The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1903-01-24
D|)NBARDNENT RENEWED
Venezue;-.l Fortress Holds Out
Second Day Against Germans.

FiR4Nc 10 tlE...l'>ye ~ soTH alDEs.
Twelve Venezue.ans Killed and Eff
teen Wounded on First Eay-Vil-
sac and Fortifications Badly lam
aaed in Spite Of Fad Aim.
Maracaibo, Jan. 23.-The lombard
ment of Fort San Carlos by the Ger
man cruisers Vineta, Panther and
Fake was continued Wednesday after
noon until o'clock. 1t was resumed
Thursday morning at daybreak. seven
or eight shells were hurled at the fort
at 4 o'clock at long range. They all
fell short. At 6 o'clock the Panther,
being OF light draught, closed in and
again became actively engaged. The
fort replied. At O'Clock the engage
ment was proceeding fiercely.
The correspondent of the Associated
Press. in row boat approached one
side of the fort out of range, and
from this point witnessed the long
range fire of the German cruisers,
which was continued from until 6
o'clock The Vineta and the Fake
were close together and nearer to the
fort than the Panther. The first two
vessels at a range of four and half
miles poured in continuous rain of
shells upon the fort and only stopped
firing with the advent of dusk at 6
o'clock. At this hour the German
vessels retired seward after having
made a second Intellectual attempt to
land troops in the village of San
Carlos, situated at the base Of the
fort.
At o'clock Wednesday afternoon
the correspondent, who was accompa-
MED by a government telegrapher,
bearing a telegram from President
Castro to the commandant of San
Carlos, landed on the island and en-
tered the fort. The walls of the fort
are terribly battered and there were
many evidences of the fierce engage
ment. Twelve dead Venezuelan sol
diers were counted behind the ram
wounded, were lying on low plat
form.
The fort is literally covered with
pieces Of broken shells, 1t was seen
that great many of the German
shells had not exploded. The maya
zine had very narrow escape, two
shells having come within an ace of
penetrating it. The walls of the fort
which face towards the entrance Of
the lake suffered particularly and
were greatly damaged. 1t is estimated
by the commandant, General Bello,
that the German ships fred more than
1000 shells at Fort San Carlos.
German Workmanship is Bad.
Although the damage inflicted upon
the fort by the sustained fire of the
German cruisers is very great, 1t is
not all that could be expected from
such continuous fire from modern
high power guns. The village of San
Carlos suffered greatly. The aim Of
the German gunners appears to have
| been inaccurate, for more than 60 per
cent of their shells exploded in the
village before reaching the fort. The
cannon mounted at San Carlos have
not sufficient range to reach the Fake
and the Vineta, SO the fire from these
vessels was not returned as they
kept out of range of the Venezuelan
artillery. The Vineta and Fake are
of too great draught to cross the bar.
| Tho oil 4
this fact explains why the last men
toned cruiser was the only one to
| come IN close to the fort.
Some of the artillery on the fort
has been destroyed by the German
fire, but there are still five guns that
can be fired.
General Bello is soldier of remark
able courage and daring He has
shown great bravery and is in no way
intimidated. He will not abandon the
tori but will resist as long as it is
| rcreiloio for him to do so. He swears
f'-"A - Jar. ~, the occasion of the
frT' oombardment the Panther fired
| ''9 him first. without reason and
| - hout proyocation.
A fisherman from the village of San
Carlos has arrived here in a canoe
with his fami1v. Two Of this mans
cNi'6"an were killed BY shells from
the German cruisers. He REPORTS that
more than twenty-five Indian fisher
men have been killed or wounded at
Son Carlos. The fishermen there are
helnless.
Caracas, jan % The German
commandment of Fort San Carlos is
incomprehensible here The Smelling
was begun without any warming what
ever. The foreign residents of Carac-
as are greatly dissatisfied with this
action of the German warships. espe-
cially as the Venezuelan government
maintains fair and generous attitude
in the matter of claims.
Fort Is Destroyed.
| Paris, Jan. 23.-From Caracas the
correspondent of the Matin says in a
dispatch on the boMbardment of Fort
San Carlos, that the fort had been de-
| strOyed and that the limited range of