The age-herald., 1898-11-04
DEWEY'S IRON
 HAND AT MANILA

| student of human nature, and can size | up" a man at glance. This Is fortunate circumstance for since the great naval vice
 tory at Manila, the doughty Vermonter has | been much sought after by enterprising | Americans and men who knew him when he was Knee high to a grasshopper." Not I long ago one of these persons. sent to Manila on a special mission by New York
 museum man. approached the admiral on | the street, and, addressing him familiarly, extended his hand.
 Admiral Dewey stopped. smiled, but re- | mained silent.
 ..Ill bet you don't remember me-" observ- | ed the stranger, somewhat abashed. The admiral smiled again, took the | stranger In with a sweeping glance from | head to foot, and then, with merry twin l kle, said:
 You winl''
 That ended the interview. Douglass White, who represented the New | York Journal at Manila during the exciting | days immediately following the naval bat | tie, has returned to New York. | In speaking of Dewey he says .'Dewey,s commanding personality is one of the first things that impress the visitor when he meets the hero of Manila One | ceases to wonder at the brilliancy of his l victory and takes it for granted that such | a man would win against any odds It is | the same with the officers and men of his fleet. They look upon him a leader, to be followed implicitly, and their admiration is mingled with strong affection which would cause them to follow him to the bot | tom of the sea.
 ! aGDe 1aV I fOund him In his faVOritA chair on the Olympia's quarter deck with a basketful of letters teeming with praise ! from the highest of our people. Selecting
 one in a plain, old-fashioned envelope, l bearing the stamp of New England office, l he read the words of honest reorganization l from an old school friend, whom forty I years had separated from the admiral. It l was a simple little tribute, written not to | the great victor, but to the old schoolmate | and friend of other days. As he read, a. | waver in his voice and his moistened eyes | told of another phase in the character of the commander to whom the boom of cannon | might be supposed to be the sweetest music.
 with the exception of the German fleet l there was the greatest admiration for Dewey on every neutral ship of the many
  | that the English tars loved him one whit less than did his own men. This same feel l ing might have inspired the Germans had l it not been that they came there to buldoze l their way into some semblance of control over Manila. That they did not succeed the world knows
 "These Germans made several attempts | to pass the blockade without the formality @F 4l.1:. .l.t. officers. All in vain. They were repeatedly l held up and required to pass the same | ordeal as the vessels of other powers. At l last Admiral Diedrichs sent his flag lieu | tenant to Dewey with a demand that Ger man ships be allowed to pass without re- porting to the American fleet. This de- l mand was answered by firm negative and the next question of the German officer brought forth a shower of pyrotechncs | from Dewey.
 "'What will you do if we should attempt | to pass without reporting?' queried the rep resentative of the kaiser.
 ".What would I do, sir? Why, sir, would treat you I would any other sh'p | that was trying to run my blockade. "'Go back to your admiral and tell him, with my compl ments, that I am master of | this harbor and that any ship attempting | such an act will be treated as blockade runner and fired upon
 "'But,' said the German, 'are you aware l what such act would lead to? 1 This was too much for Dewey, and, with many dots and dashes here omitted, he re- l piled:
 | "'Yes, sir; am aware that it would lead l to war, and war right here. You may add | to my message to your admiral that am prepared for war. and that If he wants war l he can have it. Good day, sir | "Only once did I hear from Admiral l Dewey any of the details of the battle of l Manila. This was when l carried to m 1 the report of the discoveries made by the | divers who had investigated the condition | of the sunlSen ships. He then for d short | time lived over again those hours of bat 1 tle
 "T can readily understand the dreadful | destruction which the divers have found in | the various ships he said, for the effect of l our fire was evident after every broadsde. | When the S-inch shell which ended the | career of the Reina Cristna struck that unfortunate ship, we could see from the | bridge that she had been vitally damaged. l First she reeled, and then came the explo- l sion which seemed to rend her in every 1 part. followed by fire which made aban- l donment necessary.
 "I saw Montejo as he transferred his | flag, and we at once turned our attention to l the Castila. She was stubborn, but we | knew that the time was short. Running in l 1 of our present anchorage. we opened a l steady fire upon her. This she returned with l all her guns which could be brought into | action As each broadside belched from | her sides waited for the result certainly l expecting that some of her shells would | find their mark. Had it not been that I l would hear the shells shrieking and crash | ing as they passed overhead. should cer- l tainly have supposed that they were fir l ing blank charges. Soon the Castilla began | kl. r @,7A 4I1 a1ak ..I~ | to the open bay.
 l "It seems to me that in this fight as | we'll as in the fight at Santiago, there was | some special providence watching over our | ships and men, otherwise the Spaniards | must have done them more damage. As far as this fleet is concerned I feel trat way. l and I have thought of thanksgiving every | time ms mind turned to what was acco:S- | plisncd here " thout loss of life among the | entire squaoron.'