The Savannah morning news., 1903-12-07

the pier was opened, and an American
officer passed in front of the cotton
bales, over to this gate, and order
ed that it be closed. Colombian
lieutenant told him the gate would re-
main open. 1t was a time when a
trivial incident might easily have pre-
cipitated an outbreak from men whose
nerves were tense and strained so the
officer explained to the Colombian thar
no man would be allowed to leave the
pier, and did not insist upon the clos
ing of the gate.
The two forces remained watching
each other thus for an hour. the Co
lombians determined not to board the
steamer without their generals, and
the Americans equally determined they
should not leave the pier. At 6 o'clock
the afternoon train from Panama pull
ed into the railroad station, which
is less than a hundred steps inland
from where the American line was
formed, and some youthful political
enthusiasts on the train commenced
yelling Viva la Republican de Pan
anna" This seemed to anger the Co
lombians on the pier. and they want
ed to come out, and arrest the Of
tenders, but were restrained by their
officers. While these things were oc-
curing, on shore. Capt. Hubbard, on
OOpAN liz ANSloAlN liz tielO SO
his gunboat to a position from which
he could, had it become necessary, have
fired on the pier without Kidding the
town.
Darkness came while the two forces
were still facing each other and moth
ing had occurred to improve the situa-
ton. The danger of a fierce close
range conflict was as real as ever but
not a man of the small American
garrison flinched. The long strain had
told or the mems nerves, still no man,
volunteer or regular, had showed any
sign of weakening.
At o'clock a steamers lights were
seen. rapidly approaching Colon. 1t was
the Dixie with over 400 American ma
rines on board. All day long she had
been awaited with anxiety; now she
was coming in the nick of time. The
fact that she was bringing a large
number of American achievements
had been fully circulated around town
with the purpose of the news reach
ing the ears of the Colombian soldiers.
They, too, saw the lights of the Dixie,
and at once movement among them
was noticeable. Slowly, in small num-
bers, they commenced, with common
accord and without the issuance of or
ders, to file on board the Orinoco. Men
breathed more freely at the sight. The
NASHVILLE sent her boats alongside the
Dixie as she came to anchor about
700 yards out from the Orinoco and
in less than an hour 200 marines were
on shore. That the situation was safe
and the two days at Colon, the dan
gerous incident of the bloodless revo-
luton, were over. At o'clock the last
of the Colombian soldiers had passed
up the Orinoco's gangway, the steam
er's lines were cast off and slowly she
warped away from her pier. She pass
ed close to the Dixie and so out to
sea.
For two days a handful of Ameri-
cans had faced a critical situation. For
three hours on Thursday afternoon
these seventy men had looked calm
ly into the rifles of 450 Colombians
and no man could tell from one mo-
ment to another when the fight might
begin. And the fight that they all fear
ed but which none flinched from
could have resulted in nothing less
than humiliation. The courage, wis
dom and calmness of Capt. Hubbard
and the other officers mentioned and
the fearlessness, determination and
obedience of the men of their COM
mand, deserve further mention than
that given in the terse press dispatches
or the modest Washington report