The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1898-07-16

LEU COMMANDER RICHARD WAINWRIGHT.
War" He will stop turning at a picture
of q sea fight. There will be lots of smoke,
and the surface Of the water will be full
of spouting fountains, which the boy will
understand are where shots arc striking.
In the foreground, partly enveloped in
smoke, win be seen a yachtlike craft with
many evidences of activity about her. OF
at a distance will be seen two large, black,
low lying craft which are being rapidly
punctured, evidently by the guns OF the
ship in the foreground. Underneath and
around the sides of the illustration will
be the story of how Lieutenant Command
er Wainwright fought and helped to sink
the terrors of the Spanish navy at Santi-
ago harbor.
The boy viii read the story and make
up his mind that if he does not get a
chance to become an actor he will enter
the navy and be q Wainwright.
The maj who has added such an inter
esting and picturesque chapter to our rec
ord of naval heroes might be said to be
another American of the Hobson type.
Like Hobson, he is one of the silent men.
Ordinarily of q mild, pacific nature, he is
q very demon when reused. He has not a
three inch chin for nothing
And If ever o strong nature had cause
for being reused it was Commander Vain
wright's. He was executive officer of the
Maine when she was blown up in Ha-
vana harbor. His wrath at the dastardly
deed did not fare up in a moment.
For weeks he went about his dutios,
working on the wreck and helping to
recover the bodies of his slain compan
ions. Then he labored necessarily to find
evidence on which TO convict the Span
iards. You might have thought that he
had almost forgotten the Maine. So deep
was the wrath which he was nursing that
it showed itself on the surface only when
he refused to step foot in Havana until, as
he put it, he could 20 In at the head of a
body of marines.
It was not until nearly six months after
Wainwright commenced to get mad that
he allowed his anger full swing. That
occasion was at Santiago harbor when
he saw Cerycra's feet stealning u to
meet its doom. The executive officer Of
the Maine had in the meantime been
given independent command of the little
Gloucester, O converted pleasure yacht.
With nothing more formidable than six
FOUNDER CUR and his own unabated
wrath Wainwright sailed in to ayenge the
Maine. Ho fought like q veritable wildcat
of the ocean. Picking out the W fornli-
dable torpedo boa destroyers Pluton and
Furor. he peppered away, helped some by
the larger ships, until both We're helpless
wrecks. Later he had the satisfaction Of
receiving on bis boat as prisoners the
Spanish admiral and the survivors Of his
staff.
Lieutenant Commander Wainwright has
been in the navy from the day of his birth.
He is the son of Commodore Wainwright,
to which fact no owes his appointment to
the service. Ho entered it as a miGship-
man Sept. 2s, 1864, and was Igon-oted to
ensign April 10, 1863: to master July -,
1870; to lieutenant Sept. 25, 1878, and to
lieutenant commander Sept. 10, 1894.
His last duty before he was assigned to the
Gloucester was on the battleship Maine,
on which he was executive officer.
The Gloucester, which under Vain
wright's command has become such q
famous craft, was formerly the yacht Cor
sair, owned by ]. Pierpont Morgan, the
New York banker. She was n Of the
numerous pleasure craft acquired by tho
government at the opening of the war.
She was given a thin oat of armor, a few