The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1898-06-04
LIFE ON THE BLOCKADE.
Extracts from the Diary of One of Our
Naval Officers.

Here is an extract from the diary of an
officer on one of the vessels of the block
aiding squadron off Havana 1t gives
some details of the daily life and routine
of the men on blockading and despatch
duty:
MAY 22--This has been a very quiet
day with the blockading feet. The New
York and Indiana joined it yesterday and
to-day We fully expected to see upon the
break of day that the mysterious flag
ship had flown in some secret mission,
evading again the newspaper boats. The
New York during the day visited one
vessel after another. Signalmen were
busy and she talked to each just as fast
as flags can talk in the hands of an ex-
perienced signalman. The monitors lie
daily on their station, their decks awash
and very little life showing above their
low. gray sides.
May 23-At early dawn large gather
ing of ships was sighted NJ N. e. of
MORO Castle 1t was Admiral Sampson s
SOU adron at it's rendezvous. The squad
ron had ben re- inforced during TIE night
or early mornin by the Machias, Mont
gomery and New Orleans They were
heterogeneous but formidable feet for
Spain's armored cruisers to fight. At $50
a. m small boats were seen making
their way from the different ships to
the flagship. Commanding officers
repair on board" had been the signal. A
conference of war was held in the Admi-
rails cabin and at $50 a. m. the COM
manding officers were again on board
their vessels all ready to carry out che
Instructions still ringing in their ears
from the Commander in Chief. At s. 45
signal flags We're quickly hoisted at the
flagship's yardarms. Small red and white
remnants lung themselves out TO the
breeze from the yardarms of one vessel
after another, and finally when the last
answering pennant announced that the
Whole squadron understood the signal the
New York slowly moved ahead to the
eastward. hauling down the display as
she went The Indiana, Pur itan, and
Miantonomoh followed in her rear, form
ing with her SIMPSONS fighting line
Trailing along until smoke hid them
from view We're the Vicksburg, Annapo-
lis, Newport, New Orleans and Mont
gomery, flying the pennant OF CoInmo-
dore Watson, and the May flower; while
on the quarters of the flagship TWO small
black specks showed that the ever vigil
liant torpedo boats Foote and Rogers We're
VIZ
fighting,
"But few vessels were left on the
blookade-the Dolphin. Mangrove, Ham
iIton, and Woodbury. off Havana; to the
westward. near Bahia fonda, the Man
ming; in the neighborho9od of Matanzas,
not q very formidable array. especially
when Sls one as sS%nsh that s1Dn Inside
of which are as formidable as the
Machias or Castine, or even more so, and
that the raising of the blockade would be
a very embarrassing thing for our Cover
nment and would make all sorts of inter
national complications. The night of
ships. MORO light was lighted and two
searchlights were sweeping the waters
about the entrance Of the harbor almost
all night. An attack from the Spanish
ships were two miles apart and it would
have taken a but a short time for them
an to d nave gos oo together and given the
| wish.