The age-herald., 1901-10-26

to the westward, leaving a gap between her and the ship following the Viscaya.
 We were advancing in the direction of the Viscaya when she also seemed to have given up the intention to ram and turned to the westward. It then became apparent, as we were steering on dia- metrica1ly opposite courses, that the original plan had failed and that the Spanish fleet. in order and apparently at distance, had succeeded in passing the battleship line. A new feature of the fight became immeditely apparent. Cap tain Cook gave the order to port helrn I did not. I should have done 1t in second. I saw the ships head swing very rapidly and I asked him whether his helm was hard aport and he replied that 1t was, either aport or hard aport. l think he said hard aport.
 Texas in No Danger.
 1T never saw the starboard side of the Texas at all. We were never across her bow. 1 never was at her port side, and she never approached any position that was within 600 yards of the Brooklyn. She never entered Into my mind at all as a menace or danger. We passed completely around the circuit. The last range that was given was HOO yards, and the fact of the nearness of that ship (the second Spanish ship) impressed itself upon my mind because could see with the naked eye men running OFeT Htt buIIctc u HcI superstructure deck, and l observed the daylight between their legs as they ran. During the turn MT. Hodgson very prop erly made some allusion to the lookout, perhaps for the Texas. l do not recall what 1t was, but there was never any colloquy of any character between MT. Hodgson and myself. First, he was too good an officer to have transgressed one of the plainest duties of an officer at such time, and second, If he had under taken it, I would not have permitted it for a second. That is fiction, there was no coloquy. Before we turned the lead ing ship was abeam or little abaft the beam, and when we turned about she was ahead of us; that Is, on the starboard bow, and all four ships and the forts were firing at the same time, and from that moment the following ten or fifteen minutes were the most furious part of this entire combat.
 "The roar of projectlles was one of the things that can be heard only once in a lifetime, and then never for gotten. 1t appeared at that moment that all four of those ships were at work upon the Brooklyn, and up to the moment of turning, so far as we could perceive, there was not the slightest evidence that they had been injured. At that moment felt that We were alone and would perhaps have most of that fight upon ourselves, because 1 did not know then that the battleships could possible keep up their speed. But l said to Captain Cook We must stay with thIs crowd.'
 had no idea that we would escape. Of course, if they could have shot as well as our people did they certainly would have qot us.
 When we had completely turned around I saw the Oregon breaking through the smoke on the starboard quarter of the flagship. I had -hoisted the signal of close up and then follow the flag, feel ing that new disposition was necessary. The Brooklyn and the Oregon were firing in manner I had never seen before. never before realized what rapid gun fire meant. Both ships were at that time a sheet of flame. Soon after that I saw that the leading ship was evidently bat tered hard She Jagged astern. saw smoke coming out of her ports and out of her hatches and the fact that impressed going straight up in the air
 Kept Men Below Informed.
 'T said to Captain Cook: We have got one; keep the boys below informed of all the movements; they cannot see and they ought to know, and he did so through out the action. Every few minute es mes sages were sent below to the men that were answered often with cheers which we could hear through the ventilators. Shortly I saw a second ship on fire-the Oquendo She started immediately in shore, leaving the Viscaya and the Colon. The Viscaya took a leading position on the bow, and I thought for little while that she would outfoot us The Colon --------- -------------------