The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1902-02-20

! end of the Texas and her half thousand
men.
PHILLIPS FOUND SAMPSON
COMAIANDER-IN-CHI
80 : At $3.50 Che Spanish ships had
appeared at about 9:30) +% The
Iowa, oregon and Texas were pretty well
punched, holding a parallel course west
ward with the Spaniards. The Indiana
was coming up, well inside of the others
OF our squadrons, but a little in the rear.
starting 81 About lO:15 the Teresa
which had been in difficulty from the
moment she left the shelter Of the MORO.
turned to seek a Bleaching place. She
was on fire and We knew that she was
no longer quantity to be reckohed with
Five minutes later, our special enemy,
the Oquendo, also turned in-shore.
The Vizcaya kept blazing away
Vlc1ously, but the pounding she got from
our four ships, more particularly the Or
egon, was too much for her, and in half
an hour she too headed for the beach
determined to push on with the
Texas. 1t gives me pleasure to
be able to write that, old ship as she is
and not built for speed the Texas held
in that chase.
-" i" Admiral Sampson was com
mander-in-chief before, during and after
Capt. Clark's statement Is a. follows:
The credit for the blockade, which
led s up to the fight. is, of course, Admiral
the morning of the fight, in semi Circle
head onto the harbor, In consequence Of
which We We're able to close in at once.
was his. In closing in, that is, in making
the first movements, we We're obeying his
instructions; though, as a matter of fact
we would have all closed lp anyway, In
structionS or no instructions.
When the Spanish ships came out Of
the harbor, the navigator of my ship
saw the New York to the eastward, but
/ received no signal of any kind from
Y1cr vyew
she near enough to signal directly to me
until after the Colon surrendered.
The engagement may be said to have
been divided into three parts: First, the
fight proper, while the Spanish squadron
was coming out of the harbor, and until
1t was clear of the Diamond shoals and
running fight with the already damaged
vessels as they fled westward, until the
ashore; and third, the chase of the Colon,
during which there was practically. no
lighting. During the first stage l did not
see the Brooklyn or receive any signals
:" AT the close Of this stage the oregon
had passed the Iowa and Texas, and
the four Spanish ships going west, ap-
parently uninjured, and followed hard
after, at the same time observing the
Brooklyn little ahead and off shore.
PHILLIPS THOUGHT sCHLEY
ACTUALLY in COMMAND.
She was broadside to the Spanish
vessels, and was receiving the weight Of
their fire, and was returning it. The
Brooklyn and the Oregon thereafter oc-
cupied substantially these positions as
regards each other, being about equi
distant from the Spanish ships as we
successfully overlook them, except when
the Oregon attempted to close with the
Oquendo. The heaviest fighting was at
the harhOr mouth and while the enemy
was breaking through or passing our line.
Not long after the running fight began
the Teresa, and then the Oquendo, turn
ed and went ashore, the Vizcaya contin-
u1ng some distance farther before she
also was beached. Throughout the run-
ming fight the Brooklyn and Oregon were
both hotly engaged, being ahead of any
of our other ships; and we then constt-
tuted the western and what regard as
the then fighting division of our fleet
i considered Commodore Schley in re-
SpOnSible command during this running
fight and chase SO far as / was concern
ed, and acknowledged and repeated a
signal he had flying for close action or
something OF the kind. AS, however,
the problem was perfectly simple, name
ly, to pursue the Spanish ships as / had
been doing before, / saw the Brooklyn,
he did not as a matter of fact exercise
any control over any movement or action
of the Oregon, nor did perform any ac-
ton of any kind whatever in obedience
to any order from the Brooklyn, neither
as to my course nor as to my speed,
nor as to my gun fire, during the fight or
chase.
I" The Oregon always had fires under all
her boilers. In spite Of speed shown by
been and is not classed as the fastest
ship; but during all her service, in order
that no scale should form in them, not
one Of our boilers was used for con-
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