning the Merrimac, under .
Q her own steam, entered the channel .
. under a terrific Spanish fire. The ves- .
. sci was riddled with projectiles, but .
. she anchored and swung around. .
Q Lieut. Dobson then set off an internal .
. torpedo with an electric attachment. .
. There was an explosion, the Merri- .
. mac sank and the channel was closed .
. and, apparently, Admiral Cervera will .
. be unable to escape. .
Hobson and the heroic crew of the .
. Merrimac were saved in the follow .
. ing manner: .
Q Unable after the sinking of their .
vessel to make their way back .
. through the storm of shot and shell, .
. they rowed into the harbor to the .
. Spanish flagship, and were taken on .
. board unharmed The Spanish Ad- .
. miral, under a flag of truce, on Friday .
sent word to the American Admiral Q
. that he offered to exchange the pri- .
. soners, adding that in the meantime .
. Hobson and his party would be treat .
ed with the greatest kindness. .
Hobson's Record
WASHINGTON, June 4.-The officer hero
of the Merrimac occasion Is an assistant
naval constructor and hence attached to
the staff, and therefore not ordinarily en-
gagged in line duty. He entered the Naval
Academy from Alabama in May, 1895, and is
now 2s years old. He graduated in 1889 at
the head of his class, and as consequence
of this distinction was sent to France by
the government to take course in naval
architecture in pursuance of policy to give
q few cadets of the highest standing a
chance to acquire the highest possible
knowledge and skill. He attended the Ecole
Polytechnique and returned to the United
States in 1893. He served for time in the
Bureau of Construction in Washington and
then went to the navy yard at New York.
Later he served with Admiral Bunce on the
North Atlantic station, and thence he went
to the Naval Academy to take charge of a
post graduate course of instruction in naval
construction. Then the war broke out. He
applied for active duty and was sent with
three naval cadets under his charge to the
is described as tall, athletic built, very
quiet and unassuming in manner and would
not be picked out as having the high brav-
cry his intimate associates know lay be-
meath the modest manner.
That's the Cork
WASHINGTON, June 4.-"The cork is
driven in the bottle" was the comment of
the naval officers at the Navy Department
this morning upon the news of the sink
ing of the collier Merrimac in the channel
at the entrance of the Santiago harbor
They are absolutely satisfied that the
ship was sent in by design of Sampson to
close the channel and prevent the escape
of the Spanish squadron, and that the un-
dertaking was successful. If so, this will
rank as one of the boldest achievements
in naval history. 1t will out-rank even
Cushing's famous attack upon the Albe-
marie with his little torpedo boat. That
is the opinion at the Navy Department al
least. The officers say that Gushing had
q fighting chance to escape after making
his attack and he did indeed escape. There
was no such chance for the men who took
the Merrimac into Santiago harbor under
the guns which Schley's report described rs
OF great power and over nests of sub
marine mines, any one of which was suffi-
cient to crush in the bottom of the shin
1t is not possible now to learn who made
up this crew that is destined to be famous
in American history, for the opinion at
the Navy Department is that Admiral
Sampson directed that no man be ordered
into such dangerous duty, but that volun.
teers be called for. There is no doubt
however. that at least two of the officers
were aboard, namely Commander ]. M
Miller of Missouri. and Assistant Engineer
r. K. Crank of Texas. The Captain could
be relied upon, it is said, to stick to his
ship to the last, and from what is
known Of Crank's character he would not
be likely to leave the ship, being the only
commanding engineer officer on board
There is only one opinion at the depart.
ment of the courage of the men who coolly
stood at the engine levers down in the
hold and directly above the bottom of the
ship, that he momentariy expected tc
come flying upward on the blast of a mine
or torpedo.
One of the rea sons that form tho ha sic n,