Red Lodge daily news combined with Carbon County news., 1933-03-22
The Sinking of the Collier Merrimac
Eror5 Couteuoorsru Dr5wiU1

tearing into the Merrlmac, crashing clear
through, while the plunging shots from the fort
broke through her decks.
mot a man must novel | said and it was
only owing to the splendid discipline of the
men that we were not all killed. We must lie
there till daylight, | told them. Now and again
one or the other of the men lying with his face
glued to the deck and wondering whether the
next shell would not come our way, would say
Hadn't we better drop off now, STRIP but I said
Wait till daylight 1t would have been impos-
sible to get the catamaran anywhere but on to
the shore, where the soldiers stood shooting, and
| hoped that by daylight we might be recog.
nized and saved.
TT was splendid the way those men behaved.
The fire of the soldiers, the batteries and the
Vizcaya was awful. When the water came up on
the Merrimac's decks the catamaran foated
amid the wreckage, but she was still made fast
to the boom, and we caught hold Of the edges
and chung on, our heads only being above water.
"At daylight the fire ceased and a Spanish
launch cam toward the wreck. We agreed to
try capturing her and running for the open sea,
but as she drew near q dozen Spanish marines
aimed their Mausers at us and I saw that, in
western p~arlance, they had the drop on us. rs
there any officer In that boat to receive a sur
render of prisoners of WARP | shouted. An old
man leaned out under the awning and waved
his hand. 1t was Admiral Cervera. The marines
lowered their rifles and we were helped into
the launch.
Then we were put in cells In MORO castle.
1t was a grand sight a few days later to see
the bombardment, the shells striking and burst
ing around Ell Moro. Then we were taken into
Santiago. | had the court martial room In the
barracks. My men were kept prisoners In the
hospital"
In his prison Hobson was visited by Spanish
officers who asked permission to shake his hand
and congratulate him for his courage. At his
request a message was sent to Admiral Samp-
son, telling the commander that he and his
men were safe and, except for minor wounds
of two. Kelly and Murphy, that they had come
through their terrible experience unscathed.
At first the Spanish authorities refused to ex-
change the prisoners. But at last on July 9
Hobson and his men were marched blindfolded
through the Spanish lines to a place halfway
between the Spanish trenches and the Amer
lean lines and the formalities of exchange were
completed by Spanish and American officers I'M
der a big ceiba tree.
Even before Hobson's release from prison the
news of his deed had made him the man of the
hour in America. SO when he was sent up to
New York with instructions to report to the sec
rotary of the navy at Washington on the con-
dition of the Spanish ships wrecked In the bat
tie of Santiago which followed soon after his
exploit. he was given such an ovation as no
man, since his time, except Colonel Lindbergh,
has known.
Next followed the kissing bee" which made
him almost as famous as his deed in Santiago
harbor. At Long Beach In August, 1893, a st.
Louis girl asked permission to kiss the Merrimac
hero and he, blushingly, gave permission. After
that-the delugel Wherever he went, hundreds
of women mobbed him for the privilege of pay
ing their osculatory respects.
Other honors came to him rapidly. Alabama,
his native state, was the first to propose giving
him a jeweled sword. He was raised ten num-
bers In the ranks of naval constructors and was
made a captain. For more than a year he en-
joyed the hero worship of the nation. Then the
tickle public began to forget him when the news.
papers ceased to chronicle his every movement.
He was put In charge of raising the wrecks
OF Spanish ships and In the course of this duty
he went to China to superlntend the repairing
of the Spanish ships sunk by Dewey at Manila.
While there he began having trouble with his
eyeslght and he asked to be retired from active
service. By this time the newspapers and the
public had definitely turned against him. His
heroism at Santiago was either forgotten or min
imized. His request to be retired was denied
and In 1908 ne resigned his commission.
After his retirement he began making speeches
throughout the country advocating a large navy
and as early as 1902 he predicted the World
war which came IL years later. In 1905 he was
elected to congress from his home district In
Alabama and during his eight years In congress
he served on the ommittee onsnaval affairs.
Since his retirement from congress he has de-
voted bis lime to the cause Of prohibition and to
lighting the spread of the use OF narcotics.
20 sv Western Newspaper Unionp