Batterys off the earth.
Bombarded untill 7.15 A.M. Nobody knows how much damage was don, except
we silinced all the Batterys they had and made them show up a nother
one inside of the harbor of which there seems to be lots of them. I
will say right hear that if we take this place its going to be a hot
old Job, and som of us will think we run up against a Hornets nest when
we get in side. they have been talking of forsing the Chanell and Capt
Clark signaled over to the flag ship and asked permishion to take the
leed, and I am sure we will stay with him as long as the ship floats
for we love him. The Vesuvius fired three more shots last night at
about 12. dont know what damage was don But I know we are all tired of
this fooling. if they would only send some soldiers down here from the
regular army, say 6 Regiments of Infantry and 3 of Cavalry, I think,
with what we could put up, that forse would more than be a match for
them and take the place with all ease. The latest Bulitin of the day is
that the Forses at Guantanamo have bin Joined by some Cubans and had a
Brush with the Spanish, and the report is that 40 wer kild on the
Spanish side and 17 taken prisoners of war, one Spanish Lut. 2 Corp and
14 Privates. On our side 3 Cubans Kild and 2 wounded, 3 Marines wounded
and 17 overcome by the heat. But all recovered. Routed the Spanish and
distroyed the water suply and Block House. The Dolphin held there
posision from the water frount and the Texas sunk 2 small Gun boats.

_June_ 17. come down to Guantanamo Bay this morning, put some 300 tons
of coal on and throde some shells over in an old Fort and then puled
out right away for Santiago.

_June_ 20. Bully for the Soldiers, they are hear at last, "I thought
they would com tomorrow," some of the papers say there is 20.000 of
them, that is enough to eat the plase up for lunch. Well I hope we will
soon crack this nut that is so hard to crack. I hear there is 15000
Spanish soldiers over hear.

_June_ 22. the soldiers are landing all O.K. and doing well, and only a
few horses and 2 men lost so far, so the Flag Ship says.

_June_ 26. Started in this morning to see if we coulden knock down that
Spanish old Morro or else knock somthing cruckit around it. Well we
pelted away for an hour or more and the flag ship signaled over to the
Iowa to close in and pump at the Smith Key Battry. The Iowa signaled
Back that her forward Turet was out of order, so it fel to us, we went
in to 700