ot leave the Asiatic coast, and then offensive operations in the
Philippine Islands." On April 25 came the inspiring order: "Proceed
at once to Philippine Islands. Commence operations particularly
against the Spanish fleet. You must capture vessels or destroy. Use
utmost endeavor." The Commodore had already purchased a collier and
a supply ship for use in addition to the revenue cutter _McCulloch_,
overhauled his vessels and given them a war coat of slate-gray, and
made plans for a base at Mirs Bay, 30 miles distant in Chinese
waters, where he would be less troubled by neutrality rules in time
of war. On April 22 the _Baltimore_ arrived from San Francisco
with much-needed ammunition. On the 27th Consul Williams joined
with latest news of preparations at Manila, and that afternoon
the squadron put to sea.

On the morning of the 30th it was off Luzon, and two ships scouted
Subig Bay, which the enemy had left only 24 hours before. At 12 that
night Dewey took his squadron in column through the entrance to Manila
Bay, just as he had steamed past the forts on the Mississippi with
Farragut 35 years before. Only three shots were fired by the guns
on shore. The thoroughness of Dewey's preparations, the rapidity
of his movements up to this point, and his daring passage through a
channel which he had reason to believe strongly defended by mines
and shore batteries are the just titles of his fame. The entrance to
Manila is indeed 10 miles wide and divided into separate channels by
the islands Corregidor, Caballo, and El Fraile. The less frequented
channel chosen was, as Dewey rightly judged, too deep for mining
except by experts. Yet the Spanish had news of his approach the
day before; they had 17 guns, including 6 modern rifles, on the
islands guarding the entrance; they had plenty of gunboats that
might have been fitted out as torpedo launches for night attack.
It does not detract from the American officer's accomplishment
that he drew no false picture of the obstacles with which he had
to deal.

At daybreak next morning, having covered slowly the 24 miles from
the mouth of the bay up to Manila, the American ships advanced
past the city to attack the Spanish flotilla drawn up under the
Cavite batteries 6 miles beyond. Here was what an American officer
described as "a collection of old tubs scarcely fit to be called
men-of-war." The most serviceable was Admiral Montojo's flagship
_Reina Cristina_, an unarmored cruiser of 3500 t