Catoctin clarion., 1900-01-11
THE MANILA VICTORY
Why Admiral Dewey Is Honored
the World Over.
Facts About the Great battle Cleaned
from More Recent Reports
Cavite and Santiago
Compared.

In order to appreciate the naval vic
tory at Cavite it is needful to recall
the state of things which existed at
the time of the achievement. If the
files of European newspapers and peri
odicals for the months of March and
April, 1898, be consulted, it will be OBJ
served that large majority of reputed
experts were then of the opinion that
the Spaniards would be found decided.
ly superior to our countrymen at sea.
Even in England, Admiral Colomb and
other naval officers showed themselves
disposed to take gloomy view of our
prospects of success upon the ocean,
owing partly to the fact that Spain
was known to possess number OF
armored cruisers built in the best Eu.
ropean shipyards, but mainly to the
vast extent of the seacoast we should
have to defend on the Pacific as we'll as
the Atlantic. On the Pacific, from the
moment that the battleship Oregon was
ordered to join the vessels operating in
home waters, our means of defense were
almost exclusively confined to the
squadron under Dewey, which had been
stationed in the China seas.
On April 26 dispatch arrived from
Washington ordering Dewey to proceed
at once to the Philippine islands, to be-
gin operations against the Spanish fleet,
and to capture or destroy it. At two
O'Clock on the very next day the sail
ing pennant went up, and Dewey's fleet
steered southwark across $40 miles of
one of the toughest seas in the world,
which lay between it and the Philip
pines. On April 80 it reached Suhig
bay, between which and Manila lay
distance Of 80 miles. IT was learned
that the Spanish squadron lay inside
the Bay of Cavite, the sides of which
and the entrances to which were known
TO be fortified and mined. There is
now no doubt that so far as land de-
fenses were concerned, Cavite was far
better equipped than was Santiago,
into which the feet under Admiral
Sampson never ventured to enter.
Commodore Dewey did not stop to in
vestigate the strength of the fortifica
tions threatening the entrances to the
Bay of Cavite, nor the reality of the
submarine mines alleged to exist, but,
on the very evening of his arrival, that
Of April 80, swept into the Bay of Ca
vite, receiving the fire of the fortifica-
tons and defying the mines, two of
which exploded, one Immediately ahead
OF the flagship. In front of the Amer-
can vessels lay the Spanish squadron,
defended at the rear and on both flanks
by land batteries. Leaving out the tre-
mendous advantage given to the Span
iards by these batteries, let us con-
slider the relative strength of the naval
forces engaged Dewey had six fight
ing ships and the revenue cutter Nc
Culloch, which took no part in the ac-
ton. The Spaniards had ten fighting
ships and two torpedo boats, the lat
ter, however, being practically out of
action. The Americans had 81 classi-
fled big guns and "a rapid-fre and
machine guns; the Spaniards had 50
classified big guns and 72 rapid-fire and
machine guns. The Americans had ten
s-inch guns, while the largest Spanish
guns were 6.2 inches. 1t follows that,
if the land batteries be disregarded,
Dewey had slightly the advantage in
weight of metal and in heavy guns. AS
regards the number of men engaged,
the Spaniards had ,796 and the Ameri-
cans 1878. The result of the battle
was the annihilation or capture of every
Spanish vessel and the surrender of the
shore batteries. The Spaniards admit
ted loss of 634 killed and wounded,
while the Americans had not one killed
and only eight wounded.
1t is the completeness of the immedi-
ate result which gives Manila great
place in the history of naval battles;
but what adds immensely to its impor-
tance is the fact that it involved the
cession by Spain to the United States
of an island empire containing upward
of 100000 inhabitants and possessed
of immeasurabe natural resources. No
naval victory in the annals of the world
has brought about the transfer from
one power to another of so large popu-
lation.-Collier's Weekly.
Greatest Arsenal and ArmOry.