Cienfuegos, to Havana-to any hole that would give shelter from the baying hounds that were upon her trail.

That was a record race in the annals of naval warfare. It was then that Milligan of the Oregon, went down into the stoke-hole to lend a hand beside the red-striped men who shovelled coal till the ship reached a speed of eightteen knots, though the pressure of forced draft and the climbing heat made each breath a gasp and each effort a weakening pain. It was then that the impatient junior officers begged for one shot until Captain Clark allowed it, and Milligan, black with coal, came upon deck to thank the captain, and say that his men were fainting below, but if they could hear a shot now and then they could live through and keep her going.

She was only a fifteen-knot ship in design, but now, in spite of the strain of the long voyage from the Pacific and in spite of the marine growths upon her bottom, with the bulging, roaring foam piled to the golden crest of her cut-water, she held her own with the flying pride of the Spanish navy.

And as she fired, the half-ton shells from Lieutenant Eberle's thirteen-inch guns struck nearer and nearer to the chase, so that hope fled faster than the whirling screws could drive it. For forty-eight miles the Spaniard held her

}

CHAPTER XVIII

SEAMEN OF THE SQUADRONS CONTRASTED

STORY OF SPANISH

TREACHERY ON A GOOD SHIP THEY HAD SURRENDERED TO US-CAPTAIN CHADWICK'S REMARKABLE SKILL IN HANDLING THE NEW YORK-OUR MEN AS LIFE SAVERS—UNDAUNTED IN THE PRESENCE OF FIRE AND EXPLODING MAGAZINES ATROCIOUS CONDUCT OF CUBAN SOLDIERS-THE SQUADRONS COMPARED-REWARD OF A COMMANDER WHO BREAKS DOWN THROUGH OVERWORK.

IN gathering up the loose ends of the story of the battle off Santiago it seems best to begin at the end and work backward. In this In this way we at least get one interesting view of the character of the enemy we whipped. Adolphus Kentreres, in an interview after the battle, is reported as saying:

"The projectiles of the Oregon began reaching us at 1 P.M., and that, together with the fact that it was not possible to fight with the after guns on account of the Colon's lack of large calibre pieces, and the certainty of being overhauled by the whole American squadron in a few hours, left no other remedy

324