The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1899-03-19
The GhastIy Wreck Found
Seated by the Sea.
IN THE WAN0A'S CHAIR
STORY OF THE FINDING OF THE
SIX EIETON.
THE BARREN AND BURNING ROCKS
TheDyiog Sailor Crying ceaseIessIy for Water
Why the Figure in The Chair Could
not Have Been that of the
Pluion's Captain.

New York, March 1S.--Thc scnsa-
tional finding of the body of Admiral
Nilamil, of the Spanish navy. sitting in
an arm chair on the Cuban coast about
four miles west Of the entrance TO SAN
tiago harhor calls forth a statement
from the correspondent who. Witnessed
the destruction of Ceryera's fleet on
July Bird last from the yacht Wanda. Il
dispatch boat in the service of the AS
ISOLATED Press. Admiral Nillamil WAS
IN officer of conSid srable renown in the
Spanish service and he was in command
of the torpedo tlotilla which accompanied
the larger vessels of Admiral Cervera )
fleet from the Cape Verde Islands 10
Martinique and thence to Curacao and
Santiago last spring. lie was badly
wounded aboard the destroyer Plutcn
in the engagement between the American
and Spanish fleets near Santiago on
| July :'rd last. but managed to reach the
shore and the American sailors did not
| find him. AS he never appeared in
Santiago and as his brother officers on
| the Pluton knew that he had been deS-
perately wounded, having lost an arm
and leg, his death was never doubted.
| But the finding Of his body is chair
and its positive Identification by means
| Of his uniform and papers found in his
nocketS is the first absolute proof Of
| his death. The mere finding of the
| body is not such q remarkable fact. but
| that it should he found seated in an
| arm chair on that rocky coast several
miles away from any habtation calls
| forth the statement from the correspon-
| dent referred to who accounts for tAe
| presence of the chair which for mo q
| than eight months past has been the
| strange tomb of the Spanish command
| er. The first report from Santiago about
| the finding of the body. which was
| received here on Friday March 10, sta
| ted that it was believed to he that of
| the Captain of the Pluton. The state
| mcnt Of the correspondent shows that
| this could not nc correct. for by pecI-
| liar chain of circumstances connected
very closely with the presence of the
chair on the Cuban shCrc, he was obliged
| to have an interview with the Captain
| Of the Iuton. aboard the auxiliary gun
| boat converted yacht Gloucester an
| hour or more after the PlntOn had been
sent TO her destruction.
The correspondent says:
During The sea fight off the coast Of
Cuba on July Bird last. | was on the
yacht Wanda, the commander of which
was Captain +. C. Miller. We came
| upon the Spanish torpedo boat destroyer
Furor. just as she was sinking, and
the destroyer Pluton, which had been cut
| in two by shells from the Gloucester and
along the shore. This was ut point
about three or four miles west Of MORO,
Mt the cnrance to Santiago harhor. and
about one mile east of the point where
| the Marie Teresa and the Almirante
| Oquendo We're driven ashore. The Wan
da ran III shore II half mile from the
pimton. The Gloucester was standing
| by" half mile or more to the west
ward. From the deck of the Wanda we
could easily see a score OF men on shore
near the wreck Of the Plnton. but we
could not tell whether they were Ame,i-
cans. Spaniards or Cubans. took one
of the Wandas small boats with II
quartermaster and one or two sailors
with ne and went ashore to the place
where the men were for the purpose
of getting their STORY of the dcstrnc-
ton Of the Furor and the Pluton.
found that most of the men were Span
| ish sailors belonging to the pluton
They were being guarded by a small
squad of sailors from the Gloucester
who were waiting to take them aboard
the Gloucester as prisoners of war
One of the American sailors told me
that an officer of the Gloucester was
up on the bluff of rocks overlooking the