em at this short range, Cadet Powell and the crew of
his launch continued to search for the men of the 'Merrimac.'

[Illustration: Morro Castle, Santiago De Cuba.]

"They saw then the guns of the 'Cristobal Colon,' Admiral
Cervera's flagship, and of the old cruiser 'Reina Mercedes,'
which had been considered gunless, trained on them and thundering
in their ears. "Still they searched with never as much as a
faint cry for help or the sign of a single arm raised in mute
appeal to guide them. Those on the battle-ship looking into the
mouth of the harbor saw only a sheet of flame which, with the
roar of the guns, lasted thirty-five minutes. By this time dawn
had tinged the land and sky with light, and the tiny launch could
be seen loitering by the shore. On the west side of the harbor,
in the center of the channel, just where Hobson had promised to
sink his vessel, could be seen the tops of the 'Merrimac's'
masts. The harbor was blocked."

Hobson and his gallant men were not lost. A shot from one of the
batteries destroyed the boat in which they had expected to reach the
launch, but on a raft they escaped from their sinking vessel, only to
be captured by the Spaniards. With sailor-like chivalry and hearty
admiration for a gallant deed Admiral Cervera sent word to the fleet
of their safety and offered to exchange them as soon as the necessary
formalities could be complied with.

* * * * *

The closing words of this chapter must be penned just as the decisive
action of the war seems to be at hand. Cervera is hemmed in at
Santiago with a vastly superior force confronting him. The batteries
at the harbor's mouth have been demolished by the fire of the fleet.
At Caimanera, thirty miles away, the United States flag is flying on
the shore and a battalion of United States marines--"soldiers and
sailors, too"--are there installed and have twice beaten back the
attack of Spaniards in double their number. On great transports
General Shafter's army of 20,000 men is steaming from Key West to
Caimanera, where the invasion of Cuba will begin. The order has gone
forth to reduce Porto Rico, and by the time these words reach the
reader, General Coppinger's army may be landed there. Fitzhugh Lee,
the gallant, is held in reserve for Havana, where he served his
country as Consul General during the trying days that led up to the
war. Hesitat