The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-08-04
H0BS0N'S EVENTFUL NIGHT.
HERO OF THE MERRIMAC TELLS OF
HIS ESCAPE.


Morning - No Time to Think OF
sharks - Lieutenant Hailed the
Launch That Rescued His Party.
From the New York Evening Sun.
Lieut.. Robson. a few days ago. while
in this city on one Of the many flying Wis
its which he has made since his arrival
from Santiago. related to a small party of
friends the details of his escape from the
collier Merrimac aud of his subsequent
capture by the Spaniards
How Hobson and his company of seven
men took the NIerrimac into the narrow
channel of Santiago harbor and sunk her
there on the night of June has been
fully told in dispatches from the front
but the true story of his escape from the
collier, how he and has companions spent
the night ana how they We're finally res
cued by Admiral Cervera himself has
been told only 70 Admiral Sampson and
the navy authorities at Washington.
1t was dark when We started in to-
ward the strait" said Lieut.. Hobson in
giving his narrative, and it was darker
when we got the ship into position. We
all knew that We We're taking desperate
chances, and in order to be unencumbered
when we got into the water We stripped
down TO our undercloth'ns. The ship gave
a heave when the charges exploded, and
as she sank with a lurch at the bow we
got over her si,ies Th,t No sot,t,,, ~
water is nearly an we know oF Lbat bon-
pened i'm that rather briaf nerfod eor,o
sprana over tho shine stals h1. 49,
than one of us was thrown over the rail
by The shock and the lurching of the ship
1t was our plan to escape on a cata-
maran float which lay ON the roof of the
GERS Of the ming ,xae ,tot ~ -, ~, -
i'm the suction n,ade h,, tL, III,
went down :, ,vo ticd tbo 10 ~ ~ ~
rail giving n s,o,l, In , Wv ~
,holgbt 10 ~ IL 49, L., 80
ino, Mace 7 s,,,ar 80, -. ~. ~ - -
soon as 7 struck tbe H,,tor b,,t T'' I1 t'S
feel the eddias dra,ytrg mo l,,I,,,13 ~,
| snito of All co,1d a. IT, az, ~ a. IA
very long boyya,,o, an, 'N nv as
| felt tha t1,ee1,,e oeos, 7 - So 40
ont for the tloat Which oo,is '',e s.telGN
| bobbinp nm ana dou, NOR ~ -, ', ,',S
THE Merrirnacs n,asts ,,,oro
lille and col,Id So, ~, $500 - ,lll-'S VS.
| men as mo- eollo,.a6 80 VI ny seVe',
| made for tho aoat liz W. - ~ ~
Of co,,rsa tbo, ~ e,9,,' leu ~ 'eN'o,i'
igata the u,rocl, b,,t ,,,a t,,4 ~, - -. -
t1ev vould bo ar r. W. ~ rue" 'l'at
we're Refora we coma ao -, ~ a. a. ~ ~.
| cr,i - - -, - 80, - " 'iO ii0''s 9S'
fnaa HNas
! officor. on l,o.rd ,,,J -. ~ .ieS ilau
y-cu and HI, -, NJ ''i''i '''9 u9
/ ing backward ana f,ry,ord ,i,,ii e., '.
morning II NJ nj, t,, .I w -
,,ot 70 fbo a. a. ~, ~, -. ~ eii'' W,
ms a., cuiol,I,, tbat NC h,1 - uI9
ourselves when Not ,yitb ,,Itto 49,
! marty ON hoard me- ri,,l,t - - '''9
INTERCHANGEABLE Nv, tba,,,,t1. - - g.
turned ont a fte,u.o,l 40 - LUZ ~
! fo,.t,1pata tbo,, MT ,o,,11 49,. 49,. !,
tons Tho ro,,a r,ttI, .I,tab no
the noat Ia ~ sbi1 ,,,a 80, 80 y ~ :.
II 10 swine FREQ ana Mn ~ 81 y,
o fo,,nd -, ,,, ,le ~, W. lSloilou 1t
tirel,t am 90 tba r,ot Ia ~, % -
was submerged rTad ne roft lotr a., ' w
the water we co,Ild nat baye e.ot ID. -
| and would have had IN ciinoh an a.
n Ia he an eVcelIon+ -. ~ 80 -.
the first Marty Of marinas ~,
arrived As n vas we could csat
under the raft and nv nutttng ON, h,9ds
through the crevtces between The eIate
which formed its deck we could hold o,,r
heads out of water and still ha nnseer
That is what we dld and ali night 1oro
we STAYED tbere with o,,r ,C,soe ~ ,,,,,,th,
barely out of tbo water
None Of us exDected To GET o,,t of tho
affair alive but lnclxiI,r tho enonia,Ia ai1
not think of the apparentlv damaood haIf
sunken raft foatinF about beside tpe
wreck They came to within a cable, !
length Of us at intervals of only a Few
minutes all night. We couid hear tbatr
words distinctly. and even in the darkness
could distinguish an occasional clint of
light on the rife barrels of Tho marines
and on the lace of the officers uniforms
we were afraid to sneak above a wbisner
and for a good while. in fact wbonavo5
they were near rs we breatbed as easily
as we could I ordered NV men not "a
sneak unless to address me and with ore
exception they obeved.
after we had been there an ho,r M
two. the water which we found rather
warm at first. began 10 get cola and INV
fingers ached where the wood was nress.
ing into them. The clouds which were
running before a prettv STIFF brea1e u,her
we went in blew over and then Ia, nc
starlight we could see the boats when
they came out Of tha shadovus of The
cliffs on either side ana even when We
could NOT see them we knew maj tboH
we're stll near becanse we co1Id besy
- 1870. -, -,, i, -