with Spain began Dewey was on the Chinese coast with a
squadron of American ships. He had been raised in rank and was
Commodore Dewey then. A commodore, you should know, was next above a
captain and next below an admiral.

Commodore Dewey had four fine ships, the cruisers OLYMPIA, BALTIMORE,
RALEIGH, and BOSTON. He had also two gunboats and a despatch-boat,
making seven in all.

These vessels were at Hong Kong, a British seaport in China. They could
not stay there after war with Spain was declared, for Hong Kong was a
neutral port, and after war begins fighting ships must leave neutral
ports. But Dewey knew where to go, for under the ocean and over the land
there had come to him a telegram from Washington, more than ten thousand
miles away, which said, "Seek the Spanish fleet and capture or destroy
it." Dewey did not waste any time in obeying orders.

He knew where to seek the Spanish fleet. A few hundred miles away to the
east of China lay the fine group of islands called the Philippines,
which then belonged to Spain. In Luzon, the biggest of these islands,
was the fine large City of Manila, the centre of the Spanish power in
the East. So straight across the China Sea Dewey went at all speed
towards this seaport of Spain.

On the morning of Saturday, April 30, 1898, the men on the leading ship
saw land rising in the distance, green and beautiful, and farther away
they beheld the faint blue lines of the mountains of Luzon. Down this
green tropical coast they sped, and when night was near at hand they
came close to the entrance of Manila Bay.

Here there were forts to pass; and the ships were slowed up. Dewey was
ready to fight with ships, but he did not want to fight with forts, so
he waited for darkness to come before going in. He thought that he might
then pass these forts without being seen by the men in them.

They waited until near midnight, steaming slowly along until they came
to the entrance to the bay. The moon was in the sky, but gray clouds hid
its light. They could see the two dark headlands of the harbor's mouth
rising and, between them, a small, low island. On this island were the
forts which they had to pass.

As they came near, all the lights on the ships were put out or hidden,
except a small electric light at the stern of each ship, for the next
one to see and follow.

Steam was put on, and the ships glided swiftly and silently in, like
shadows in the darkness. All was silent in the Spanish fo