Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1898-05-26
HAD A PERiLOUS TRIP
Associated Press Boat Dandy Lost
Her Way in Storm.
REACHED PORT SHORT OF COAL
Could Not Have Steamed Many
Hours Longer.
W AFTER TANK KING


LIONTEGO BAY, Jamaica, May 25.-After
| a journey of almost a thousand miles
| through binding rain and seas which al
| most ceaselessly swept the deck from stem
| to stern, the Associated Press boat Dandy
| steamed into Montego bay, short Of fuel.
destitute Of water and with scarcely an
hour to spare before She would have been
helpless On the ocean. The aft water tank,
wrenched open by the ceaseless straining
! through the choppy sea. had been drained
OF its contents thirty-Slx hours before land
was sighted, and the coal bunkers, emptied
by an unexpectedly long and hard cruise,
| were cleared almost to the planking, when
| a rift in the fog revealed the shore of ia
maica to the anxious captain and crew.
Another three hours would have left the
sturdy little 1G0-ton boat helplessly adrift
on the sea- for she has no masts to aid her
in such an emergency. When the port was
reached, however, it was found that the
damage to the tank could be quickly re-
paired.
Sailed Last Friday.
The Dandy sailed from Key West early
last Friday in pursuit of Commodore Schley,
who had left almost twenty-four hours be-
fore. 1t was believed at Key West that
Cienfuegos was his destination, but, with
out definite information, the Dandy was
compelled to go far out of a direct course
in order to speak the blockading SQUADRON
OH Havana. The run to the beleaguered city
was pleasant, but the quest was fruitless,
for not one of Commodore Watsons ships
had seen spar of the flying squadron.
l. capt. Murphy Of the Dandy looked grave
over the prospect of an unescorted cruise
TO Clenfuegos, where obtaining coal would
be impossible, while the Dandy's shortage
OF coal would make her escape from the
Spanish gunboats known to be at CieEfue-
gos extremely doubtful
h Sighted u Battle Shin.
Early Saturday morning the sighting of
battle ship set all eyes straining to the
ncrthWard at the unpleasant possibility of
meeting Spanish man-of-war. 1t added
to the satisfaction which resulted when the
ship was recognized as the United States
battle ship Iowa, for she had left Key
West the day after Commodore Schley's
departure and was evidently on her way to
a rendezvous with the fleet. Shortly after
neon the United States torpedo boat Du-
pc MT, which had been left at Key West
with Rear Admiral Sampson, came racing
from the northward and delivered mes
sage to the Iowa. Without the loss of a
moment the formidable little craft rushed
on toward CienfuegoS, and the battle ship,
with increasing speed, headed for the wa
tiers between Cape San Antonio and the
Isle OF Pines.
When, at nightfall, the entrance to the
passage was reached she veered off with
the evident intention of patrolling between
the cape and the island, and there was
nothing for the Dandy to do but to go on
alone.
Saturday night the weather roughened
and Before morning the damage to the
tank. which so nearly resulted seriously
occurred. The water in the forward tank
vas already exhausted, and wllen at noon
on Sunday, the chief engineer found the
after tank dry, the prospect ahead of the
Dandy was not the brightest. Hard driv-
ing against heavy sea had eaten up her
coal almost twice as rapidly as had been
anticipated, and with little fuel and no
water the chase after Schley aban-
dcned and the race for safety begun.
Nearest Friendly Port.
Mcntego bay was the nearest friendly
port and for that the boat was headed. The
tank of drinking water was almost emp
tied and the small supply of mineral waters
board was dealt out spariugly among
fifteen thirsty men. The weather grew de-
cidedly worse, and by Monday morning the
Dandy was plunging through a binding
tropical rain with squalls which alternated
with dense miStS and rendered the lookout
almost useless.
Captain Murphy had counted on reaching
the coast of Jamaica about 4 clock in the
afternoon, and the chief engineer, who had
been using sea water in the boilers since
Sunday, announced that the Dandy had
just two hours more running in her, and
that some of her woodwork would have to
be burned to make that. The captain went
over and over his reckoning for errors, and
every man constituted himself lookout
for the prospect of helpless drifting in that
tumbltng sea was not welcome 1t was al
most . O'Clock when the fog lifted and for
an instant showed the shore not two miles
away Less than an hour later the Dandy
swung at anchor in the quiet waters of
Montego bay, and by next morning she was
rapidly getting into seagoing shape.