of the place. He had a short supply of
inferior coal, and the most he hoped for was that some of his ships would
elude, or fight their way past, the blockading squadron, and reach Havana.
It is impossible to understand why, having decided to go out, he did not
make the attempt in the darkness of Saturday night, instead of waiting for
broad daylight next day.

In one respect he was fortunate. His coming out was a complete surprise for
the Americans, and found them quite unprepared, with some of their best
ships far from the scene of action. Admiral Sampson had steamed off to the
eastward in his flagship, the "New York," intending to land at Siboney for
his interview with General Shafter. The battleship "Massachusetts" had
gone with two of the lighter cruisers to coal at Guantanamo. But there were
quite enough ships left off the seaward opening of the narrows, where four
battleships, an armoured cruiser, and two light craft were keeping up the
blockade.

It was a bright summer day, with a light wind and a smooth sea. Due south
of the harbour entrance, and about 5 1/2 miles from it, lay the battleship
"Iowa." To the east of her lay the "Oregon," with the "Indiana" between her
and the land, and about two miles nearer in, west of the "Iowa," was the
battleship "Texas," with the armoured cruiser "Brooklyn," Commodore
Schley's flagship, lying between her and the land, and still nearer in the
small armed revenue cruiser "Vixen," lying about three miles south-west of
Morro Castle. On the other side of the entrance, close in to the land, was
a small armed steamer, the "Gloucester." She had been purchased by the Navy
Department on the outbreak of the war from Mr. Pierpont Morgan, the banker,
and renamed. Before this she had been known as the steam yacht
"Gloucester." She was commanded by one of the best officers of the United
States Navy, Captain Wainwright, who had been second in command of the
"Maine" when she was blown up in Havana harbour. Wainwright was to show
this day that even an armed steam yacht may do good service in a modern
naval action. All the ships except the "Oregon" and the little "Gloucester"
had let their fires burn low, and had hardly any steam pressure on their
boilers. At half-past nine the order was given for the crews to fall in for
general inspection. A few minutes later an apprentice on board the "Iowa"
called attention to a mass of black smoke rising over the headlands of the
harbour mouth. And then be