on deck when the cry was
raised announcing the enemy. Hastening to their bridges, they headed away
at once for the Spaniards, while the _Oregon_ and the _Brooklyn_ went
flying to westward to intercept the leader.

"The mightiest race known to the history of the world, and the most
thrilling, was begun.

"They were all away in less time than it has taken the reader to get thus
far in the story, and in much less time still,--indeed, before the gongs in
the engine-rooms of the Yankee ships had ceased to vibrate under the
imperative order of 'Ahead, full speed!'--the _Almirante Oquendo_, fugitive
as she was, had opened the battle. With impetuous haste, and while yet
more than two miles away, the Spaniard pointed one of his long 11-inch
hontoria rifles in the direction of the _Texas_ and pulled the lanyard.
The shell came shrieking out to sea, but to sea only.

[Illustration: CAPTAIN R. D. EVANS.]

"Instantly the great guns of the Morro, 180 feet above the water, and
those of the Socapa battery, lying higher still, with all the batteries
beneath those two, began to belch and roar as their crews strove with
frantic energy to aid the flying squadron.

"Now, it was about three minutes from the appearance of the first Spaniard
to the firing of the first American gun.

"In these three minutes the distance between the squadrons was lessened by
at least a mile,--the range was not more than two thousand yards.

"But while two thousand yards is the range (about one and one-sixth miles)
selected for great gun target practice, it will never do for an eager
fight, and as the trend of the land still headed the Spanish off to
southward, the battle-ships were able to reduce the range to fifteen
hundred yards before they were obliged to head a course parallel with the
Spaniards.

"Meantime the _Oregon_ and the _Brooklyn_, as they were stretching away
toward the coast, had opened fire also, and then the last of the big
Spaniards, the _Infanta Maria Teresa_, having rounded the point, the
magnificent spectacle of a squadron battle on the open sea--of a battle
between four of the best modern armed cruisers on the Spanish side,
against three battle-ships and an armoured cruiser on our side--was spread
out to view.

"And their best was the worst struggle the world ever saw, for it was a
struggle to get out of range while firing with hysterical vehemence their
unaimed guns.

"The first shot from the American ships fell short, and a s