Owingsville outlook. [volume] (Owingsville, Ky.) 1879-192?, 1898-05-12
AN ENGAGEM ENT.
Santa Clara Water Batteries and the
ViCksburg and Cutter Merrill Fight
The Nily >pan.ard. Arran ;rd a TrIn Tor
Oar Vessels, and They Walked Inio
IL Yankee InsrnuitN. How
,,er, Got Them Dat.

KY WEST. Fla. May . Only poor
mark smanShip ON the TART Of the
Spanish gunncrS saved the Nickshurg
ami the cutter Morrill, from destruction
ntr Havana Saturday morning For
over half an hour they were under the
fire Of the guns of the santa Clara
water batteries. hut 10th escaped with
out material injury. although >hrap-
mel shells from eight inch guns rA-
plodcd all about them and both now
show the pitIcd sears of the Spanish
bullets
The willy SpaniardS had arranged a
trap Ia nj "a cnupl" "f our Shil> tu
the bottom. They halted II rs a man
would iaIt trar. \ small schooner
WAS sent cut from Havana harhor
shortly before daylight Saturday morn
ing /" draw some nf the Americans in
to the ambu>cadr. The rusc worked
like a charm. The Wick burg and the
Morrill, IN the heat of the chase and in
their contempt Tor y anish punncrv
wa .krd into the trap that had been set
for them. Had the SpuniardS possessed
their souls in patience hut five minutes
longer not even the bad gun practice,
would have saved our ships. and sun
day morning two more of our YES
sells would lie AT the bottom within
two lengths of the wreck Of the i'll
starred Maine.
FRIDAY evening the Nickshurg and
the Morrill,. crui>in" to the west of
MORO Castle, were fired upon toy the
Ing guns oi the Cniimar batteries. Two
shots were fired al the Nicksburg and
one at the Morrill, Both fell short
aud both vessels. without returning
the fire, steamed out of range. II
would have been folly to have done
otherwise. But Saturday morning the
SranlardS had better luck The
schooner they had sent out before day.
light ran off Ia the eastward, hugging
the shore with the wind on her star
board quarter. About three miles cas-,
of the entrance of the harbor She came
over ON the port tack. \ light haze
fringcd the horizon and She was not
discovered until three miles off shore.
when tine May flower made her out and
siEuallcd the Morrill, and Nicksburg.
Capt. Smith. of the Morrill,, and Com
mandcr Lilly, of the Nick Sburg. immc,
diatrly slapped on all steam and start.
cd in pursuit
The schooner instantly put about
ami ran for MORO Castle before the
wind On doing 50 She would. accord.
ing Ia the we'll conceived spanish plot
lead the two American war ships di-
rcctly under the guns al the Santa
Clara batteries. These works are a
short mile east of MORO, and are II
part of the defense of the harhor
There are two batteries, one at the
shore, which has been recently
thrown up. of sand and mortar with
" idr cmhra>urcS for cight-inch guns
and the other on the crest %,
the rocky cminence which iuts out int,
the water of the gulf at the point.
The upper battery mounts modern 10
inch and l2-inch krupp guns behind Il
>iN-font stone parapct in front of which
are 20 feet of carlhwurk and betting
of railroad iron. This battery is con
SIdcrcd the most formidable of liza.
vana : defcn>cs, except MORO castle
1t is masked and has not been abso
lutcly located 10y the American war
ships. Ii IL probably due To the fact
that the SpaniardS did not desire {,
expose the position that the Nicksburg
and Morrill, are nov ailoat The Nor
rIll and Nicllshurg were miles from tn,
schooner when the chase began. They
steamer at her full speed. the Morrill,
leading until within mile and "A hal
of the Santa Clara batteries. Com
mandor Smith, of the NickSburg. wa.
the first to realize the danger int.
While h the reckless pursuit haa Leo
them lie concluded it was time I,
haul of and sent shot across tn,
bow of the schooner. The SPANS!
skipper instantly brought his vcs,c
about, but while she was still rolling
IA the trough of the sea with her sail:
Mapping, an cight-inch shrapnel shell
came hurting through the air from
the water battery mile and +;
half away. 1t PASSED over til,
Morrill, between the pilot house an,
the smoke stack and exploded less than
so feet on the port quarter. The small
shot ratified against hc- sides. II wa:
close call. Two more shots followed
in quick succession. both Shrapnel
One burst close under the star boar,
quarter, filling the engine room witt
the smoke of the explosion of tn,
shell aud the other, like III,
first, passed over and cxplod
cd just beyond. The Spanish
gunners lad the range and their tim,
fuses were accurately set. The crew
of both ships were at their guns
Lieut. Craig, who was in charge of tn,
bow four-inch rapid-fire gun of tn,
Morrill,, asked for and obtained per
mission to return the fire. At the frs
shot the Vicksburg, which was in tn,
wake of the Morrill,, slightly inshorc
sheered off and passed to windwar,
under the Morrill's stern.