The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-03-22
HAD SAMPSON BEEN CERvERA.
what He Would Have Done at the
Battle of Santiago.


New York, March 17-Rear Admiral
Sampson has contributes chapter to the
book with Sampson Through the War;"
just issued, by w. A. M. Goode,. CORE
spondent of the Associated Press. on the
flagship New York during the war. In this
chapter Admiral Sampson gives the first
expression of his opinion upon the destruc-
ton of Cervera's fleet, He holds that the
victory over Cervera is not entirely ac-
counted for by the superiority of the Amer
lean force, and he is inclined to believe
that il was due to more excellent marks
manship than to anything else.
This difference" writes Rear Admiral
Sampson, between the number Of hits on
each side can only be explained by attrib-
uting it to the superior craftsmanship of
the Americans. Therefore, this cause alone
would probably explain the difference in
the results; the Americans lost one man,
while the Spaniards lost in the neighbor-
hood of three hundred killed and wounded.
IF the war teaches one lesson more i'm
portant than another" continues Samp-
son, ut is to dispense with an wood in
the future construction of our ships. Not
a particle of it should be permitted where
il is possible TO avoid its use"
Regarding the siracgy of Cervera, Samp-
son Is of the opinion that had the Span
ish admiral come out during the evening,
making his departure to coincide with Il
passing storm, he would have had a good
chance to save enc or more Of his vessels.
Explaining this, Sampson writes:
Several causes, il appears, Influenced
Admiral Cervera to select daylight instead
of darkness TO make his attempt While
he and his commanding officers differed
in opinion as to the time to be selected
which was In the majority vote eventually
fixed for daylight, there appears TO be no
doubt but that with sufficient energy and
determination in making the attempt
darkness would have greatly aided their
chances of escape Had il not been for the
use of the searchlights by our ships to H.
illuminate the channel by which the Span
iards must necessarily come out they
probably would have selected the darkness.
After the destruction of the Spanish fleet
many of the captured prisoners freely ex-
pressed their opinion that it was impossi-
bic to pilot their ships out through the mar
row channel with such a powerful light
shining in the eyes Of the officers This
reason, perhaps, even more than the fact
that the same searchlight enabled us on
the outside TO discover and point our guns
upon the attacking Spanlards, decided
them in their vote to adopt daylight rather
than darkness in which to make their at
tempt.
Had Cervera, ir making his plans, d.
rected his ships to follow different courses
after getting to sea, the proba bility that
one or more of them might have escaped
would have greatly increased. but as all
pursued the same course, 1t favored their
DESTRUCTION and rendered their escape i'm
possible. Each ship, as she came out, was
subject to the fire OF all our ships, where
as had they followed different courses. the
probability is that, owing to the circum-
stances Of position, one or more OF our
slower ships might have found herself
compelled to engage a vessel Of the enemy
of much higher speed, or the reverse
might have happened, that one Of our fast
est vessels would have been obliged to at
tack one of Spains slower vessels, thus
wasting our means Of attack upon an in
ferior vessel, leaving one of greater speed
to escape.
If this attempt had been made during
darkness, IL would have enabled one of
the Spaniards to have got out of sight Of
most Of our vessels in a few moments
The result would undoubtedly have been
different. Therefore, it is my opinion that