The Cairo bulletin. (Cairo, Ill.) 1???-1928, 1908-05-02
FAMOUS BATTLE
OF MANILA BAY
TEN YEARS AGO DEWEY DE-
STRCYED SPANS PHILIP
PINE ARMADA.
HUNDREDS OF LETTERS
OF Good Wishes and Feilcitations Re-
ceiyed Yesterday by Dewey
What Has Become Of
the Participants.

ket would not begin 70 hold the let
wishes that poured in upon Admiral
George Dewey today on the tenth an
lniversary OF the battle OF Mani a bay.
Many OF the messages were from per
sonal friends. Others came from al
mirers seattered throughout the conn
TRY. The unusual number OF greetings
was pro ably due in large measures
| to the apepal recently issued by the
! New York Alumni association OF La
| fayette college. calling upon mulici
palities and institutions or learn ng
/ throughout the United States to oil
serve Dewey Dav Dy forwarding
message Of 'r and sympathy TO the
hero cf .anla bay,
TIC conflict In Manila bay on May
/ j, 1898. wrought a great change in
| the career of the United States as a
world power. However unf0rsee
Imay have been the events which 10
lowed, those in authority In iS y
were by no means unaware Of the i'm
mediate possibilities Of the program
i which caused Commodore Dewey to
4 hold his ships at Hongkong, whit re he
/ had assembled his force OF the
i Aaiatic squadron during tie latter
part of February. II IL now we'll un-
derstood that the policy of strength
i ening and providing these ships with
ammunition was urged upon the gov
"A . 4 DAHgAVaf4 n
assistant secretary Of the navy In
II view Of the more imediateIy interest
h Ing events close at hand the ore A.
tions IN Asiatic waters were almost
a fargnttan by the general public.
i Only langud interest was tahfss
u In the report that Commodore AHWey
rIhad been ordered by the British gov
. emment to leave Hongkong, although
war had not been formally declared.
When President Mckinley issued q
proclamation OF war Dewey sliled
from Hongkong fer Mrs bay. neigh
boring harbor. aud there prepared r
his work The government ordered
Dewey to attack and destroy the
a Spanish feet 1t was not known how
, dangerous this force might be 10
/, American shipping in the Pacific. In
: any event. the Philippine lsands
, were Spanish territory and as such
j. were open to attack as means OF
I weakening the enemy. Furthermore
+ Dewey was far from home and needed
, harbor for his ships. No better
shelter offered than the harbor o.
Manila,
When the first news Of the engag
ment of Manila bay arrived, ten years
ago today, after the first wave OF na
tional exultation came feeling o.
apprehension. For the first time IN
lgreat many years an American nava
force had engaged a foreign enc y
and the country wondered as to IN
cost OF the victory. 1t was hopet
that It would be light. The early re
70 mort. relating to the destruction o.
the Spanish feet Indicated such
heavy fire that the people dreade
= lest the details would bring tidlng
: Iof heavy sacrifice Of life on tins
vietorius side Commodore Dewey
prompt action I'm cutting the cable
held off all details for days Ii was
tnot until one week after the battle
{ on the 7th of May. that the asto' nj
q, ing news came that not a single lu'
" had been lost in the engagement
This remarkable disparity Of resu L
was perhaps the first reye' alton e
:, the world of the great snperi erity no
only of American ships and guns. bu
" of the American gunners as well. !
short time later. early In July. tn
demonstration was repeated. oi
> Santiago. when the feet under Ad
miral Sampson destroyed the Span
> ish vessels fieeting from harbcr an
a with the loss of only a single Amer
- can seaman.
;, In the ten years that have elafse'
4" since the Dewey victory mome7to'
changes have occurred. The Unite
= States has settled dowa to the al
a. eeptance of a new respousioiftl
The machinery for the evolution {
system of self-governmeut in tn
Philippines has been set in motor
" schools have been scattered throng
out the islands and have material
raised the standard Of intelliSene
81 The United States navy In the sam
lperiod has been almost doubled !
strength and the feat Of sendiag
mammoth battlesh;p heet on a No'
~ age around the world has attraete
. Universal attention and comment.
a Ten years also have wrought
great change in the fortunes n m
u who were in command on "DeSe
- Dav." Admiral De~-ey IS now the q
tive head OF the American navy. y
- the captains. none is nov on the a.
~ tive list. Coshlan. Of the Ra'etgi
"t vas retired with the rank of rear a,
IA mirsl and now makes his home !
re a''. = -
ia Isf