Young people's history of the war with Spain

Front matter

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Chap. QiJ) Copyrio-ht Xo

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.

Chapter I. The Cause Of The War

OIsT April 21st, 1898, a war began between the United States and Spain. All the other countries of the world felt an interest in it, but did not take any part in it. They were what we call " neutral " — that is, they did not help either side.

As soon as the war was proclaimed a great wave of excitement swept through the United States, from shore to shore. Flags were hung out in every city and town; thousands of men offered to serve in the army — ^\^olunteers they were called; and many persons offered to help in other ways. The people were not glad that war had begun, but they felt that their country was doing right, and that they ought to support her efforts.

And what was the cause of the war? Spain, a large country across the Atlantic Ocean, in the southwestern part of Europe, owned some of the islands, called " West Indies," near the United States. Spain had been unjust and cruel to the people living in one of these islands, for many years. Several times the unhappy islanders tried to drive the Spanish from the island, and set up a government of their own, but Spain sent so many sokliers there that they could not get their freedom.

They fought bravely, however, but matters kept getting worse and worse, and at last Spain sent a very cruel general to take charge of affairs in the island. His name was Weyler, and he determined to conquer the islanders. After a while he found he could not do it by fighting them, so he sent his soldiers to drive those who were not fighting away from their homes and farms and make them live in or near the large cities. When he had done this, the people had no way to earn money to buy food for themselves and their families, and soon they began to get sick and to die of starvation. The cruel Weyler would not give them anything to eat, and so they died by thousands.

AVhen this dreadful state of affairs became known in the United States, kind people sent several ship-loads of food and medicines and clothing to the sufferers. This did a great deal of good, but all the poor people could not be reached and they continued to die. Finally, the United States told Spain that she ought not to have such a cruel man at the head of affairs, and after a while Spain sent another general to take his place. This new governor's name was Blanco, and he really tried to help the poor people, but Spain had very little money to send him to buy food for them, and so they went on dying. The soldiers, too, were in a very bad condition; they had not been paid for a great many months; they did not have enough to eat, and so they too sickened and died by thousands. You can see that unless something was done to help the poor people, they would all die and their beautiful island would become a wilderness^

Besides being very proud, Spain was very poor. She had spent millions of dollars trying to conquer the islanders, and had no money to buy food for the sufferers that she had driven from their homes and huddled like cattle in yards and gloomy inclosures. So she asked the United States to help feed them, and the Ked Cross Society, of which I will tell you later, sent hundreds of tons of food, medicines and clothing to them. These supplies were distributed by competent persons, and the relief was very great, but very soon some of the Spaniards began to say that the United States had no business to interfere in the affairs of the island, and to stir up the people. The feeling became so strong that our representative, Consul-General Lee, notified the authorities in the United States that, the lives and property of American citizens living in the island were not safe. It was for this reason that the battleship Maine was sent

to Havana, the chief city of the island. I will tell yon about this ship later.

AYell, in spite of all that the United States had done to help Spain, matters grew worse, and finally the United States was obliged to tell Spain that, imless she took her soldiers away from the island and let the people govern themselves, she would help them to become a free and independent nation. "When Spain received this message, she regarded it as a declaration of war, and both sides prepared for the conflict.

But before telling you about the war, shall I tell you something about the island and the group to which it belongs ?

The island is called Cuba. It belongs to a large group of islands known as the West Indies; a changed form of the old name, AVest Indias, given by Christopher Columbus, who thought that by sailing w^estward he had reached islands off the shore of India. If you look on a map of the Western Hemisphere, you wdll find the West Indies between the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean.

Most of these islands are high and rocky, seeming like a chain of mountains in the ocean, with their tops above the waves. They are in the tropical regions, and the climate is very hot in the lowlands and on the coasts, but is delightful in the high parts all the year round. There are only two seasons — wet and dry. The rainy season begins in the spring or early summer, and lasts about six months.

What grows in these islands? Delicious fruits: mangoes, oranges, cocoanuts, limes, pineapples, and bananas; many other valuable crops: coffee, tobacco, maize, rice, sugar-cane, and cotton ; immense forests of mahogany and other valuable trees. This beautiful vegetation makes these lands fair to look upon. Then, too, there are many birds with gorgeous plumage. The islands have gold, silver, copper, and iron mines; there are quarries of marble; and some kinds of precious stones are found.

But this region is not a paradise. Snakes and other horrid things crawl among the beautiful trees and foliage, and poisonous insects swarm in every place. Earthquake shocks are often felt, and fearful hurricanes sweep over the islands nearly every year, doing much damage.

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A gentle race of Indians dwelt in tliese islands at the time of their discovery, but the Spanish settlers treated the natives so cruelly that after a few years they had ceased to exist. Many of the Indians were sent to Spain and other countries and sold as slaves; the rest were made to work in the mines, and as the Indians had never been

used to such work, they died from the hard labor. In later times some of the islands were bought from Spain, others w^ere captured, others w^ere gained by treaty, by the nations to whom they now belong.

At the beginning of the war between the United States and Spain, in 1898, Cuba, as I have already said, belonged to Spain.

Spain owned another large island, Puerto Rico, which we call Porto Rico, a name meaning " rich port." But I need not say anything more about Porto Rico at present.

Cuba is the largest and most valuable of the West India Islands. It was discovered by Columbus about two weeks after his first landing at San Salvador. According to liis custom, lie gave it a Spanish name, but somehow the old name clung to it, and to-day the whole 'v\ orld knows the island by its native Indian name, Cuba. On account of its position, it is often called the "Key to the Gulf of Mexico;" and Havana, the capital, has a key upon its coat of arms. Cuba looks very small upon our maps, yet it contains nearly as much land as the State of

Pennsylvania.

Perhaps I should tell you just here that Spain is a kingdom.

Its ruler, King Alfonso XII., died in 1885. His widow.

Queen Christina, has ruled since then, but her son will be crowned king as soon as he is old enough. The " little king," as he is often called, was twelve years old when this war began. Queen Christina is a good and noble Avoman, and it is not her fault that the people in distant islands have been badly treated.

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Chapter II. The " Maine."

B

EFORE the United States joined in the war, the Cubans had succeeded in driving the Spaniards out of many places in the eastern part of the island, but could not get possession of the western part and the chief harbors. We have seen that the war between the United States and Spain began in April, 1898. But, two months before that time something happened in the harbor of Havana, the capital of Cuba, which caused terrible excitement m our country. You must understand that many persons belonoino' to the United States have business m Cuba, own property there, and even live there. Though these Americans did not take part with the Cubans against Spain, yet it seemed sometimes as if they were m danger on account of the disturbance in the island. So our country decided to send one of our battle-ships— a manof-war— to stay awhile in the chief harbor of Cuba, so that the Americans might feel safer by having such a ship to help them if they should need help, as I have tokl you. Spain made no objections to this plan, and said she would send a ship in return to visit :N'ew York. The ship chosen from our navy was the Maine, commanded by Captain Sigsbee. On Jannary 25tli, early m the morning of a bright warm day, the Maine, with all her colors flying, and with all her men dressed in their best clothes, drew near the harbor of Havana. A Spanish pilot went out to meet her, took her carefully throngh the narrow entrance to the fine harbor, and anchored

U. S. Battlesiiip "Maine.*' her near some other ships. Though the entrance is narrow, yet the harbor itself is large enough to accommodate a thousand ships. The entrance is guarded by several fortresses, one of which, called "Morro Castle," is nearly three hundred years old. It stands on a high point of land, and for this reason is called "Morro," a name that means in Spanish, headland, or promontory.

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^o doubt the place seemed very attractive to the men on board the Maine that bright simny morning. The new part of Havana is pretty, the old part is quaint and interesting. There are a number of famous build-

Morro Castle, Havana.

ings, one of which is the Cathedral, where the remains of Columbus were treasured at that time, but they have since been removed to Spain. All the buildings are low, for low buildings are the fashion in countries that are 2 subject to earthquakes; tliey are built of stone, and generally adorned with bright colors. There are wide avenues, and large parks and gardens.

If you should visit Havana, you would see many curious sights. All the houses, hotels and stores have ironbarred windows, which gives one the impression that the inmates are confined there. Many houses have large gates which open into beautiful gardens and court yards. Some of the streets have very funny names, such as " Ladies' Delight," and " Fat Stick," when the Spanish names are translated into our language; and they have bright-colored awnings stretched across, from side to side.

The fish market is one of the most noted buildings in the city. It has one long marble table running the entire length of the building, which has one end open to the harbor. Poultry and fruits are brought to the doors of the houses in baskets which are carried on donkeys or the little horses of the country. Often you can see what looks like a large bunch of grass, slowly moving over the pavements, but as it gets nearer you will see the head of a donkey sticking out of one side, while his tail alone is visible on the other side. This is the way that food for horses and mules is brought into the city; no hay is used, only green feed. The milkman does not call at the house, as w^ith us, but instead drives his cow up to the door and supplies you direct from her with as much milk as you wish to buy. Charcoal is almost the only fuel used in cooking, and the ranges lock like benches placed against the walls with holes in the tops of them. But we must return to the battleship Elaine.

There was no special work for the Maine to do; she was simply to stay in the harbor till further orders. The Spanish officers called on Captain Sigsbee, and he returned their visits, according to the rules that naval officers of all countries are bound to observe. Yet it was easy for the men of the Maine to see that they were not welcome guests. The Maine had twenty-six officers, and a crew of three hundred and twenty-eight men. With her guns, ammunition, and other valuable stores, she was worth $5,000,000. She had been three years in service, having left the Brooklyn navy-yard in ^N^ovember, 1895. The evening of February 15th, 1898, was dark and sultry. At eight o'clock Captain Sigsbee received the reports from the different officers of the ship that every thing was secure for the night. At ten minutes after nine the bugler sounded " taps,'' the signal for " turning in," and soon the ship was quiet. At forty minutes after nine a sharp explosion was heard, then a loud, long, roaring sound, mingled with the noise of falling timbers; the electric lights went out, the ship was lifted up, and then she began to sink. The Captain and some of the other officers groped their way to the deck, hardly knowing what had happened. They could do nothing; the ship was sinking fast, and was on fire in several places. The force of the explosion was so great that it threw of the War with Spain.

Captain Sigsbee out of his cabin, where lie sat writing a

letter and against William Anthony, a marine who was

on duty as a sentry. As coolly as though nothing had

happened, Anthony saluted the Captain and then said: '' Sir, I have the

honor to inform you

that the ship has been

blown up and is sink-

ing."

Small boats came

out from the other

ships, and rescued many men from the Maine. The Spaniards helped the sufferers in every possible way, taking them to the hospitals in Havana, where they received the best care that the hospitals could give.

In that awful destruction of the Maine, two officers and two hundred and fifty-four of the crew were lost. Several of those who were rescued, died afterward.

The next day divers went down into the water to see what they could find in the wreck, and nineteen dead bodies were brought up. The Spanish officers of Havana asked Captain Sigsbee to permit the city to give the men a public funeral; and a plot of ground in Colon

Cemetery, outside the city, was given to tlie United States free of expense forever. The day of the funeral all the flags were put at " half mast," as a sign of mourning, and the stores were closed. Crowds of people joined the long funeral procession.

In the latter part of the year 1899, however, the Maine dead were brought from Havana by the battleship Texas, then commanded by Captain Sigsbee, formerly of the Maine. They were laid away in Arlington Cemetery, near Washington, on December 28th, with simple religious services and the honors of w^ar, in the presence of the President of the United States and his Cabinet, oflicers of the army and navy, and many other spectators.

Besides Captain Sigsbee and Father Chidwick, who was chaplain of the Maine at the time she was blown up, three others who lived through that awful night were present. They were Lieutenant Commander Wainwrio-ht, who was the executive ofiicer of the Maine and who afterwards sank the Furor and Pluton at Santiago; Lieutenant F. C. Bowers, formerly assistant engineer of the Maine; and Jeremiah Shea, a fireman of the Maine, who was blown out of the stoke-hole of the ship through the wreckage.

After tliree volleys had been fired over the dead, and the bugles had rung out the soldiers' and sailors' last good night, Captain Sigsbee intioduced Shea to President McKinley. Being asked for an explanation of his escape, he responded, as he had done to Father Chidwick when lie visited him in the hospital in Havana, where he lay covered with wounds and bruises, and with nearly every bone in his body broken :

" I don't know how I got through. I was blown out. I guess I must have been an armor-piercing projectile!"

The work of saving the guns and other valuable things on the Maine was carried on for some time. Among other things that the divers recovered was a splendid silver service that had been presented to the ship by the state of Maine. The keys to the magazines were found in their proper places in the captain's cabin, and his money and papers were also recovered. Finally, it was found that the hull of the great ship could not be raised, and in April the United States flag, that had been kept flying above the wreck since the night of the fatal explosion, was hauled down and the ship formally declared out of commission.

Of course, the awful disaster caused deep sorrow in the United States. There was great excitement also, for many persons thought that some of the Spaniards had wrecked the Maine on purpose. The harbor was full of " mines '' or immense iron shells filled w^ith stuff that will explode. All countries at war protect their harbors in this way.

President McKinley appointed men to examine the wreck and find out all they could about the explosion. They found that the ship was destroyed by a " mine/' but could not prove that the Spaniards had purposely caused the " mine '' to explode.

So there will always be a mystery connected with the horrible destruction of the Maine.

On April 10th, Consul-General Lee and such Americans as wished to do so, left Havana and returned to the United States. From that time on, it seemed to the people of the United States that war with Spain was inevitable, and preparations for it were carried on rapidly. On April 10th — which, by the way, was the anniversary of the first battle of the war of the Revolution and also of the Civil War — Congress declared that the United States must interfere in the affairs of Cuba and help the Cubans to become a free and prosperous people. This declaration was signed by President McKinley on the following day, and then our minister to Spain, Mr. Woodford, was instructed to tell the Spanish government wliat had been done, and also what would be done, if Spain did not promise before the 23d to withdraw her soldiers from Cuba and give up the island to the Cubans.

The message was sent by one of the submarine cables which connects America with Europe, and the operator who received it told the Spanish officials about it before sending it to its destination. So, before Mr. Woodford could deliver his message, the Spanish government sent him his passports, which was a polite hint to leave the country, and he did so, at once. This action on the part of Spain was virtually a declaration of war, and was so regarded by the President and the people of this country. On the 2 2d, a blockade of Cuban ports was established by the navy, and a Spanish ship was captured.

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