The times., 1898-07-08
STORY OF THE SEA BATTLE
A Technical Description of the
Fight Off Santiago.
WRITTEN BY ANAV4L EXPERT
RObIey Evans, Commanding the
Iowa, Grnciously Refuses to Tni<e
tnin EGInte. of the Yizcayn-HOw
spain's Fleet Mas Destroyed.

spRin's Fleet Was Destroyed.
New York. July THE Herald this
morning publishes the following story.
written presumably by a naval officer on
board the battleship Iowa, giving a tech
nical account of the great sea fight off
Santiago. The dispatch is dated from
''On Board the Iowa, off Santiago. July
T.. and says:
On Sunday morning. July 3, our watch
ing ships lay rolling in the easy surges off
the entrance OF the harbor of Santiago
Their distances from the guarded haven
varied from four 10 six thousand yards,
and there, with an unsparing alertness,
they waited for that promised dash, which
all hoped for but feared might never
come
A little after three bells in the forenoon
watch the inspection of the ship had
been concluded and as Lieutenant Van
Duzer, the officer OF the watch. was re-
lieving the navigating officer Lieutenant
Scheutze, then officer of the deck, he
heard quick cry TO call the captain. fol-
lowed by shout, There come the Span
iards out Of the harbor'
The trained eye Of the alert officer had
marked the thin trail of drifting smoke
and before the signals, Clear ship for
action had been given, the bows of the
Spanish vessels, rushing in line ahead,
We're seen dartng around Socapa Point
for the open sea.
In moment all was hustle and trained
energy. Men rushed to their quarters,
guns We're trained and in less than
twenty seconds the wh!stiing shrek of
rapid-fire gun warned the startled feet of
the not work awaiting. In two minutes
every gun on shipboard was cast loose,
manned, loaded and ready for the long
expected signal TO fire.
At the yardarm of our battleship
string Of signal flags warned the feet the
enemy was trying to escape. but even
before the answering pennants of the
other ships announced their understand
ing OF the message every vessel was dash
ing TO the stations long before allotted for
the emergency which had come at last.
II was splendid spectacle The Span
larcs with bottled steam cleared the
rarbor's mouth seemingly in a moment
Under their eager prows a column of
foam whitened the long pillows and their
Oub5liGS wakes left a furrow as straight
and sharp as a racing yacht making a
winning run for the finish line
Their course was shaped for the west
desperate break for freedom, faster few
the shells Of the pursuing Americans.
The usst heavy shell from the Iowa's
battery fell short, and then by a lucky
mis- hance so did the second, but after
ward the rain Of shot fell surely and un-
sPariEgly upon the fleeing foe
Not whit behind in this eager fusil-
lade r0ared the batteries of the Spanish
ships Their port broadsides famed and
grunlbied but 1t was a more splendid
display Of fireworks than a successful ef-
fort 10 damage the unharmed targets of
the Yankee ships. In fifteen minutes af-
ter they were discovered the four Span
ish armOred cruisers had cleared the
wide entrance and five minutes later the
torpedo boat destroyers. hugging the
beach and seeking the sheltering broad
side Of their sister ships. few into the
turmoil OF the action.
AT this time every gun Of the Ameri-
can squadron that could be brought to
bear was pumping projecti1es into the
enemy In an instant it almost seemed
one ship of the Eizcaya class burst into
flames. caused. undoubtedly. by a long,
sure shot from the Oregon or the Texas
minute later a Pinch projectile sent
from her forward turret struck the flag
ship Maria Teresa near her aftersmoke
pipe. tremendous explosion followed.
Then she was shrouded in smoke and
was lighted with lHrid flames: and then
when the powder cloud blew down the
wind she was seen helm hard a-port
rashinG for the beach.
Twenty-Five minutes after the first
ship had been sighted half the Spanish
feet had surrendered or was on fire
As our vessels rushed toward them
every ship was hulIed time and again.
ard ii almost seemed. in Cue sureness and
CiTectness Of our batteries, as if it were
the target practice of Summer morn
ing and not the humiliation OF a squa-
dTOn.
Even this interval would have been
shortened meaSurably, for aiding them
and hindering US was the cloud Of smoke
which concealed, and at the best only
half revealed the wrecked enemy
Il was a grand sad sight "A pathetic
oae to seamen who know how much pa
tient thought and patriotic effort had
gone into the construction Of these splen-
did vessels, now lying. bruised and burn
ing. on the shores they had hoped to de-
fend-
There was no time. however. TO indulge
in emotions Of sympathy or Of pity. for
sttll rushing eagerly westward. closely
followed by the New York. and al a fur
ther distance by the Indiana, came the
torpedo destr0yers
In the hot eaeerness Of destruction we
turned loose our smaller guns on these
loudly heralded and Ineffective craft. and
finally by lucky hit dropped 12-inch
shell into the bow Of the leading de-
stroyer- At the same instant the little
Hist was rapidly closing upon them.
pouring sickening fire into their frag-
lie hullS.
The Gloucester Joined in this splendid
assault. and so sure and SO effective was
their raid Of rapid-fire projectiles that
both torpedo boats swung their helms
hard aport, ran for the shore. and buried
what was left Of them among the pitiless
rocks Of the coast.
BY quarter past 10 we were in full cry
after the Other Spanish ships. then about
four miles ahead. and busy with hot re-
plies TO the determined assault Of the
Oregon, Texas and Brooklyn.
Bending every energy to overtalze the
Colon. which was then five miles away.
and perhaps two miles ahead in a direct