Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1903-06-04
Short STORY
Of the DAY
HOW A YANKEE DID 1T.
No Patriot Would go, so He Destroyed
BattIeship Alone.

BattleShip Alone.
was in the marine hospital at
Callao, Peru. when war was de-
clared on Chile, and was just able to
limp around when TWO of the Peruvian
gunboats were chased into port and
the Chilean man-of-war Vengeance
took up her station to blockade.
There was a third gunboat in the
harbor, and there was a great deal of
Boosting as to what the trio would do
when they got ready to pitch in. The
very least they would do would be To
sink the Chilean within a quarter of
an hour.
The people foamed and ragged, and
no business to go out against that
modern ironclad, armed with the
latest and most powerful guns, and
their officers knew it, but there came
day when public opinion drove them
out.
The fight lasted twenty-five minutes.
One gunboat got back to sink in the
harbor, while the other two went down
outside The people were fairly wild
over the defeat, and women as we'll as
men howled for vengeance.
The day after the fight, while I still
had my quarters in the hospital, one of
the lady visitors happened to speak to
me and discover that | was an Ameri-
can. She began talking of the fight,
and I never saw a madden woman.
She was grieved, Inundated and
angered over the defeat of her country
men, and when l sided with her it
brought out startling proposition.
She was the widow of Calinte, of
vast wealth and much social and politi-
cal influence, and believed that the
defeat of the Peruvians was caused
by the timidity of the admiral. She
asked me if it was not possible that
the Vengeance could be blown up, and
when l replied that it was possible,
what did she do but offer me every
chance to bring about such a calamity.
That meant the use of steam
launch which she owned, with all the
money necessary to fit her as tor
pedo boat, and $4,000 cash in hand if
l succeeded The old girl fairly took
my breath away as she piled up the
business, and having once got the idea
she would not let go of it.
She insisted that l get into her car
riage and drive home with her, and
then she sent for half a dozen of her
most influential friends and demanded
once begin work.
1t was queer position for the mate
of Yankee craft who knew nothing
of naval affairs and had never been
aboard of a man-of-war, and had not
elm to ingenuity. [ knew absolutely
plan had only an idea.
That was good enough for them,
however They had heard Of the
cute Yankee, and believed that ne
could accomplish anything he set
about. I had no more idea than the
man in the moon of going into any
thing seriously, and yet two days later
found me ''bossing the job"
1 had offered my services to fit out
a launch and run her out and blow up
the man-of-war, and the president of
Peru wasn't in it with me for popular
ity. 1t took all the police force of
Callao to keep the enthusiastic popu-
lation off my feet and save my arms
from being paralyzed
In my teetotal ignorance I was wise
enough to assume to know it all. and
that passed for the brightest sort of
acumen and the most solid nerve I
soon discovered, however, that it
wasn't necessary for me to know much,
and that previous experience was not
demanded
The launch was a fair sized one. u.s.
ing naphtha and therefore smoke1e ss,
and but few changes were necessary to
fit her with a torpedo.
There were naval officers at hand
who knew all about torpedoes, spars
and electricity, and, seeming to work
under my direction, we had the launch
fitted within week.
A spar was solidly affixed to her
bows and projected a distance of thirty
feet. To the end of this was attached
an iron torpedo containing $50 pounds
OF giant powder, which was to be ex-
ploded by electricity at the moment of
contact with the man-of-war.
[ had counted on crew Of three.
one to fire and one to steer. while 7
would get the launch into position and
press the button. When we were all