t only
a temporary base, and had been able to coal immediately, and put to sea to
attack the American cruisers scattered over the Caribbean waters, he might
have scored successes for a while. But he waited at Santiago till he was
hopelessly blockaded.

For some days the Washington Government, mindful of the Cadiz hoax, refused
to believe reports that the Spanish fleet was hidden behind the headlands
of Santiago harbour. It was not till 27 May that Admiral Schley obtained
definite proof of the fact, and formed the blockade of Santiago with his
squadron. Admiral Sampson then brought his fleet round, and took over the
command.

Until he reached Santiago Cervera had shown no lack of energy, but now he
was strangely devoid of enterprise. He allowed an American armed liner to
capture, off the port, a steamer that was bringing him 3000 tons of
much-needed coal, though he might have saved her by sending one of his
cruisers outside the headlands. He allowed an inferior force to blockade
the entrance for some days, without bringing out his cruisers by day to
engage them, or sending out his destroyers by night to torpedo them. He
waited until there was an overwhelming force assembled off the harbour.

Then came a month of deadlock. He was blockaded by a vastly superior force
that watched the narrow pass through which, if he left the harbour, his
fleet must come out one by one. But so long as he was within the headlands
he was unassailable.

Admiral Sampson declined to risk his ships in an attempt to force the
narrow entrance and destroy the Spanish squadron inside. An attempt to
"bottle up" Cervera, by sinking a tramp steamer, the "Merrimac," in the
entrance, proved a failure. Long-ranging bombardments produced no effect
on the Spaniards. All the plans formed at Washington for the Cuban campaign
were disorganized. The blockade of the island had become the blockade of
the one port of Santiago. If the United States Government had known how
short of supplies were the city and garrison of Santiago and Cervera's
fleet, it might have trusted to the blockade by sea and the operations of
the insurgents by land, with the help of a few regulars, to force the
Spanish admiral either to surrender or come out and fight. But it was
decided to abandon for the present the projected attack on Havana, and send
the army, collected for this purpose at Tampa, to attack Santiago by land,
and so deprive Cervera of his refuge in the harbour.

Santiag