fore and mainmasts; the bow pivot-gun was dismounted; ten men of her
crew down; the maintopmast stays cut, and the maintopmast tottering.
Crash! Another shell, and the jib-boom hangs dragging under the bows;
the fore topgallantmast is carried away. Men hacked at the rigging to
clear away the wreck which now impeded the ship's advance.
"Now let him have it," said the admiral, quietly.
The captain speaks to the executive officer, who shouts through his
trumpet: "Port guns! Ready! Fire!!"
The concussion of the explosion made the ship stagger for a moment.
When the smoke cleared away, the Spaniard's mizzenmast was seen dragging
overboard; but otherwise no damage had been inflicted.
"His armor is too thick for us," gravely remarked the admiral; "get boom
torpedoes over the bows!"
"All ready, now, sir," reported the captain.
"Continue firing, and keep right for him."
"Shall we ram him, sir?"
"Yes, sir; as straight amidships as you can."
The "Franklin" now poured in her fire with all possible rapidity; but it
was evident that her shot made little or no impression on the massive
iron shield of her antagonist, although it played havoc amid his
rigging. Another fact now became apparent--that the Spaniard was much
the faster vessel of the two; for he was evidently nearing the
"Franklin" more quickly than the "Franklin" was approaching him.
"Do you know who that ship is?" asked the admiral.
"The 'Numancia,' sir," replied the captain; "her armament is immensely
better than ours. She has twenty-five Armstrong guns."
Crash! crash! Two more shells struck the wooden hull of the "Franklin"
between the fore and mainmasts, tearing a great rent in her side and
literally annihilating the crews of four guns.
"There is three feet of water in the hold, sir and it is gaining!"
shouted the carpenter at the pump-well.
Men were sent at once to the pumps.
Crash! This time a double explosion, followed by dense clouds of steam.
Men, scalded and horribly burned, climbed up the ladders from below.
"Our boilers are gone," reported the captain.
"Keep her broadside toward the enemy, sir," returned the admiral.
The guns of the "Franklin" were now firing slowly. Their smoke overhung
the vessel so that the Spaniard could not be seen, but the reports of
his cannon sounded closer and closer.
Suddenly the huge prow of the "Numancia" loomed up close aboard the
"Franklin."
"Starboard! Hard a starboard!" shouted the admiral.
It was too late. There was no one at the helm. A shell, bursting close
to the wheel, had killed the helmsman, and a fragment had buried itself
in the captain's breast.
The admiral himself turned to go toward the wheel, but suddenly
staggered and pitched forward, dead.
Then came the frightful explosion of the "Numancia's" bow-torpedo,
striking the ill-fated frigate; and then the crushing and splintering of
timbers under the fearful stroke of the ram.
Five minutes afterwards the Spanish war-ship was alone. Slowly the
"Franklin" sank--her lofty mast-heads going under with the stars and
stripes still proudly floating from them. The "Numancia" lowered her
boats to pick up survivors. They returned with one officer and two
seamen--all that remained of the crew of nearly one thousand souls.
The American flag ship had been sunk by a fourth-rate European
ironclad--the first practical proof of the miserably short-sighted
policy of a nation of fifty millions of inhabitants, with an enormous
coast line and innumerable ports to be protected, relying for its safety
upon a navy the fifty-five available vessels of which are too slow to
run away, and too lightly armed and too weakly built to defend
themselves.
The "Numancia" hoisted her boats and stood to the westward. Shortly
afterward she exchanged signals with the "Zaragoza," "Arapiles" and
"Vittoria." The war-vessels drew together, the transports came alongside
of them, and fresh supplies of coal and provisions were delivered. Then
the transports headed to the south, and the men-of-war laid their course
for New York.
III.
THE METROPOLIS BELEAGUERED.
Three ships of the Spanish squadron named were armed with Armstrong
guns. Their combined batteries aggregated eight cannon of eighteen tons
four of twelve tons, eleven of nine tons, and twenty-eight of seven
tons. The "Zaragoza" carried twenty guns of another pattern, ranging in
calibre from eleven to seven and three-fourths inches. The total number
of cannon which would thus be brought to bear upon New York and its
suburbs was seventy-one.
The shot of the Armstrong guns above named vary in weight from four
hundred to one hundred and fifteen pounds. If the entire number of guns
should each deliver one shot, the total amount of iron projected would
exceed six tons in weight.
The arrival of the Spanish vessels was not known until dawn of the
morning of April 11th. Then they were descried on the horizon by the
watchers at Sandy Hook. At first sight it was supposed that they had
encountered heavy weather and lost their light spars; but, as they
approached nearer, it was seen that each ship had sent down all her
upper rigging, and had housed topmasts.
There was no mistaking what this meant. It was the stripping for battle.
It was also noticed that the ships steamed very slowly in single file;
that from the bows of each projected a fork-like contrivance, and that
in advance of the leader were several steam-launches, between which, and
crossing the path of the large vessel, extended hawsers which dipped
into the water. Evidently the new-comers had a wholesome dread of
torpedoes, and hence the use of bow torpedo-catchers and the
dragging-ropes.
No flag of any sort was exhibited.
Meanwhile the guns of all the sea-coast batteries along the shores had
been manned, ready to fire upon the huge black monsters as soon as they
should come within range. The order had been given to commence firing on
the hoisting of a flag and on the discharge of a heavy gun from the
signal station on Sandy Hook, where General Hancock had posted himself
with his staff.
In the city the time for excitement had passed. The business section was
deserted, most of the men being either in the fortifications or under
arms in the camps, ready to move as directed to repel any attempt on the
part of the enemy to effect a landing.
There had been no general exodus from New York, as it was not believed
possible that the enemy's missiles could reach the city proper. In
Brooklyn, however, but few people remained. All the churches in the city
were open, and with singular unanimity the people flocked into them. No
public conveyances were running; few vehicles moved through the
streets. The silence was like that of a summer holiday, when the people
are in the suburbs, pleasure-seeking.
"They seem to have stopped, general," said an aid who was attentively
watching the advance of the Spanish vessels through his glass.
"They are a long way out of our range," remarked General Hancock. "We
have nothing that carries far enough to injure them. They are fully five
miles out."
"Now they go ahead again. No, they are turning," said the aid.
The leading ship had ported her helm, and, followed by the others, filed
to the eastward, bringing the port broadsides to bear upon the Long
Island batteries.
"They certainly are not going into action there," said the general.
A cloud of white smoke arose from the bow of the leading vessel, and
then across the water came the deep "boom" of a heavy gun.
"Why, that fellow has fired out to sea," exclaimed one of the general's
staff.
"No, it was a blank cartridge. He fired to attract attention. See! there
goes a white flag up to his mast-head!" said the officer at the
telescope: "A boat with a flag-of-truce is putting off, general."
"Send a launch out to meet it," said Hancock, shortly: "and see that it
does not come nearer than a mile or so from the shore."
A few minutes after, the steam-yacht "Ideal," which had been offered by
its owner as a dispatch boat to the general, was swiftly running towards
the Spanish messenger.
The aid at the telescope saw an officer step from the Spanish boat into
the yacht, and then the latter put back to the Hook, the enemy's launch
remaining where she was.
The Spanish officer was conducted to the presence of the general. In
excellent English, he announced himself as the Fleet Captain and
Chief-of-Staff of the admiral commanding the Spanish squadron present,
and with much ceremony presented the communication with which he was
charged.
The general received the missive courteously and opened it. The
expression of astonishment which came over his face as he read it for a
moment gave place to one of anger. His eyes flashed, his face reddened,
and his fingers nervously played with the end of his moustache. Then, as
he read it over the second time, a rather contemptuous smile seemed to
lurk about the corners of his mouth.
The staff stood by in silent but eager anticipation. The general held
the letter in his hands behind his back and walked up and down the small
apartment, as if in deep thought, raising his eyes occasionally to
glance at the Spanish vessels, which lay almost motionless, blowing off
steam.
Finally, he turned to the Spanish officer, who stood erect, with his
hand resting upon the hilt of his sword, and said, in a quiet, though
determined, voice:
"You will make my compliments to the admiral commanding, and deliver, in
reply to his communication, that which I will now dictate."
An aid at once seated himself at the table, and, at the general's
dictation, wrote as follows:
SENOR DON ALMIRANTE VIZCARRO, _Commanding Squadron off New York_.
SIR: I have the honor to acknowledge your communication of this
date, sent per flag-of-truce, in which you demand--
1st.--That immediate surrender to the force under your command be
made of the fortifications of this harbor, together with the Navy
Yard at Brooklyn, and all munitions of war here existing.
2nd.--That the cities of New York, Brooklyn and Jersey City do
cause to be paid, on board of your flag-ship, within three days
after the said surrender, the sum of fifty millions of dollars in
gold, or in the paper currency of England or France.
And in which you announce that non-acquiescence in the foregoing
will be followed by the bombardment of the said fortifications, the
Navy Yard and the arsenals in New York City, by your squadron,
after the lapse of twenty-four hours from noon this day.
In reply, I have to state that these demands are peremptorily
refused and I have most solemnly to protest against so gross a
violation of the laws of civilized warfare, as is indicated in your
intention to attack a city within a period too short to enable the
non-combatants to be safely removed.
I have the honor to be, etc.,
WINFIELD S. HANCOCK,
_Major-General Commanding_.
This reply was telegraphed to New York, and Mr. Pierrepont Edwards, Her
Britannic Majesty's Consul-General, was one of the first to receive it.
He acted with the usual force and promptness with which British
interests and the lives of British subjects are protected by British
officials abroad. That is to say, he first telegraphed to the British
Minister at Washington, Mr. West, requesting, that the three great
ironclads, "Devastation," "Orion" and "Agamemnon," all of which were
then in Hampton Roads, be at once sent to New York. Then he prepared a
formal protest against the proposed action of the Spanish Admiral, which
all the other foreign consuls at once signed, and which was delivered
aboard the Spanish flag-ship by a boat bearing the British flag before
three o'clock that afternoon.
The Spanish admiral took the protest into consideration to the extent of
granting forty-eight hours' time. The consuls protested again at this as
not being sufficient, and demanded five clear days. The admiral refused
to grant more than three; but when, before the three days had expired,
the trio of English war-ships made their appearance, and calmly moved
between his fleet and the shore, he changed his mind and granted the
desired time--which was wise, seeing that the English vessels could blow
his squadron out of water with little trouble and not much injury to
themselves.
The railroads which go out of New York, while perhaps adequate for all
purposes of traffic in time of peace, are scarcely equal to the removal
from the city of several hundred thousand women, children, sick and aged
persons within a period of even five days. People of this description
cannot be moved as easily as armies; and hence, when the morning of the
fifth day dawned, fully one-half of the non-combatant population was
still in the city.
This, however, was attributable not only to the inadequacy of the means
of transportation, but to the singular apathy--it was not
fearlessness--of the people themselves. In the great tenement districts,
it became necessary to send soldiers into the houses to drive people out
of them.
Among the Irish and Germans there was actual rioting, when force was
thus used. The impression was general that the missiles of the enemy
could not reach the populated parts of New York.
The crowds, however, at the Grand Central Dépôt, trying to leave the
city, were enormous. People were placed in cattle-cars, on wood cars--in
fact, every sort of conveyance adapted to the tracks was pressed into
service.
The Thirtieth Street Dépôt, on the west side, also was crowded, and
trains were leaving thence every few minutes.
Just before noon, the city was horror-stricken by the news of a
frightful accident at Spuyten Duyvil. An overloaded train from the
Thirtieth Street Dépôt there, through a broken switch, came into
collision with another overloaded train from the Grand Central Dépôt.
The slaughter was horrible. Twelve cars were derailed, and more than a
hundred and twenty people, mostly women and children, killed.
While people were repeating this news to one another with white faces
and trembling lips, the Spanish squadron was taking position and
preparing to attack.
The English squadron moved outside the Spanish ships, and stood off and
on under easy steam.
At precisely noon the white flag was lowered from the mast-head of the
Spanish flag-ship and the Spanish flags were hoisted by all of the
vessels. Immediately afterwards the "Numancia" delivered her broadside
full upon the Coney Island battery.
Instantly the flag from the general's station was flung out, the
signal-gun was discharged, and from all the sea-coast batteries the
firing began.
IV.
IRON HAIL.
The position chosen by the attacking vessels was about one and a half
miles to the south of Plumb Inlet. This point is distant from Fort
Hamilton six miles, from Sandy Hook light seven miles, from Brooklyn
Navy Yard nine and a half miles, and from the City Hall, New York City,
about eleven miles, in a straight line. An ample depth of water to float
ships drawing twenty-four feet here exists. The situation was
sufficiently distant from the shore batteries to render the effect of
their projectiles on the armor of the vessels quite inconsiderable.
The ships, however, did not remain motionless, but steamed slowly around
in a circle of some two miles in diameter, each vessel delivering her
fire as she reached the point above specified. In this way, the chances
of being struck by projectiles from shore were not only lessened, but
the injury which they could do was decreased by the greater distance
which they would be compelled to traverse to strike the ships during the
progress of the latter around the further side of the circle.
It was evident that the Spanish commander had no idea of attempting to
land his forces, but simply proposed to keep up a slow, persistent
bombardment. It was further apparent that only his lighter artillery
was directed upon the shore batteries, and that he was practising with
his heavy metal at high elevations, to find out how much range he could
get.
When the second day of the bombardment opened, there were about a
hundred thousand people still in New York, including two of the city
regiments doing police duty. A strong force for this purpose was
necessary, as a large number of roughs and criminals, who had hurried
away during the first panic, now returned, and signalized their advent
by the attempted pillage of the Vanderbilt residences.
About a hundred and fifty of this mob remained on the pavement of Fifth
Avenue, after a well-directed mitrailleuse fire had been kept up for
some fifteen minutes by the troops. The rest took to their heels, and
lurked about the lower part of the city, waiting for a better
opportunity, and thinking hungrily of the contents of the magnificent
dwellings in the up-town districts.
The sea-coast batteries nearest to the attacking ships were soon
rendered untenable by their fire. The large hotels on Coney Island were
all struck by shells and burned, and the villages of Flatlands,
Gravesend, and New Utrecht were quickly destroyed.
Shell after shell then fell in Flatbush, and occasionally a terrific
explosion in Prospect Park, in Greenwood Cemetery, and in the outlying
avenues of Brooklyn, showed that the enemy was throwing his missiles
over distances constantly augmenting.
On the morning of the third day a futile attempt was made to blow up the
"Numancia," first by the Lay and then by the Ericsson submarine
torpedo-boats. The Lay boat, however, ran up on the east bank and could
not be got off, and the Ericsson started finely from the shore, but,
apparently, sank before she had gone a mile.
The attack by the "Alarm" and her attendant fleet of torpedo-tugs had
the effect of stopping the bombardment and of concentrating the enemy's
attention upon his own safety. The tugs advanced gallantly to the onset,
six of them rushing almost simultaneously upon the "Vittoria." That
vessel met them with a broadside which sank four at once, and the other
two were riddled by shell from Hotchkiss revolving cannon from the decks
of the Spaniard; their machinery was crippled, and they drifted
helplessly out to sea. Of the others, some ran aground on the bank, some
were sunk, and not one succeeded in exploding her torpedo near a Spanish
vessel. The "Alarm" planted a shell from her bow-rifle, at close range,
squarely into the stern of the "Zaragoza," piercing the armor and
killing a dozen men, besides disabling two guns. She was rammed,
however, by the "Arapiles," and so badly injured as to compel her to
make her escape into shoal water to prevent sinking. There she grounded,
and the Spaniards leisurely made a target of her, although they
considerately permitted her crew to go ashore in their boats without
firing a shot at them.
Meanwhile the remaining citizens of New York had held a mass meeting,
and appointed a committee of Public Safety, with General Grant at its
head. There had been a great popular movement to have that gentleman put
in supreme command of the army, but the authorities at Washington, for
some occult reason, known only to themselves, had offered him a
major-general's commission, which he promptly declined. Then he
deliberately went to the nearest recruiting-station and tried to enlist
as a private; but the recruiting-officer, after recovering his senses,
with which he parted in dumb astonishment for some seconds, refused him
on the ground that he was over forty-five years of age.
The general contented himself with remarking: "Guess they'll want me
yet," and thereupon lighting a huge cigar, calmly marched out of the
office and went over to Flatbush, to "see where the shells are hitting;"
serenely oblivious of the possibility of personal danger involved in
that proceeding.
As chief of the Safety Committee, however, Grant became the real ruler
of New York. Martial law existed, and the senior colonel of the
regiments quartered in the city was in nominal charge; but, as this
individual was not blessed with especial force of character, he never
asserted his authority, and, in fact, seemed rather pleased to
gravitate to the position of Grant's immediate subordinate.
On the evening of April 18th the watchers on Sandy Hook saw a fifth
vessel join the Spanish fleet; a long, low craft, having, apparently,
two turrets and very light spars. They also saw the admiral's flag on
the "Numancia" lowered, only to be hoisted again on the foremast of the
new-comer.
At daybreak on the following morning a shell crashed through the roof of
the Fifth Avenue Hotel, descended to the cellar, burst there and wrecked
a quarter of the building. What new fury had thus been let loose?
It has already been stated that the great ironclad "El Cid" had sailed
from Vigo--she had arrived.
She carried four guns. Two one-hundred-ton Armstrongs, each having an
effectual range of 12 miles, and two Krupp 15.7-inch guns, which throw
shot weighing nearly 2000 pounds over ten miles. Krupp claims a range of
15 miles; but this is doubtful. She also was encased in 21-1/2 inches of
compound steel and iron armor, capable of resisting the projectiles of
any cannon known--except, perhaps, those of her own Armstrongs.
The most powerfully armed and most impregnable ironclad in the world now
lay before New York.
It was an Armstrong shell which struck the Fifth Avenue Hotel. It was a
Krupp shell which shortly after knocked down the steeple of Trinity
Church as if it were a turret of cards.
In view of this new attack General Grant was requested to call a
meeting of the Committee of Safety, to consider the question of
capitulation, as it was evident that the continuation of such a
bombardment would speedily destroy property in value far beyond the
immense sum asked by the besiegers.
He notified the members to meet in the City Hall. When he arrived, he
found nobody but a messenger-boy, who tremblingly emerged from the
cellar.
The General quietly removed his cigar and asked:
"Where's the Committee?"
"They--they--is--up ter Inwood, sir."
The boy's teeth chattered so that he could hardly speak.
"What the deuce are they doing there?"
"Dunno, sir. They told me as to tell you, sir, that they wuz a Committee
of Safety, and that's wot they wanted, sir."
"Wanted what?"
"S-s-afety, sir!"
"And they deputized you to tell me that, eh?"
"Ye-yes, sir."
"And you looked for me down in the cellar?"
"N-no, sir. I wanted safety, too, sir. Oh, Lordy!"
This last interjection was elicited by seeing the upper part of the
_Tribune_ tall tower suddenly fly off, and land on the roof of the _Sun_
building.
A sort of a sphinx-like smile overspread the general's features.
He looked around for the messenger-boy, but that youth was making
extraordinary speed up Broadway.
The general leisurely proceeded up that thoroughfare--occasionally
stopping, as a shot went crashing into some near building, to note the
effect.
On arriving at Union Square, he met a cavalry squad looking for him, and
mounting the horse of one of the men, he proceeded with this escort to
the upper end of the island, which was now densely packed with people.
The projectiles from the heavy guns of the great ironclad were now
falling in the lower part of the city with terrible effect. The Western
Union building was shattered from cellar to roof; the City Hall was on
fire; so also was St. Paul's Church and the _Herald_ building. The
last-mentioned conflagration was put out by the editors and compositors
of that journal--the entire _Herald_ staff being then in the underground
press-rooms, busily preparing and working off _extras_ giving the latest
details of the bombardment.
The Morse Building was completely demolished by two Krupp shells, and
not an edifice in Wall Street, except the sub-Treasury, had escaped
total ruin.
The result of the conference of the Safety Committee was the dispatching
of a messenger to Sandy Hook, informing General Hancock of the
condition of affairs, and asking him to request an armistice for
parley.
The "Ideal," bearing a white flag, was at once dispatched to the Spanish
flag-ship, and shortly after the firing ceased.