The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-03-19


as soon as their launch should come for
them. Accordingly ! turned the chair over
to them got into my boat and returned
to the Wanda.
II do not know what became of the
wounded Spanish sailor. ! never heard
of him afterwards; but | believe that ne
must have died in the pool where ieIt
him before the sailors on shore could get
him In the chair and take him TO the
Gloucester. If he I'D die in the pool, which
l cannot doubt. owing TO his frighuul
wounds. ana the fact thar he lay in the
burning sun so long without surgical at
tention, il is not likely that be found any
other tomb, for il was no time nor oc-
caEton TO be over-particular about a dead
man, dead men were rather numerous
in that locality then ard the unfortunate
sailor, whose mangled body was left lying
In his own blood on the sun-blistered rocks
Of Cuba shared no worse fate than
scores of others whose bodies | saw that
day floating in the sea, either to become
food for sharks or 10 ground 20 pieces
when the incoming tide should throw them
against the rock-bound shore.
He Is Sure II Was VIllamiI.
When the Gloucester sailors finally re-
turned to their own vessel they undoubt-
eddy left the Wanda's chair on the shore
and / believe there is not the slightest
doubt that that chair afterwards became
the death couch and then the tomb OF Ad-
miral Viilamil.He was doubtless lying near
us at the time ] was on shore, but none
of the Americans found him, which was
not remarkable, as there were very few
Americans on shore, and he could easily
have been concealed behind the rocks
along the beach or in the thick brush
back of them. II the Spanish sailors who
had been captured knew the admiral
hiding place they did not divulge it TO
the Americans. 1t may be that IL was
by the officers own orders that his men
had carried him to some lonely spot in
the thicket, where he preferred to have
the spirit leave him while he was still a
free soldier of Spain rather than die a
nrtsouer in the hands OF his countrys en-
emies Whether he was placed IN the
chair before or after he was dead can De
told only by the Spanish soldiers VINO
placed him there, and they only also can
tell whether they left him alone to die or
waited beside him until after the breath
left his body.
N seems hardly possible that Gen.
Wood and the other American officers can
he mistaken in their identification of the
body but if they are there can be but
one theory in regard to it, and that is
that the body was that of the sailor Wnom
| left lying in the pool and for whom the
chair was sent ashore. He may have been
placed ia the chair by the American sailors
and died there before he could be taken
to the Gloucester But this theory | re-
gard as extremely doubtful and at any
rate its truth or fasity can be demon
strated by the Gloucester officer and the
sailors who remained on shore after /
left.
But when the report of the finding of
the body was first received here from San
tiago, and 1t was said TO be that OF the
Pluton's captain. 1 felt confident that that
could not be correct. For / had the strong
est reasons for believing the contrary, rea-
sons which were founded on the fact that
less than an hour after the occurrences
related in the foregoing l was introduced
by Lieutenant Commander Wainwright,
the commander of the Gloucester, to "A
Spanish officer, entirely uninjured, who
represented himself as the captain of the
Pluton. He was afterward taken to the
United states with the other Spanish pris-
ouers, and as far as / know, was return
ed to Spain when the war was over.
Found Spaniards Aboard.
when l got back 10 the Wanda after
having left the chair on shore with the
Gloucester sailors l was very much sur
prised 10 find that during my absence three
officers and six sailors belonging to the
1IutOu idi tdhGu lCluSG dDOaIu tue w an
da They had easily escaped from The
small guard of American sailors on shore
and had put out to the Wanda in one of
the Plutons boats, which had hoated
ashore. Their reason for going to the
Wanda was that the yacht had British
registry and flew the British flag, but her
flag was the only thing British about her,
a fact which the Spaniards did not know.
She had big hearted Yankee skipper in
rI1r
half-drowned and half-stowed Spanards
came alongside he forgot all about the
color of the Wandas flag and the posi-
bility of any annoying complications that
these Spaniards might cause US. He could
have directed them to go TO the Gloucester,
which was then not more than a mile
away, standing by the exploding wrecks
OF the Maria Teresa and Oquendo. receiv-
ing more prisoners than she could take
care of, While the Brooklyn, Oregon, Texas
and New York We're chasing the Cristo-
ba, Colon along the coast fifty miles to
the westward.
but Capt. Miller did not repufse the
appealing Spaniards. His instinct of hui
mainly was too strong and he told then
20 come aboard. Not only that, but he
gave them dry clothing and food and drink
So when | came over the side of the Wan
da l found our tackles pouring JamaIcs
sailors on the forecastle and in the cabiI
! were the three officers telling their trou
bles TO Capt Miller, while the steward
was dealing out to them libations o
| Scotch whisky and soda.
Had to Get Rid of Them.
This was all right from a Humanitarian
| standpoint, but l found myself confront
ed with the absolute necessity of getting
! these Spaniards off the Wanda at once
| Our yacht was ready TO put out imme
diately for Port Antonio, the nearest neu
| tral port at which we could reach a cabl
| station, and send the news of the destruc
| ton of Cervera's fleet. We had then beer
! running back and forth between Port An
| tonic and the Cuban coast for six week
past, and several times had the British
| quarantine regulations a Port Antonio i'm
pressed upon us very forcibly. | know. {,
| certainty, that IL we went into Por
Antonio bay with these Spaniards aboard
who had been living in the pestilential eli
mate of Santiago for a month or two past
the quarantine officials would not perm.
US to ENTER but would anchor us abou
Hos 10 10,