The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1907-05-14

SO that each stop before breaking
would bring into play the elasticity Of
the large hawser. which itself would
be finally roken
THE decided upon and
approved by the admiral was to ap-
prOach at full speed, stopping a short
distance from fne entrance, SO that
the speed m arriving at the point
for the final would be
about from four and a half to five
knots. At this point the helm would
be put hard aport- As soon as the
ship began to swing. the starboard
b~ow-anchor would be let GO with sixty
fathoms of chain; when in a second
position farther in, the starboard stern
anchor would be let drop with forty
fathoms of chain, the two permitting
the ship to take the desired position,
where she would be lying on q spa
directly athwart. Any additional mo-
ton still remaining would be absorbed
by the vessel sticking her nose into
the shoal on the right side of the
channel. If the s~tern-anchor chain
were carried away the movement
port quarter into the shoal on the
port side, the bank being only one
and a quarter fathoms deep
Death AS An Incident.
The plan of the undertaking con-
lSAA1f ANAS@ - =
addition to the commander. TO of
these were to be below to u the
engines and boiler; two We're TO stand
by ready to cut away the ashlngs
holding the anchors; one mar was to
be at the wheel and another was to
assist in the firing of the torpedoes,
ten in number. which were fastened
on the outside of the vessels plates
on the nnrs side. Ho51on'a position
vas or Sc s1tdse, whence ne was to
signal commands to the men. who
were to lie flat on their faces at their
posts, by means of pulls upon cords
tied about their wrists. A life boat
was to be in tow from the stern into
which the men were to jump, each
as he performed his duty. When the
men had made the boat
torpedoes were to be fred
bv Hobson from the bridge
by means of an electric battery. After
hat Hobson was to jump overheard
and reach the boat, which was to be
rendered unsuitable by life preservers,
and which was to give an OF
itself if interferred with and, if de-
stroyed, the men were to rendezvous
on the bank under MORO Castle and
endeavor by creeping and swimming
to make wa to the eastward of the
point before attempting to put TO sea
to join the fleet.
The desperate character of the
whole enterprise and the collected and
matter-of-fact way in which it was
contemplated, is indicated in this
simple sentence from Hobson's mar
rative of the incident:
IF I should not appear after the
explosion, the boat was to pull away
in charge of the senior petty officer
present.
EagerneSs to Volunteer.
It was on Wednesday, June 1st. that
the New York with Hobson aboard,
arrived in front of Santiago. A re-
connoissance was made by the latter
of the batteries and entrance in a
steam launch. He made a mental
photograph" of the points by which
he was to steer in. Then he in
formed the Merrimac's officers of
what was to be done. They were
taken entirely by surprise, being at
luncheon when told that their ship
was to be sunk the next morning. At
once the greatest excitement prevailed
in the fleet. On the Merrimac the
work of preparation was pushed with
feyerish haste. COaling Vas going
on at the time and had to continue
for hours. The men had to remove
their effects. The peculiar anchor
arrangements were to be made, the
torpedoes placed. the ship stripped of
all equipment that could be spared.
From the Merrimac were selected as
being acquainted with the habits of
the ship three of the crew who had
been recommended by the officers,
Phillips, Kelly and Deignan. In the
meantime the signal a been sent
out for volunteers. Says Hobson Of