Cameron County press. [volume] (Emporium, Cameron County, Pa.) 1866-1922, 1898-05-12

officials. The ultimaturu asserted thai
no money levy would be made upon
Manila. 1t is believed in Madrid that
the government has already cabled
Gov. Augusti authority to comply with
the demand, no other course being
open.
A dispatch from Hong Kong to the
Daily Mail, dated Monday, says: "Com-
modore Dewey's fleet is off Corregidor
island, hotly engaged with the forts
there. Electrical experiments. show
that the cable has been cut on or near
Manila"
An official news agency dispatch
from Madrid says: Senor Sagasta
went to the palace yesterday to com
municate to the queen regent dis
patches announcing that the town of
Cavite had been razed and the unforti-
fed part of Manila burned. The Amer
leans fired petroleum bombs. The
Spanish losses are estimated at 400 men.
New York, May "a Hong Kong
dispatch says: The bombardment of
Manila has begun. The inhabitants
are fleeing to the country. The oper-
ators in the cable station in the midst
| of the forts fed to save their lives.
Washington, May Sup to the close
of Office hours Monday the only infor-
nation that our government had re-
ceived of the brilliant victory of Com
modore Dewey and the winning of the
battle of Manila came to the govern
ment through the medium of press dis
patches. If the report is true that
| Commodore Dewey has begun a bonn
| ha, % ba al ~
Manila it is unlikely that he can spare
a vessel from his fleet to carry the
news to Hong Kong, the nearest cable
station, so it is not known when Off
| cial advices will come.
| There was some expectation that
through the surrender of the city the
commodore might acquire control of
the cable but even then there might
be practical difficulties in commuDicat-
ing through it. The officers of Dewey's
fleet include at least one lieutenant
who is a practical electrician and tel
egrapher, but it is not known positive
ly that he is able to work a cable sue
cessfully. Second, a fear is enter
tanned that before retiring from the
city the Spanish troops will smash the
delicate apparatus for the reception
and dispatch of messages, and it is un-
certain whether there is enough tech
nical skill in the American fleet to re-
pair such damage without aid from
the main land.
The mere cutting of the cable as re-
ported by the Spaniards is not re-
garded as particularly serious, since
being hemmed in port by the Ameri-
l. Il, H., L
would not be able to make the cut far
off shore, SO the cable could be easily
grappled and repaired. The greatest
anxiety is felt as to the casualties sus-
tanned by the American fleet. From
the stubborn defense made by the
Spaniards it is feared that before they
burnt, blew up or sunk their ships they
managed TO inflict severe damage upon
Dewey's squadron.
All the ships engaged were vulner-
able in one respect-namely, in their
lack of protection to life. There was
not an armored ship in Commodore
Dewey's fleet, the nearest approach
being the flagship Olympia. She had
some coal protection around the sides
and an arched steel deck calculated tc
protect the vitals of the ship. The
other vessels of the fleet save those
recently added to the navy, like the
McCulloch, have lighter steel decks OF
this character, but in all cases-with
the exception of some slight protec
tion in the shape of gun shields-the
men of the ships were exposed to this
fire of the enemy.
If Dewey has lost a considerable por
Il iS &c, l.. y.
!. much embarrassed in the work Of
maintaining possession of Manila fol
lack of sufficient force. United State.
naval vessels are always under
manned according to European stand
ards, and it will not be possible tc
, spare any considerable number of mel
to keep the city, especially if the en-
gagement has disabled many of them
, There was some talk Monday of send
ing troops out from San Francisco tC
!, aid in this work, but this has not ye
taken shape.
, AS to the future of the island, it il
, likely that the government will retair
, possession of at least one good por
: such as Manila for coaling station
and base of supplies during the re
mainder of the war. There was un
derstood to be a considerable Spanish
force in the Philippines and larg'
number of natives are said to b'
. loyal" meaning in that sense at
tached to the Spanish fortunes. Will
this material on one hand and the in
surgents on the other, the latter stim
e ulated by the overthrow of the Span
l iards at Manila, it is probable tina
civil war may rage on the islands 70
g some time.