able navy and a great many believed it was superior to our own.
There was no telling where it would strike the first blow. Boston, New
York, Philadelphia, Washington and other seaboard cities made powerful
preparations against the dread fleet, which in truth was no more to be
feared than the ferryboats on the North River, and yet but for the
preparations referred to it is more than probable we should have
suffered.

The most formidable fleet was under the command of Admiral Cervera. Our
own squadrons were engaged for weeks in hunting for it, and it was
reported in a dozen different places. Finally it was learned that it had
taken refuge in the harbor of Santiago, the city of that name being
besieged by the land forces under General Shafter. Immediately the
American fleet of Admiral Sampson blockaded the ships of the enemy,
determined to hold it powerless inside the broad harbor, for it
followed, as a matter of course, that so long as it was bottled up there
it could do nothing to help Spain.

No one could know his weakness better than the Spanish Admiral. He had
fine ships and fine guns, but his crews were undisciplined. They were
wretched marksmen and in no respect to be compared with our gunners, who
demonstrated in the War of 1812 that they have no equals in the whole
world. Knowing all this, Admiral Cervera was loth to venture out of
the harbor of Santiago, and the days and weeks passed in idleness while
the monotonous blockade continued.

[Illustration: ADMIRAL CERVERA.]

It was the fear that the Spanish ships would make a dash on some dark,
stormy night and escape that led to one of the most striking and
brilliant exploits of the war. That is the sinking of the collier
_Merrimac_ in the channel of the harbor by Lieutenant Richmond Pearson
Hobson, on the night of June 3. That the effort was not wholly
successful does not detract from the glory of the brave men who went
unflinchingly to what looked like almost certain death.

The companions of Lieutenant Hobson in this remarkable achievement were
Osborn Deignan, George F. Phillips, Francis Kelly, George Charette,
Daniel Montague, J.C. Murphy and Randolph Clausen. The last named was
not one of the original six chosen, but he had been at work on the
_Merrimac_ preparing her for the attempt and hid himself away on the
lumbersome craft and they were obliged to take him.

As soon as the Spaniards discovered the approach of the _Merrimac_, in
the darkness, they ope