The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1898-07-27

J during the battle and chase
THE GLOUCESTER WORK.
"7. The skillful handling and gallant
| fighting of the Gloucester excited the ad-
| miration of everyone who witnessed
| it and merits the commentator of
the Navy Department. She is "a
fast and entirely unprotected auxiliary
vessel-the yacht Corsair-and has a good
| battery of light rapid-fire guns. She was
lying two miles from the harbor entrance
to the southwark and eastward and imme-
diately steamed in, opening fire upon the
large ships Anticipating the appearance of
the Pluton and Furor, the Gloucester was
slowed there, gaining more rapidly on the
high pressure of steam, and when the de-
! stroyers came out she steamed for them at
full speed and was able to close to short
range, where her fire was accurate, deadly
| and of great volume. During this fight the
Gloucester was under the fire of the Socapa
battery. Within twenty minutes from the
time they emerged from Santiago harbor
the careers of the Furor and the Pluton
were ended and two-thirds of their crews
killed. The Furor was beached and sunk
in the surf; the Pluton sank in deep water
few minutes later. The destroyers prob
ably suffered much injury from the fire of
the secondary batteries Of the battle ships
Iowa, Indiana and the Texas, yet think
a very considerable factor in their speedy
| destruction was the fire at close range of
the Gloucesters battery After rescuing the
survivors of the destroyers the Gloucester
did excellent service in landing and secur-
ing the crew of the Infanta Maria Teresa.
g. The method Of escape attempted by
the Spaniards-all steering in the same di-
rection and in formation-removed all tao
tical doubts or difficulties and made plain
the duty of every United States vessel to
| close in, Immediately engage and pursue.
This was promptly and effectively done. JAS
already stated the first rush of the Spanish
squadron carried it past a number of the
blockading ships which could not imme-
diately work up to their best speed, but
they suffered heavily in passing and the
lnfanta Maria Teresa and the Oquendo
were probably set on fire by shells fired dur
ing the first fifteen minutes of the engage
ment. 1t was afterwards, learned the
Teresa's fire main had been cut by one of
the first shots and that she was unable to
extinguish fire. With large volumes of
smoke rising from their lower decks aft
these vessels gave up both fight and flight
and ran in on the beach-the Infanta Maria
Teresa at about 1915, at Nina Nina. six
and a half miles from Santiago harbor en-
trance, and the Almirante Oquendo at
about 1880 a. M, at Juan Gonzales, seven
miles from the port.
%. The Vizcaya was still under the fire
OF the leading vessels; the Cristobal Colon
mad drawn ahead, leading the chase, and
soon passed beyond the range of the guns
of the leading American ships. The Vizcaya
was soon set on fire, and at 11:15 she turned
inshore and was beached at Acerraderos,
ntteen miles from Santiago, burning fiercely
ana with her reserves of ammunition on
deck already beginning to explode When
about ten miles west of Santiago the In
dlana mad been signaled to 30 back TO the
harbor entrance, and at Acerraderos the
Iowa was signaled to resume blockading
station The Iowa, assisted by the Ericsson
and the Hist, took off the crew of the Viz
caya, while the Harvard and the Gloucester
rescued those of the Infanta Maria Teresa
and the Almirante Oquendo. This rescue of
prisoners, including the wounded, from the
burning Spanish vessels was the occasion
of some of the most daring ana gallant con-
duct of the day. The ships We're burning
fore and aft, their guns and reserve ammu-
milton were exploding. and it was not known
at what moment the fire would reach the
main magazines. In addition to this a
heavy surf was running lust inside of the
Spanish ships. But no risk deferred our
officers and men until their work of ruman-
ity was complete.
THE COLON RUN DOWN.
10. There remained now OF the Span
ish ships only the Cristobal Colon-but she
was their best and fastest vessel. Forced
by the situation to hug the Cuban coast,
her only chance of escape was by superior
and sustained speed. When the Vizcaya
went ashore. the Colon was about six miles
ahead of the Brooklyn and the Oregon, but
her squirt was finished and the American
ships were now gaining upon her. Behind
the Brooklyn and the Oregon came the
Texas, Vixen and New York. 1t was evil
dent from the bridge of the New York that
all the American ships were gradually over
hauling the chase and that she had no
chance of escape. AT 1850 the Brooklyn and
the Oregon opened fire and got her range
the Oregon's heavy shell striking beyond
ner, and at 1:20 she gave up without firing
another shot, hauled down her colors, and
ran ashore at Rio Torquino, forty eight
miles from Santiago. Captain Cook, of the
Brooklyn went on board to receive the sur
render While his boat was alongside came
up III tne new 4OrK, received MS report,
and placed the Oregon in charge of the
wreck to save her, if possible, and directed
the prisoners to be transferred to the Reso-
lutte, which had followed the chase. Com
modore Schley, whose chief of staff had
| gone on board to receive the surrender had
directed that all their personal effects
should be retained by the officers. This or
der did not modify. The Cristobal Colon
was not injured by our firing and probably
is not much injured by Bleaching, though
she ran ashore at high speed. The beach was
so steep that she came off by the working
of the sea. But her sea valves were opened
and broken, treacherously, am sure, after
her surrender, and, despite all efforts, she
sank When it became evident that she
could not be kept afloat, she was pushed
by the New York bodily up on the beach,
the New York's stem being placed against
her for the purpose-the ship being handled
by Captain Chadwick with admirable judg-
ment- and sank in shoal water and may be
saved. Had this not been done she would
have gone down in deep water and would
have been, to a certainty, a total loss.
I'll. regard this complete and i'm
portant victory over the Spanish forces as
the successful finish of several weeks of ar
duous and close blockade so stringent and
effective during the night that the enemy
was deferred from making the attempt to
escape at night and deliberately elected to
make the attempt in daylight That this
moo tho On Sc 7 was in foTunad hv ooro-