The National tribune., 1903-06-04

structive and dramatic incidents, the vital
Inspiration Of battle was lacking. The
enemy failed to stand to his guns. Only
half dozen shells were fired by the Span
iards, while a thousand or so were dis
charged from their ships in the early
morning. But we had to make sure that
all resistance was over Our victory at
'Cavite also silenced the batteries at Manila
forever. The Captain General was warned
that further firing would compel the feet
to lombard the walled city. In acceding
to this warning he admitted total defeat.
The wanton and Intellectual employment
OF batteries adjacent to a defenseless city
furnishes an instance of the desperate
futility of Spanish traditions. The legend
runs that the Governor-General had for
hidden the batteries to fire. but that
the Colonel of Artillery felt himself
bound by technical rules affecting his
military honor. So he persisted until de-
feat was demonstrated. He was told that
the next day would see him under close
arrest. He did not linger until the day of
grace was done, but shot himself in the
Plaza before the palace OF the Archbishop
the same evening. This sinister fact is
certain, and it is also true that his wife
died and his son became insane. So his
daughter is left alone in the world to re-
feet on the cruelty of war as aggravated
by arbitrary and fatalistic notions of
honor.
Early in the afternoon our line was
anchored in front of Manila, and our
battle flags waved until sunset. The gar
rison might have heard the cheers of our
Seamen and the notes of the Star
Spangled Banner" when our band saluted
the colors. Our Sundays work included
the destruction of IL vessels, eight of
them classed as cruisers in the Spanish
register. Seven OF them were anchored in
line of battle and cleared for action when
we approached Cavite. There was no
question of surprise. Our departure
from Hong Kong and Mrs Bay and our
presence off Bolinao. Subic and Corregidor
had been duly reported by telegraph. The
guns had been manned at daylight and the
regular rounds of cheers. for the King, for
the Queen, and for Spain, had reused the
2,000 men of the Spanish feet
The victorious squadron had fought in
the following order: Olympia. Baltimore,
Raleigh, Concord. Petrol and Boston. The
McCulloch, Nan-Shan and Zafiro made up
Spanish ships may also be noted Reina
Cristina, Castillo, Don Antonio de Uiloa,
Isla de Mindanao, Velasco. Argos, Mar
ques del Duero, General Lezo. Isla de
Cuba, Isla de Luzon, Don Juan de Austria.
"A TchhiDaDLE IhhMAhENl
The total number of effective guns in
the batteries, placed to command the chan
nels of entrance and the approaches to
Cavite and Manila, attains the formidable
figure of 81. Smooth-bores and field pieces
are not counted. OF these guns % were
breech-loading rifles, nine rified mortars
and the rest muzzle-loading rifles. The
average caliber was over seven inches.
When the fleet was destroyed and the Sang
ley Point battery silenced, all the rest were
put out of action. The Manila batteries
were silenccd by intimidation and the Cor
regidor defenses condemned to isolation.
The American fleet was free to work its
will upon the capital of the Philippines.
but certain instinct or principles seemed TO
forbid bombardment. Spanish sentiment
failed to understand our restraint. The
papers still raved of defending the city,
and our position was declared to be crit
ical for lack Of naval base, of coal and of
other supplies. 1t was said that our shells
did little harm in Cavite, and, therefore,
that Manila could stand bombardment.
But neither the town nor the Arsenal had
been our target during the action off Ca
vite. On the other hand, Madrid journal
declared that all the buildings had been
laid in ruins before the place was sur
rendered.
After the Governor Generals rant about
''rufiianly intentions" backed by the Arch
bishops invective against the base pas
sions engendered by heresy," which in
spired our campaign, it may have been diff
ficult to allow for the moral restraints and
humane tendencies which modified the sit
uatiOn. Certainly Spanish history reveals
no such forbearance. The bombardment
of Valparaiso. commercial city unde-
Tended by single gun. is counted MS one
of the glories of the Spanish Navy. In
1866 the squadron of Mendez Nunez fired
$500 shells into that city, making the
bonded warehouses their principal target,
but incidentally hitting several churches
and hospitals. Property to the value of
S15,O0O,GOO was destroyed. Half of this
belonged to foreigners, yet the Spanish
Commodore refused to receive the protest
of the COnsu,s against the proposed bonn
bardment. He went on to Callao and at
tempted similar attack, the history of
which is given in the medal awarded to
the Peruvians who took part in the de-
fense: with so guns you beat off 300"
This motto might have braced the de-
tenders of Manila. but they preferred to
quote some empty phrase of Mendez- Nunez
about "honor without ships rather than
ships without honor" That sentiment
failed to inspire n single torpedo attack
during the Summer of 1898, though there
were scores of idle naval officers, many of
them qualified as torpedistas, in Manila,
with handy steam launches and torpedoes
at their disposition. Their best excuse is the
desire not to expose the city to retaliation
The new school, of naval strategy, which
takes commerce-destroying and the bonn
bardment of commercial towns to be prin-
cipal objects of maritime attack, has its
prophets in Spain as we'll as in France.
Let us hope that war may teach them
BLOCKADING MANILA.
1t was necessary, however, to deprive
Manila of some of the resources of civil
izasion. A strict commercial blockade was
and enforced. The cable was
also cut as soon as it was found that we
were not to be allowed to use it. The
English managers had no choice under the
terms Of their contract and the con-
straints of Spanish authority. The inter-
ruption of this line of communication was
far more hurtful to Spain than to us, since |
our dispatches could be forwarded via
Hong Kong with only two or three days |
delay. Steamers were allowed to give |
passage to all neutrals who desired to |
withdraw from Manila, and even Span
ards, Bishop, for instance, were grant
ed the same favor when. their stay in
Manila would involve special hardship. |
Mails were also allowed to go in and out
without Interference FOreipn cruiserS