The San Francisco call. [volume], May 15, 1898, Page 1, Image 1

About The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913

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VOLUME LXXXIII.— NO. 166.
MONSTER FLEETS AT HIDE AND SEEK
MOVEMENTS OF
SHIPS OF THE
RIVAL FORCES
Sampson Sends Dispatches to
Washington From Puerto
Plata.
Some of the Vessels of the Spanish Fleet
Are Yet Hovering Around
Martinique.
Copyrighted. 189?. by Jusu Gordon Bennett.
PUERTO PLATA, San Do
mingo, May 14. — The United
States torpedo-boat Porter arrived
here at 3:15 this afternoon. She
steamed rapidly past old Colum
bus Fort, where no flags were dis
played nor any other official recog
nition taken of her presence, and
cast anchor in the harbor.
Lieutenant Vincent came ashore
in the Health Officer's boat and
sent dispatches to Washington to
determine the future course of
Rear Admiral Sampson's fleet.
Other ships are sailing along the
coast of San Domingo awaiting a
reply.
The searchlight thrown ashore
last night is believed to have come
from an American hospital ship go
ing west.
The Porter was not hurt at San
Juan, although she went within
1 500 yards of Fort Morro beside
the lowa. Lieutenant Vincent
said they got in very close with
out being seen, although the light
house was lighted. There was no
reply to their shots for fifteen min
utes, all the men in the San Juan
fortifications probably being asleep.
Admiral Sampson had no intention
of bombarding the town, purpos
ing only to attack the fortifications.
He did not wish particularly to de
molish Morro, but the stronger
works on top of the bluff to the
east. Shots fired at these works
must have done some damage to
the city beyond.
The barracks appeared to have
been destroyed, and some of the
guns were hit, but the fort was not
silenced and was peppering away
heavier than ever when the Porter
left on Thursday, sailing first to
ward St. Thomas and then coming
back here. The Porter occupied a
position where Fort Morro' s guns
would have told but for the fact
that the best of the Spanish
marksmen could not fire straight.
Some of the Spanish guns used
projectiles which tumbled in the
air, revolving as they fell. The
Americans pointed at them in as
tonishment.
No Spanish warships have been
sighted by Sampson's fleet. The
Porter expects to leave here as
soon as she gets word from Wash
ington. The sailors who came
ashore from the Porter complain of
the heat, and say accommodations
on her for a sea trip are very poor.
The belief aboard is that the
Spanish squadron may try to cap
ture the battleship Oregon.
SPANISH WARSHIPS
OFF CURACOA ISLAND
Arrival of Some of the Enemy's Fleet
Caused a Belief That a Battle
Was Imminent.
Copyrighted, IMB, by James Gordon Bennett.
WILLEMSTAD, CURACAO IS
LAND, May 14. — Six Spanish
men-of-war were sighted off this
The San Francisco Call
harbor this morning. The ap
proach of the warships to this port
created the greatest excitement.
The cruisers Maria Teresa and
Vizcaya later in the day entered
the harbor. The cruisers Almi
rante Oquendo and Cristobal
Colon are cruising out at sea with
two torpedo-boat destroyers. 1
have been unable to ascertain how
long the Spanish warships will re
main here, but it is believed they
stopped here only to receive and
send dispatches.
Great interest is taken here in
the war between the United States
and Spain, and the appearance of
the Spanish warships caused a ber
lief that there may be a battle in
this vicinity. The harbor was
thronged all day with sightseers.
SOME OF THE FLEET
SEEN OFF MARTINIQUE
Signal Lights Back of St. Pierre
Cause Consul Darte to Enter
a Protest.
Copyrighted, 1898. by James Gordon Bennett.
ST. PIERRE, Martinique, May
14. — The general situation here re
mains unchanged. What was sup
posed to be part of the Spanish
fleet was seen again to-day off the
southwest point of the island. The
Spanish torpedo-boat destroyer
Terror remains at Fort de France.
The Spanish warship Alicante is
also in the harbor. Signal lights
have been seen along the hills back
of the city for two nights.
Consul Darte saw the Governor
of Martinique at Fort de France
and lodged a protest. He was told
that everything in the world would
be done to put a stop to the sig
nals. It was noticed that the sig
nals seemed to have decreased
after this.
Captain Cotton of the United
States cruiser Harvard is being
treated very courteously by the
authorities here. It is impossible
to state how long he will remain.
The Harvard is still in a disabled
condition. Her mooring in the har
bor has been changed.
REPORTS FROM
VARIOUS VESSELS
From Paris Comes a Story Showing
How Cervera's Movements
Were Changed.
CAPE HAYTIEN, May 14.— The
steamer Supply (formerly the American
steamer Illinois) under command of
Lieutenant Roberts from Philadelphia
arrived here at 5:30 o'clock to-day.
Upon his arrival Lieutenant Roberts
wired to Admiral Sampson for orders
Admiral Sampson is at Puerto Plata,
on the north coast of Santo Domingo.
He communicated to-day with the
American Consul at Cape Haytlen.
BUENOS AYRES, May 14.— Advices
from Rio Janeiro confirm the reports of
the arrival at Bahia, Brazil, of the
United States warships Oregon, Mari
etta and Nicthemy. The steamer Rio
Janeiro, which has arrived at Pernam
buco, reports having seen during the
night Wednesday last three vessels
supposed to be Spanish warships,
cruising before Cape San Anostlnogo.
ST. THOMAS. Danish W. L, May 14»
—The United States auxiliary cruiser
SAN FRANCISCO, SUNDAY, MAY 15, 1898-THIRTY-TWO PAGES.
St. Louis sailed from here this morning,
going In a westerly direction. The
United States cruiser Montgomery ar
rived here at 7 o'clock in order to take
on coal. The United States auxiliary
crulser Yale, formerly the American
1 line steamer Paris, has also called here
and it is understood she will clear with
! the Montgomery for Key West.
LONDON, May 14.— The Star says a
Madrid dispatch via Paris ihrows in
teresting light gathered from an offi
cial source on Admiral Cervera's
movements since he left the Cape
Verde Islands. It appears that he
headed for St. Pierre Miquelon m th-->
coast of Newfoundland, where sealed
instructions awaited him. There col
liers from Sydney were met and the
Spanish fleet coaled. Admiral Cer
vera's instructions then were to raid
Portland, Boston and Newport, and if
Rear Admiral Sampson bombarded
Havana to draw him off. The news
from Manila seems to have changed
the plans.
The next proposed move was to de
coy Rear Admiral Sampson to Porto
Rico and then sail rapidly for Havana
and destroy the few ships left there.
Finally, should Admiral Cervera, j
after reaching Santiago de Cuba,
learn that two American squadrons
were coming to meet him, thus leav- j
ing the sea free, his plan would be to j
avoid them, sail straight for Charles- j
ton and bombard that city.
Birdseye view of the West Indies and adjacent waters and coasts, showing the positions, approxi
mately, according to the latest reports, of the Spanish fleet and the several American
squadrons.
SPAIN'S CAPE VERDE
FLEET NOW HEADED
FOR CUBA'S COAST
At Last It Would Appear the Dons Are
Seeking to Reach Havana or
Cienfuegos.
Sampson and Schley in Quest of the Enemy's Ves
sels and May Soon Co-operate in a Great Sea
Battle With the Hostile Ships.
Call Office, Riggs House,
Washington, May 14.
Last night every one in
Washington was speculating
as to the whereabouts of the
various fleets and their prob
able destination. Strangely
enough, not even the Presi
dent or members n* > u^ War
Board were able to say where
Sampson's fleet was at that
time or what its destination
would be, for Sampson's
orders were discretionary.
Soon after the cablegram was
received from Captain Cotton
of the Harvard locating the
Spaniards off the island ;of
Martinique, and after the
Cabinet had given a brief
half hour's consideration to
the matter, Secretary Long
filed a cablegram to Sampson
directing him to go in quest
of the Spaniards unless he
was apprised by cable via St.
Thomas or by his scouting
cruisers that the enemy had
sailed from Martinique in a
contrary direction, in which
case he was to steam as
rapidly as possible for Ha
vana.
This cablegram of necessity
passed through St. Pierre,
Martinique, and there was
delayed in telegraphic trans
mission or else the dispatch
cruiser Yale delayed its trans
mission across the Virgin
Straits to Sampson at San
Juan. However that may be,
it is certain that Admiral
Sampson received news from
Martinique that the Spaniards
had sailed southwesterly, for
early this morning he was
reported off the north coast
of Hayti, near Puerto Plata,
steaming rapidly westward.
When the department this
afternoon received reliable
news that the Spaniards had
been sighted off the island of
Curacao, Venezuela, 500 miles
west-southwest of Martinique,
the officials could account for
its arrival there on no other
hypothesis than that reports
from St. Pierre last night to
PRICE FIVE CENTS.
the effect that the Spaniards
were still in that vicinity were
willfully misleading. To have
traversed this distance would
have required at least forty
eight hours, so that the ves
sels must have left Martinique
some time on Thursday. It
is considered barely possible
that Spain has more vessels
on this side of the Atlantic
than we are aware of.
It has been suggested that
possibly the vessels observed
near Martinique for the last
day or two did not belong to
the Cape Verde fleet, but
were some small men-of-war
belonging to Spain, which
hovered in those waters for
the purpose of deceiving and
distracting attention from the
Cape Verde fleet. It was sug
gested that Spain might have
assembled a "quaker fleet"
off Martinique, while the Cape
Verde fleet might be moving
in some other direction. This,
of course, is the merest spec
ulation, but illustrates the
condition of uncertainty
which prevails here. The de
partment officials insist there
is absolutely no doubt that
the vessels at Martinique orx
Wednesday comprised what
is known as the Cape Verde
fleet, but they do not know
whether this fleet has been
augmented The press dis
patches contained in several
of the morning papers, stat
ing that the fleet is composed
of eight war vessels and
seven torpedo-boat destroy
ers and torpedo-boats, was
puzzling to the department,
bu t whatever uncertainty
may have existed heretofore
it is pretty well settled to
night that a powerful Span
ish fleet was this morning
off the coast of Venezuela,
near Curacoa, steaming west
ward. It was at first sur
mised that the Spaniards had
taken this route with the
hope that they might be
able to intercept the Oregon
and Marietta, but if such is
their intention they will be
woefully disappointed, for