Daily inter mountain. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1881-1901, 1900-01-27
FOUGHT THEIR
WAY OUT
Crew Of the Urdanita H; :
a Hard Battle.
=
ONLY TWO ARE ALIVE
Filipin0S Surrounded the Boat
Which Had Stranded on a
Small Sand Bar.
GALLANTRY OF THE MEN
GALLANTRY OF THE MEN
After Most of Them Had Received
Fatal Wounds They Kept Firing on
the Approaching Enemy Lieut..
Wood Among the Killed.

Washington, Jan. 27.-The navy depart
ment has made public reports from Cox
swain Green and Apprentice Powers,
members of the crew of the ill-fated Ur-
danita, describing the capture of that
boat by the Filipinos last September. In
endorsing the reports Admiral Watson
says they show that the little gunboat
under command of the late Lieutenant
Wood, was CALAMITY defended an men
were captured only because she was hard
and fast aground.
Captain Wilde added to his endorse
ment the following: The conduct of Mr..
Wood and of the entire crew under the
terrible fire is praiseworthy to the last de-
gree and reflects additional lustre upon
the brilliant record of the United States
navy
Green, in his report. says that the Ur-
danita grounded about quarter Of a
mile below Betanga, on the Orani river,
about 10 o'clock a. m, Sunday. Sept. II.
All hands were sitting around the deck
playing cards or reading. waiting for the
tide when at $3.50 a'clock two volleys were
fired from the shore. almost rakirg the
deck. Most Of the ammunition was be-
low, but at Cadet Woods order the men
manned the guns and smolhered the enc
my's fire in about fifteen minutes. Stone
the man at the Nordenfeldt, had been
shot twice, when he was relieved by
Wood, who had been firing the one
FOUNDER Within five minutes Wood was
shot through the stomach. Gray had been
hit, Stone had his ear knocked off and
received another wound in his head.
Gray continued to fire a small rifle after
receiving his wound. Powers put fifteen
holes in one man with Colt gun. The
FilipinOs were invisible. so the sailors fir
ed where they thought they were. When
Wood was hit the Colt gun was redhot,
the firing pins of the one-pOunder were
broken so that the gun could not be used,
one barrel of the Nordenfeldt would not
fire and three or four of the Lee rifles had
broken eXtractOrs.
Wood revived and ordered out the boat
Green advised that they stay by the ship
until dark, but Wood insisted on trying
to reach the other bank The insurgents
had reopened fire from concealed places
and the bullets We're flying like hail when
the boat got away, carrying the sailors
who could not swim, while those who
could, hung onto the gunwae. The Fill
lpinos doubled their fire and rushed into
the river after the boat. The oars were
hit until finally none was left.so the men
started to swim ashore, leaving Wood
dead in the bottom of the boat. Stone
and DrummOnd were shot close to the
boat and Gray had been killed in the boat
Green was helping Herbert ashore and
Powers was trying to save himself. AS
soon as they reached the beach twenty
five bolomen rushed at them. but their
captain prevented them from killing the
sailors. They killed the Chinese servant,
wy Lee. and Mitchell was shot while in
the water. The Americans were confined
in a stone convent for several days and
then sent to POrac. Within two days that
place was attacked by the American
troops and then the prisoners were car
ried from one point to another until in the
mountains five Of them made their es-
cape and two reacher the American lines.