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The 
 
 Cruise 
 
 of the 
 
 U. S. S. Eagle. 
 
LIEUT. W. H. H. SOUTHERLAND, 
 Commanding . 
 
THE 
 
 Cruise of the U. S. S. Eagle 
 
 DURING THE 
 
 Spanish-American War. 
 
 Press of 
 Patterson & White, 
 Philadelphia. 
 
 \s^^! 
 

 
 -A-^^' i 
 
 ^o^ 
 
The Eagle was origiyially the yacht Almy, the property of 
 Mr. Frederic Gallatin^ of New Fork. She was purchased 
 by the U. S. Government in March, 1898, and fitted 
 out as an auxiliary gunboat with a complement of 
 four officers and sixty men, and with a battery 
 of four six-pounder Hotchkiss rapidfire gu7is 
 and two Colt's automatic guns. The fol- 
 lowing is a statement of the facts 
 in connection ivlth the work done 
 by this S7nall vessel during the 
 short war betiveen the United 
 States and Spain. 
 
 Printed under the Auspices of the Crew, i^'--" 
 
 The Eagle is 155 ft. 6 in. on the water line, 24 ft. beam, and 177 ft. 
 6 in. over all. Is rated 100 A i at Lloyds both for hull and machinery. 
 Is built of steel, with steel deck and bulwarks, six solid steel bulkheads. 
 Triple expansion engine 17, 28, 42, and 22 in. stroke. Boiler 12 ft. 6 in. 
 diameter by 13 ft., working pressure 170 pounds. Built by The Harlan 
 & Hollingsworth Co., Wilmington, Delaware. 
 
The Cruise of the U* S. S. Eagle. 
 
 The Eagle left the New York Navy Yard on 
 the afternoon of April 17, 1898, and, after swing- 
 ing ship for compass deviation, left Sandy Hook 
 the following day, arriving at Key West, April 
 
 23, 1898. 
 
 The Eagle left Key West the afternoon of April 
 
 24, and that night boarded the Norwegian 
 steamer Forjsa and the British steamer Myrtle- 
 dene, both of which were allowed to proceed. 
 
 The Eagle proceeded to olf Havana, Cuba, 
 where the commanding ofificer reported to Rear- 
 Admiral W. T. Sampson, U. S. N., Commanding 
 U. S. Naval Forces on North Atlantic Station, 
 on the forenoon of April 25, and was immediately 
 assigned to duty with the division under the com- 
 mand of Commander B. H. McCalla, U. S. N. 
 
 This division, which was composed of three 
 vessels, — the Marblehead, Nashville and Eagle, 
 — left ofif Havana the same forenoon bound to 
 
 5 
 
Cienfuegos, Cuba, for the purpose of intercepting 
 the Spanish armed transports Montserrat and 
 Alicante. 
 
 The Marblehead and Eagle ran aground on 
 the Colorados Reefs on the morning of April 26, 
 getting off without injury the eame forenoon. A 
 full report of this occurrence was made to the 
 Admiral by Commander McCalla, upon consid- 
 eration of which no further action was taken by 
 the Department. 
 
 The division arrived ofif Cienfuegos the morn- 
 ing of April 29, and that forenoon the Nashville, 
 with the two remaining vessels near by to render 
 aid if necessary, captured the Spanish steamer 
 Argonauta, bound from Batabano to Cienfuegos. 
 
 Immediately after this capture, the division 
 commander directed the Eagle to proceed to oflf 
 the mouth of the harbor of Cienfuegos. 
 
 A position was taken abreast of and about 
 fifteen hundred yards away from the lighthouse 
 on Colorados Point, and within a few minutes the 
 Spanish torpedo gunboat Galicia and a small 
 gunboat left the harbor and steamed out toward 
 
the Eagle, each one, in addition to a second small 
 gunboat within the harbor, commencing a well- 
 directed fire, a number of their shots falling quite 
 close to the Eagle. 
 
 This attack was immediately answered from 
 the Eagle's six-pounders, at a range varying from 
 four thousand to twenty-two hundred yards and 
 to such good efifect that in about fifteen minutes 
 the enemy retired, the Galicia having been hit 
 twice, once through her smoke pipe and once 
 through her boiler. 
 
 Within a few minutes, one of the gunboats 
 again appeared and, with a fort on shore, opened 
 fire on the Eagle, which was promptly returned, 
 this vessel in the meantime having steamed a 
 little closer in toward the harbor entrance. 
 
 The Eagle's fire during this second attack was 
 of short duration, as the Marblehead, which 
 upon the firing of the first gun had started full 
 speed to the Eagle's assistance, arrived within a 
 few minutes and, with a well-directed fire from 
 her splendidly handled battery, soon silenced the 
 enemy's fire, both ashore and afloat. 
 
8 
 
 The first of these attacks on the Eagle brought 
 on the first naval engagement afloat of the war, 
 during which engagement a small converted 
 yacht, armed with four six-pounders and two 
 small Colt's automatic guns, defeated and put to 
 flight an enemy's force consisting of one tor- 
 pedo gunboat and two small gunboats. 
 
 The Galicia was of superior size to the Eagle, 
 and was armed with two 4.72-inch breech-loading 
 rifles, four six-pounder rapid-fire guns, one ma- 
 chine gun, and two torpedo tubes. Information 
 received later from near-by insurgents was to the 
 effect that the injuries inflicted on the Galicia by 
 the Eagle's fire were such as to require over five 
 weeks to repair. 
 
 Commander McCalla's division left Cienfuegos, 
 the afternoon of April 29, for Key West, the 
 Eagle being temporarily detached north of Cape 
 San Antonio with dispatches for the Admiral, off 
 Havana. When near Havana it was learned that 
 the Admiral was ofif Key West, at which place the 
 Eagle arrived on the afternoon of May 3, having 
 boarded the British barkantine Daisv en route. 
 
The Eagle left Key West in the early morning 
 of May 5 to join the other two ships of the divi- 
 sion, which had left for Cienfuegos six hours 
 previously. 
 
 During the same night overhauled and 
 boarded the Norwegian steamer Agnes and 
 joined the Marblehead the next morning, both 
 vessels arriving off the harbor of Cienfuegos 
 during the forenoon of May 7. On blockade 
 duty ofif Cienfuegos until the night of May 10, 
 during that interval boarding the British brigan- 
 tine Harry Stewart and the British steamer 
 Adula. 
 
 During the night of May 10 the Eagle, by order 
 of Commander McCalla, parted from the division 
 and arrived at the head of the Gulf of Cazones — 
 at the entrance to Diego Perez channel — the fol- 
 lowing morning. 
 
 During the day a thorough search was made 
 by this vessel, and two pulling boats, for the 
 cable connecting Batabano with Cienfuegos, but 
 without success. From information received 
 from the light-ship keeper and a Cuban pilot, this 
 
lO 
 
 cable had not been seen for three years, and was 
 probably buried many feet deep under the sand 
 on the shoal. Our orders did not permit of a 
 further search. 
 
 The same afternoon the Eagle burned the light- 
 ship at the entrance to Diego Perez channel; the 
 keeper, who said he had received no pay from the 
 Spanish authorities for eleven months, being 
 taken aboard this vessel. The Eagle arrived of¥ 
 Piedras Cay that night and found the three light- 
 house keepers at that place on the verge of star- 
 vation, they having had no communication with 
 the authorities for five weeks, and having been 
 without food for three days. The lighting ap- 
 paratus was completely destroyed and the keep- 
 ers taken on board the Eagle, which joined the 
 division off Cienfuegos the following morning, 
 and during that day, after supplying them with 
 food and clothing, landed the lighthouse keepers 
 at a point on the coast where they were free from 
 molestation by the Spanish forces. 
 
 On blockade duty ofif the entrance to Cienfue- 
 gos harbor until the night of May i6. During 
 
II 
 
 the afternoon of May 15 stood out and picked up 
 a small boat containing five Cubans who were 
 bringing a message from the senior Cuban mili- 
 tary officer in the neighborhood of Cienfuegos. 
 
 These Cubans, who had been forty hours in an 
 open boat, were transferred to the Marblehead. 
 
 On May 16, with four of the above-mentioned 
 Cubans on board, this vessel proceeded to a 
 Cuban camp located thirteen miles to the west- 
 ward of Cienfuegos. After landing the four 
 Cubans and 6000 rounds of ammunition and 
 communicating with Colonel Rodriguez, the 
 Cuban officer in command, the Eagle rejoined 
 the division ofif Cienfuegos and that night, in 
 obedience to orders from the Navy Department, 
 the division, with the Saturn, Hornet and Vixen 
 in company, left for Key West, arriving there 
 May 19. On the passage to Key West the Eagle 
 communicated information to the Flying Squad- 
 ron, and also boarded the American barkantine 
 Minevah. 
 
 The Eagle left Key West on May 21, in com- 
 pany with the Marblehead and Vixen, all bound 
 
12 
 
 for Cienfuegos, and boarded the British steamer 
 SpeciaHst on May 23. 
 
 The division arrived off Cienfuegos on the 
 morning of May 24, and found the Flying 
 Squadron blockading the entrance to the port. 
 That forenoon the Eagle accompanied the Mar- 
 blehead to the Cuban camp, west of Cienfuegos, 
 previously visited by this vessel. Arms and sup- 
 plies were landed for the Cuban force and neces- 
 sary information obtained, after which Comman- 
 der McCalla directed the Eagle to return to the 
 Flying Squadron at full speed and inform the 
 commodore commanding that Cervera's fleet was 
 not in the harbor of Cienfuegos, and that certain 
 small vessels were the only ones in that port, 
 which information was delivered without delay. 
 
 That evening the Flying Squadron, accom- 
 panied by the Marblehead, collier Merrimac, 
 Eagle and Vixen, left the vicinity of Cienfuegos, 
 the commodore commanding signaling that the 
 squadron's destination was Santiago de Cuba. 
 In Lat. 19-30 N., Long, 76-36 W., 25 miles to 
 the westward of Santiago, the Eagle was directed 
 
13 
 
 to proceed to Port Antonio, Jamaica, for coal at 
 which port she arrived the following morning. 
 
 Port Antonio was left on the morning of May 
 28, and Key West reached on the morning of 
 May 31. Key West was left on the morning of 
 Jime 3, the Eagle carrying mail for the Nashville 
 and dispatches for Commodore Watson, who 
 was found on the Montgomery, w^est of Matanzas. 
 The Eagle passed the two following nights on 
 the blockade off the port of Matanzas, in com- 
 pany with the Amphitrite, and then, after coaling 
 from the Lebanon of¥ Piedras Cay, proceeded to 
 the San Nicolas channel and kept a position 
 between Cay Sal Bank and Cruz del Padre 
 lighthouse to await the arrival of the 5th Army 
 Corps. 
 
 On June 5 the British steamer Roath was 
 boarded. At 9 P. M. of June 7 a bright white 
 light was seen bearing N. W. by W. The Eagle 
 was headed for it at full speed, when it imme- 
 diately disappeared. After running for some 
 time without seeing anything, the chase was 
 abandoned. At 9.45 P. M. a similar light was 
 
14 
 
 seen bearing N. by E. -| E. Again the Eagle 
 started in chase, and soon made the private night 
 signal, keeping it up for not less than two 
 minutes, during which interval the white light 
 disappeared and a vessel's hull could be distin- 
 guished. No answer was made to the signal 
 from this vessel. After running for five or ten 
 minutes longer the Eagle again made the night 
 signal for not less than two minutes, but again 
 received no reply. Within a very short interval, 
 however, a white light appeared from the chase 
 — apparently a truck light — and was immediately 
 answered by three white lights at about equal 
 distances astern (to the westward) of the first, all 
 then going out almost immediately. The Eagle, 
 in the meantime, had been going toward the first 
 light at full speed, and four vessels could now be 
 made out, the first and third seeming of large 
 size, the second and fourth quite small. The 
 Eagle, now fully expecting to be attacked, headed 
 for the third vessel in the line, intending to 
 attempt to destroy the last one if attacked by all 
 of them. When abreast the third vessel, and 
 

 
 **"« 
 
15 
 
 within a distance of a mile, the last vessel of the 
 four moved up the line toward the first one. The 
 Eagle turned toward these vessels and ran 
 parallel with them, within less than a mile, for 
 over half an hour, during- which time it was 
 observed that the first and third vessels carried 
 white stern lights and that all v/ere going at a 
 speed of not much over seven knots. During 
 this interval the moon rose, and these vessels 
 could be quite distinctly seen by all on board the 
 Eagle. The fact that the private night signals, 
 which must have been plainly seen, were not 
 answered — an omission which would have been 
 almost criminal on a U. S. man-of-war — the 
 white signals and the white stern lights all went 
 to prove these vessels to be possible enemies, in 
 consequence of which the Eagle turned to the 
 westward and hastened to Key West with this 
 information for the benefit of the convoying fleet, 
 speaking the collier Lebanon en route, and thus 
 sending word to the blockading vessels of¥ 
 Havana. When some distance away from these 
 vessels the lookout aloft reported one of the small 
 
i6 
 
 vessels in chase, but it could not be seen from 
 deck. Shortly after the arrival of the Eagle at 
 Key West the U. S. S. Resolute arrived and 
 reported having been chased by four vessels a 
 short time after the occurrence narrated above, 
 and in the near vicinity. 
 
 Arrived at Key West the morning of Jime 8, 
 and left on the afternoon of June lo with dis- 
 patches for the commanding officer of the 
 Indiana. Delivered the dispatches off Cay 
 Francis on June ii, and returned to Key West 
 on June 12. 
 
 Left Key West on the afternoon of June 14 
 with a convoying squadron, under the command 
 of Captain H. C. Taylor, and proceeded to the 
 vicinity of the Dry Tortugas, joining the army 
 convoy on the night of the 15th, and acting as 
 one of the convoying vessels, until all arrived off 
 Santiago de Cuba on June 20, when the Eagle 
 was sent with dispatches for Rear-Admiral 
 Sampson, who w^as found about fifteen miles to 
 the westward of Santiago. 
 
 On June 22, the day the army landed at Dai- 
 
17 
 
 qiiiri, the Eagle joined the Gloucester, and from 
 8 A. M. to meridian kept up a fire on the fort at 
 Aguadores. During the early afternoon a few 
 shots were fired at some Spanish soldiers on the 
 beach. 
 
 During the night of the 22nd the Eagle was on 
 guard on the sea flank of the army off Daiquiri. 
 
 On June 23 the Eagle carried dispatches to the 
 Admiral off Santiago, and from him to the senior 
 officer present at Guantanamo. As the Eagle 
 crossed the bow of the Marblehead in Guanta- 
 namo harbor the crew of that vessel appeared 
 above the rail and gave three hearty cheers for 
 the Eagle, which were returned from this ship 
 with warmth. 
 
 On the morning of June 24, by order of Com- 
 mander McCalla, the senior officer present, the 
 Eagle relieved the Dolphin, taking position at 
 the entrance to the channel into the mined har- 
 bor to overlook the enemies' mine field, support- 
 ing our boats which were engaged in counter- 
 mining, and, by means of our searchlight, to 
 guard against surprises from and to observe any 
 movements of the enemy at night. 
 
i8 
 
 Left Guantanamo in the early afternoon of 
 June 26, and proceeded to off Daiquiri and San- 
 tiago with dispatches for General Shafter and 
 Rear-Admiral Sampson. In the evening carried 
 dispatches from Rear-Admiral Sampson to 
 General Shafter, the commanding ofHcer, deliver- 
 ing them in person to the latter on the transport 
 Segurancia off the harbor at Siboney. 
 
 Returned to Santiago the next morning with 
 dispatches for Rear-Admiral Sampson. 
 
 The Eagle left Santiago the afternoon of June 
 2.y and arrived off Cienfuegos the following 
 evening, immediately communicating with Com- 
 mander C. H. Davis, the senior officer present. 
 
 An officer and two privates of the Cuban army 
 were sent on board the Eagle with directions that 
 they should be landed the next morning off the 
 Rio Hondo, provided certain prearranged signals 
 were exchanged with the Cuban force on shore. 
 The Eagle arrived off the mouth of the Rio 
 Hondo at 6 A. M. June 29, and made the pre- 
 arranged signals until 8.40 A. M., when shots 
 were heard from shore and projectiles seen to 
 
19 
 
 fall in the water short of this vessel. For sev- 
 eral minutes no enemy could be seen, although 
 the shots were constantly striking nearer and 
 nearer to this vessel and in a good line. Finally 
 a large force of cavalry was made out on a 
 plateau back of the beach, and the Eagle opened 
 a rapid and well-directed fire upon them. The 
 first shot struck in the midst of the enemy and, 
 according to information given to our people by 
 insurgents later, killed and wounded twenty- 
 seven of them. The enemy mounted in haste 
 and retreated up the hillside, this vessel con- 
 tinuing the fire on them, apparently with good 
 effect for an hour, at the end of which time they 
 had reached the back of a ridge over five 
 thousand yards distant. About ten minutes after 
 the Eagle commenced this action the Yankton, 
 which was then passing, bound south, was sig- 
 naled the cause of the action, and immediately 
 joined the Eagle and did some excellent firing at 
 the enemy. Shortly after the Eagle ceased firing 
 the U. S. S. Dixie, Commander C. H. Davis, 
 appeared on the scene. Upon receiving a verbal 
 
20 
 
 report of the engagement, Commander Davis 
 directed the Eagle to proceed to the Cuban 
 camp of Colonel Rodriguez, thirteen miles west 
 of Cienfuegos, and land the Cubans at that point. 
 
 Shortly after the Eagle started off in obedience 
 to this order the Dixie opened fire with her main 
 battery guns, apparently at the same troops pre- 
 viously engaged by the Eagle. 
 
 After landing the Cuban officer and privates 
 at the camp of Colonel Rodriguez, the Eagle 
 proceeded to the Isle of Pines, arriving early the 
 following morning; and from June 30 until the 
 cessation of hostilities was engaged in maintain- 
 ing an effective blockade from the southern point 
 of the Isle of Pines to Cape Francis, a distance in 
 a straight line of sixty-five nautical miles, coaling 
 ship at Key West whenever the necessity arose. 
 
 During this interval of six weeks the principal 
 results of the Eagle's presence were as follows: 
 
 I. Nineteen vessels were overhauled and 
 boarded, sixteen of which were allowed to pro- 
 ceed and three taken possession of as lawful 
 prizes. 
 
21 
 
 2. At daybreak on the morning of July 3, 
 while near Pepe Head, smoke was sighted to the 
 southward. The Eagle chased and got within 
 about five miles of a four-masted double-smoke- 
 pipe steamer, which answered to the description 
 of the Alfonso XII. As soon as the Eagle was 
 made out the steamer ran away. For nearly an 
 hour the Eagle gained slightly, after which the 
 steamer gradually drew ahead. The chase was 
 kept up for a distance of fifty-nine nautical miles 
 in the direction of Cape San Antonio, when the 
 Alfonso XII was lost sight of. This vessel was 
 run ashore by the U. S. S. Hawk ofif Mariel 
 forty-eight hours later. 
 
 3. During the morning of July 5 a schooner 
 was sighted off the southern end of the Isle of 
 Pines, and was chased close in shore, where she 
 was deserted by her crew. When boarded she 
 proved to be the Spanish schooner Gallito, and 
 was seized as a prize. The boarding party, with 
 Ensign Roys in command, was fired on from 
 shore, but the attacking party was quickly dis- 
 persed by a few well-aimed shots from the 
 Eagle's six-pounders. 
 
22 
 
 4- Shortly before noon on July 12 a large 
 steamer was sighted off Cape Francis in the act 
 of chasing three prizes of the U. S. S. Dixie — 
 the British schooner Three Bells and two sloops. 
 The Eagle started full speed in chase, it being 
 supposed that the enemy's vessel was the Spanish 
 armicd steamer Montevideo, for which the Eagle 
 was then on the lookout in accordance with in- 
 formation contained in a telegram from the 
 Secretary of the Navy to the Commandant of the 
 Naval Base at Key West. As soon as the Eagle 
 appeared in sight this steamer gave up the chase 
 of the Dixie's prizes and ran for the N. W. part 
 of the bight between the Isle of Pines and Cape 
 Francis, the Eagle chasing and heading to cut 
 her ofT. In about an hour's time the steamer 
 ran aground on a shoal off Piedras Point. From 
 reliable information received a few weeks later 
 it was learned that she was bound to La Colima, 
 and was only a few hundred yards from a good 
 channel when she struck. 
 
 A small white side-wheel steamer which had 
 been lying close in shore ran out to and alongside 
 
the steamer at once, but left in less than half an 
 hour when the Eagle, which had run into very 
 shoal water over an uneven bottom, dropped 
 anchor and opened fire on the steamer at a dis- 
 tance of about two thousand vards. According: 
 to the chart, the Eagle should then have been 
 hard and fast aground, the hydrography in this 
 locality on the chart being entirely inaccurate. 
 Just before opening fire, the river steamer left 
 and steamed about to the northward, and as soon 
 as fire was opened started for the channel inside 
 the San Filipe Cays, followed by an occasional 
 shot from this vessel. It was observed that two 
 large guns were mounted forward on the steamer, 
 and as our fire was not answered from these a 
 volunteer armed boat's crew, with the executive 
 ofificer, Ensign Symington, in charge, was sent 
 ahead to board the steamer, if it was found safe 
 to do so, and to take possession of her as a prize. 
 At the same time the anchor was lifted and the 
 Eagle felt her way slowly in toward the steamer 
 with a boat's crew, in charge of Ensign Craven, 
 ahead to sound out a channel. When within six 
 
24 
 
 hundred yards of the steamer the armored boat's 
 crew was seen to board without opposition. The 
 Eagle's anchor was then dropped and a second 
 boat's crew sent to aid the first. 
 
 It was then discovered that the vessel was the 
 Spanish armed steamer Santo Domingo, with 
 two 4.72-inch breech-loading Hontoria rifles, 
 protected by shields, mounted forward, and that 
 she was simply packed with live stock, provi- 
 sions, clothing and other supplies, and that she 
 had two twelve-inch breech-loading rifles secured 
 in her hold. 
 
 All fires in her furnaces v^^ere going full blast, 
 with steam blowing of¥ at 170 pounds and no 
 water showing in her gauges. Fires were imme- 
 diately hauled by the prize crew. Lunch had 
 been served and only half eaten when the four 
 ofBcers, crew of seventy-eight men and the sixty- 
 six male passengers deserted her and left in the 
 river steamer above referred to. They fled in 
 such haste that few private effects were taken and 
 none of the cargo was disturbed. Her two 4.72- 
 inch guns were loaded ready for firing, and her 
 
25 
 
 magazine was open. Had these guns been used 
 she could have given the Eagle a very warm 
 reception. 
 
 The fire from the Eagle's six-pounders was 
 very destructive, many shells striking and ex- 
 ploding above and below the water line and 
 doing great damage. An inventory of the vessel 
 and cargo estimated her value at nearly nine hun- 
 dred thousand dollars ($900,000). Every effort 
 was made to get the 4.72-inch guns, but, after 
 several hours' work, it was found impossible to 
 move them. Their breech blocks were removed 
 and the guns rendered unserviceable, as it was 
 found impossible to get the vessel off, as there 
 was a distinct possibility of an attempt at recap- 
 ture (the smoke from each of three vessels being 
 visible in the direction of Batabano). As there 
 were no other United States vessels within a dis- 
 tance of two hundred miles to help get the prize 
 off, as several Spanish gunboats were known to 
 be in the vicinity and garrisons of Spanish sol- 
 diers at the various towns along this coast, and as 
 it was not certain that the Eagle could be safely 
 
26 
 
 manoetivered at night in the neighboring waters, 
 it was decided to burn the prize. She was set on 
 fire at sundown and completely destroyed. From 
 reliable information received later, it was learned 
 that a small Spanish gunboat was a witness to the 
 destruction of the Santo Domingo from a near-by 
 cove. A visit to this vessel several days later 
 showed that the twelve-inch guns could be saved 
 with the proper wrecking appliances, and that the 
 4.72-inch guns could be saved and made of use 
 to the service. 
 
 5. The U. S. S. Nashville arrived of¥ the Isle 
 of Pines on July 14 for the purpose of determin- 
 ing whether a sub-base could be established in 
 Siguanea Bay or not. 
 
 On the 1 6th the Eagle ran into Siguanea Bay, 
 on a line previously sounded out by the Nash- 
 ville's steam launch, and found a least depth of 
 sixteen feet of water. On the 17th the Nashville 
 left for Key West. 
 
 6. During the forenoon of July 24 the Eagle 
 chased and captured the Spanish schooner 
 Dolores, laden principally with grain, and sent 
 her to Key West for adjudication. 
 
27 
 
 7- On July 26 communication was opened 
 with an insurgent camp on Mangle Point, which 
 was imder the command of a Cuban lieutenant. 
 Much valuable information was obtained, and it 
 was learned that, excepting the Alfonso XII and 
 the Santo Domingo, no vessel had attempted to 
 run the blockade since the Eagle had first 
 appeared in these waters. Arrangements were 
 made for a pilot and for future means of commu- 
 nication. 
 
 The U. S. S. Bancroft arrived on the Isle of 
 Pines blockade on July 28, followed by the 
 U. S. S. Maple the day after. 
 
 For four weeks prior to the arrival of the Ban- 
 croft the Eagle had blockaded this entire section 
 of the coast so elTfectively that, according to in- 
 formation received from insurgents and other 
 people on shore, no vessel had succeeded in run- 
 ning the blockade, notwithstanding the fact that 
 two of the enemy's gunboats were in hiding 
 places in the vicinity all the time. 
 
 From this time until the night of August 13, 
 when the news of the signing of the protocol 
 
28 
 
 was received from the U. S. S. Helena, the Eagle 
 was the junior vessel on the station, and was 
 employed in blockading duty in and between 
 Cortes and Siguanea Bays. 
 
 When the news of the signing of the protocol 
 was received the Eagle was on her way from 
 Siguanea Bay to Cortes Bay to inform the senior 
 ofBcer present that, from information sought for 
 and obtained while in Siguanea Bay, the imme- 
 diate capture of the Isle of Pines, without loss of 
 life, was assured. 
 
 August i6 the blockading vessels off the Isle 
 of Pines received orders to leave. 
 
 The Eagle reached Key West August i8, and, 
 leaving there the same night, arrived off Hamp- 
 ton Roads three days later. 
 
 During the four months and five days since 
 leaving the New York Navy Yard, the Eagle had 
 covered a distance of 13,605 miles. 
 
 During this interval the health of the ship's 
 company was excellent, notwithstanding the fact 
 that the men did not have their hammocks at sea, 
 but always slept under cover on deck, near their 
 guns. 
 
Captain, Officers and Crew U. S. S» Eagle 
 during Spanish-American Wan 
 
 Lieut. W. H. H. SOUTHERLAND, Commanding Officer. 
 
 Officers. 
 
 Ensign POWERS SYMINGTON, 
 Ensign T. T. CRAVEN, 
 Ensign J. H. ROYS, 
 Naval Cadet T. B. DUNGAN, 
 Naval Cadet C. B. HATCH, 
 Naval Cadet A. C. HOWARD, 
 Asst. Surgeon G. F. FREEMAN, 
 Asst, Engineer M. L. COOKE, 
 
 Executive Officer. 
 
 Navigator. 
 
 Senior Watch Officer. 
 
 Watch Officer. 
 
 Watch Officer. 
 
 Watch Officer. 
 
 Medical Officer. 
 
 Chief Engineer. 
 
 29 
 
GREW. 
 
 Briggs, Henry Jay, C. M. at A 
 
 Renner, John, C. B. M 
 
 Comerford, Lawrence, C. G. M 
 
 Bray, William, C.Q.M. 
 
 Rusk, Olando Lee, C. Mch, 
 
 Larsen, Edward, C. C. M, 
 
 Downs, Harry Edmond, Apoth. 
 
 Hall, Patrick, Q. M. i CI. 
 
 Atley, John, Q. M. i CI. 
 
 Higgenhaugen, Bergen, Mch. i CI, 
 Dailey, Dennis, Blacksmith. 
 Ellsworth, John Lawrence, B.M. 2 CI. 
 
 Keating, J. E., G. M. 2 CI. 
 
 McQuay, Samuel Cury, G. C. 2 CI. 
 
 Stewart, William, Elec. 2 CI. 
 
 Ebert, Rudolph, Mch. 2 CI. 
 
 Jakobson, Karl Creceus, Mch. 2 CI. 
 
 Barrett, Arthur Albert, Mch. 2 CI. 
 
 Lindquist, Oscar, Mch. 2 CI. 
 Stranahan, Harry Parkman.Yeo. 2 CI. 
 
 Smith. Charles, Cox. 
 
 Monroe, Neil, Cox. 
 
 Johanson, Henrik, Sea. 
 
 Gregory, V/illiam, Sea. 
 
 Griffin, Charles, Sea. 
 
 Johansen, Oluf, Sea. 
 
 Leclaire, Edmond, Sea. 
 
 Cronin, Jeremiah, Sea. 
 
 Lake, Thomas, Sea. 
 
 Black, John, Sea. 
 
 Betts, A. G., Sea. 
 
 Powers, James William, F. i CI. 
 
 Upham, Prentiss, O. S. 
 
 Bythewood, J 
 
 Lindquist, Anders Wiktor, O. S. 
 Collins, Thomas, O. S. 
 
 Conrad, William Joseph, O. S. 
 
 Hood, James, O. S. 
 
 O'Hara, John, O. S. 
 
 Hirsch, David, O. S. 
 
 Rasmussen, Peter AInis, O. S. 
 
 Starr, Henry, O. S. 
 
 Shaffer, William Edgar, O. S. 
 
 Miller, G. H., Appr. 2 CI. 
 
 Johnson, J. P., Appr. 2 CI. 
 
 Snow, Frederick, F. 2 CI. 
 
 Conroy, J., F. 2 CI. 
 
 Mayott, Claude, F. 2 CI. 
 
 Ryan, Frank, F. 2 CI. 
 
 Porter, George Barth, F. 2 CI. 
 
 Cassidy, Thomas, F. 2 CI. 
 
 Sweeney, Thomas Patrick, Lds. 
 
 Shepherd, James Earle, Lds. 
 
 Prachtel, George William, Lds. 
 
 Spencer, Thomas, Lds. 
 
 Holt, Michael, Lds. 
 
 Lane, Albert Malcolm, Lds. 
 
 Horn, Otto, Lds. 
 
 Thomas, Charles, Lds. 
 
 Lewis, Frederick, Lds. 
 
 Kellogg, Chauncey Joseph, Lds. 
 
 Barr, William Alphonse, Bayman. 
 Barr, A, E., C. P. 
 
 Davis, George, Cabin Cook. 
 
 Bauer, John Paul, W. R. Steward. 
 O'Hagan, Edward, S. C. 3 CI. 
 
 Anderson, William Henry, Mess Att. 
 oseph. Mess Att. 
 
 30 
 
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