Lieutenant John B. Bernadou was the commander of the “Winslow” in the
fight at Cardenas, at which Ensign Worth Bagley, his second in command,
was killed. The story of the fight these young officers made, until Bagley
was killed, Bernadou was wounded, and the “Hudson” came and towed them out
of danger, has been told again and again, and the tale of it will go down
into the history of the Spanish-American War as one of the pluckiest of
which there is record. Bagley, being the only naval officer killed during
the war, was heard of from one end of the country to the other, but little
was told of Bernadou, his commander.
Bernadou’s early career showed in several instances the fearlessness
of his disposition and the sturdiness of his character. The boy’s first
idea was to go to West Point. Failing in this, he secured an appointment
to the Naval Academy, where he entered with a fine standing, which he
maintained until he was graduated. He was always a brilliant worker, and
in gunnery and foreign languages showed a most remarkable aptitude. To-day
he speaks eight languages, and is one of the foremost men in the navy as
an authority on smokeless powder.