The times., 1899-02-27
The Three Spanish Gunboats
Raised at Manila.
Difficulties Overcome by the Wreck
ers Sent From Hongkong.
The Work Supervised by Naval Con-
structOr Capps-Thc Vessels
Found in Good Condition.

telegram from HongkOng which told of
their safe arrival there this afternoon was
received with great satisfaction. The
chickens are the three little Spanish gun
boats. Isla de Cuba, Isla de Luzon. and Don
by the Spaniards and abandoned on May l,
and afterward were set on fire by Dewey's
orders, along with four or five others.
These three were found to be worth rais-
ing, and the work was undertaken. AS it
progressed interest grew among the watch
.ers on the warships. Finally, all three
ships were up, and it began to look as ii
we were sure of them. There was only
the trip to Hongkong to be made, and now
two of them have got there.
The nayys end of the work of raising the
three ships has been in charge of Naval
Constructor w. l.. Capps. Mr. Capps came
down with the first brigade of troops, and
reached Cavite on June 80. Until the sur
render of Manila, on August 13. there was
no practical step taken toward securing
any of the sunken Spanish vessels for the
United States Navy, but after that Mr..
Capps had opportunity to make more
thorough investigation of the condition OF
the wrecks and of the problem Of raising
them. Divers were employed from ship
yard in Cavite, and the work began under
the supervision of Mr.. Capps. \ careful
examination of the condition of all the
wrecks was made outside, and, as far as
possible inside. All the ships were well
down in the mud, but, so far as it was
possible to determine, the hulls were in
fairly good condition. Evidences of the
work of the Spaniards just before they fled
were plentiful. even from the outside. in
the number of smashed headlights. Very
slight damage had been suffered from the
American fire. The ships simply ran from
what they feared might happen.
AS a result of his preliminary examina
tion Mr.. Capps reported to Admiral Dewey
that it was possible to recover almost all
the ships and feasible to raise the two
Islas and the Austria. About that time the
Olympia went TO Hongkong to be dOcked
and Mr.. Capps went with her. While there
ne saw representatives of the HongkOng
Dock Company and told them something of
what he had found out about the wrecks
in Bakor Bay. The dock company sent
its examiners to Cavite and made an in
vestigation for itself. Mr.. Capps worked
with the dock companys representatives
and gave them the benefit of his personal
experience with the wrecks. The dock
company men were satisfied that the two
Islas and the Austria could be raised and
Admiral Dewey advertised for bids for the
work the dock company was one of the
bidders. Ensign Moffett, of the Charleston,
who had raised the Bulusan sister of the
Calao, and the transport Cebu in the
Pasig River wanted chance to go at the
wrecks in Bakor Bay. but the Admiral
gave the contract for all the work to the
Hongkong Dock Company at total pri,e
for the three ships entirely refitted. ex
cept as to guns. at about 100000 silver
Work of the Wrcckers.
The company at once sent down a gang
of men with apparatus from Hongkong, in
charge of W. c. Jack. Later the tug
Powerful came over with more men and
the engineers who were TO fix UP the old
engines and take the prizes back to Hong
kong. The old schooner Dos Hermanos
was fitted up as an abiding place for the
men and made fast alongside the Isla de
Cuba. The steamtug Oeste, which was
seized when Manila fell. and the Bulusan.
rescued from the Pasig by Ensign Moffett.
were used to furnish steam to operate the
pumps and other machinery. Mr.. Capps
lived on the Dos Hermanos with the
wreckers. Work was begun on the Cuba
first on October %. The first thing 10
do was to fill up all openings in the hull.
the outside, because the conditions were
such that it was impossible for man to
go below in the wrecks. Mr.. Caps had
very complete plans of all the ships, how
ever and that greatly simpitied the work.
The Spaniards had opened every outbOard
delivery and smashed all the headlights
in the airports. but for some reason they
had not damaged the machinery in any
way. Perhaps they hoped to have the job
of raising the ships themselves The most
serious damage to each ship was caused
by the fire which was started by the Amer
leans, in pursuance of the Navy Depart
ment's orders to capture and destroy.
While the divers were at work on the
outside of the Cuba the riggers on the
Dos Hermanos were getting the pumps
ready. There were three centrifugal
pumps one of twelve inches. one of nine,
and one of six. One was rugged TO drain
the forward part of the wreck, one the
engine room. and one the afterpart. The
ships had been run ashore at high tide
and had settled well into the mud. Pump
ing could be done only at low tide. Each
ship as she had settled had made a bed
for herself in the mud. throwing up a
ridge all around the hull. Finally every
thing was ready to begin pumping on the
Cuba. 1t happened that low tide came
about midnight. and so the first effort to
three pumps were set at work. Steadily
the water lowered in the Cuba, but she
made no move. The pumps were kept at
it until a buoyancy of i,400 tons was Civ
the little ship. ana still she did not
bulge Work was stopped and the tired
men turned in. When they got up again
the tide had risen and filled the Cuba full
again.
That night pumping began again, but
this time there was different plan. Only
the after pumps were worked, while the
forward one stood idle. The clearing
OF the after compartments gave the ship
a buoyancy at the stern which gradually
started her up out of the mud berth in
which she had been lying for six months
AS she came up there was lively
work for the divers. OPENINGS were
mud, and it was necessary to plug them
with all speed. Several small COM
partments We're found which were not
reached by the ships drains. The small
er bunkers We're full of water, as were the
boilers. The decomposition of stores and
other things in the ship and the coating
of mud and slime which was over every
thing made the air below so foul as the
ship came up that it was impossible to
send men down to work inside. so every
thing in the way of stopping leaks had to
be done by the divers. When the ship
floated a new difficulty was met; the mud
wall which she had thrown up around
herself as she settled stood in the way
of dragging her off into deeper water
The divers were in great danger in at
tempting to work at the hull, because
any accident which might cause her to
settle again might catch them against
the mud wall and smother them
Twice FIonted and Lost Again.
The work went on day and night almost