The RAMMING of the TALBOT
An Incident of the Spanish-American War Which Has Never Before Got Into Print.
One of those sudden Cuban down pours that leave a man drenched and gasping had just passed over us, and the wind from shore brought to our nostrils the rank odor of the jungle. A tiny spot of light from the peep-hole in the masked binacle played on the features of the man at the wheel. The tread of the lookout, the occasional creaking of the wheel ropes, the steady beat of the engines and now and then the mutilled scrape of a shovel far down in the fire room, told that men were everywhere, quiet but ready.
Suddenly the lookout forward stopped in his walk, leaned over the rail and, with the drowsiness driven from his eyes, gazed ahead at a tiny speck of red that showed far away through the night.
"Light o o-o!" he shouted.
The captain jumped from his seat in the wheel house and was outside in an instant. No need to ask, "Where awa?" The light showed clear and bright about five miles dead ahead. "Full speed!" sang out the captain. The bell tinkled in the engine room, and as the engineer gave her steam the Unces jumped like a race horse. Down in the gangway a group of firemen stood ready to relieve their mates who sweated in the fiery hole below.
In the language of the Cuban blockade runners a single red light meant but one thing: "Send a pilot; we are coming in." Every man of us knew that unless we could reach the harbor entrance ahead of the stranger there would be another vessel added to the fleet that lay inside Mantazas harbor waiting for our ships to relax their vigilance—or for the war to end. Just outside the harbor a little to the westward there was a small village, and toward this she was heading to pick up a pilot before attempting the entrance. As yet there had been no response from the shore to her signal. The red light still burned, but in a moment it was dimmed by a line of flame from the deck. A rocket rose high in the air and burst, scattering a shower of blue stars. They saw her now. Lights began to show in the village and bonfires puffed up along the hiltops, bearing the news east and west.
On the bridge the captain smoked in numerable cigarettes, now and then storming at the engineer through the speaking tube for more speed. We hung fast to her wake, drawing closer and closer to the shore. Soon we could hear the roar of the breakers and could make out the dim outline of the village hanging half way up the hillside. The ery of the man at the lead, "No bottom at ten!" soon changed to a "Deep nine" "n a half eight!" and still that red light led us like a will-o' the wisp toward the shore.
The captain, who had been staring ahead, suddenly turned. "She's no blockade runner; she's a gunbait." We had run so close now that we could make her out. The long, black hull lying close to the water and the dim figures of the men on her deck became clearer. In a moment an unwieldly tube, too large for a rifle, swung toward us, revealing what some had already suspected. "A torpedo boat," cried one of the men.
She had thrown up the chase and slowly swing till she was broadside on. The captain lit a fresh cigarette, hitched his revolver around and stepped back against the pilot house. "All ready boys?" he queried. "All ready sir," answered the gun captains. No 3 at the little Hotchkiss i-pounder, slipped a shell into the breech and gave the gun's brown barrel a baving pat.
"Full speed ahead! Stand by the ram"
name the commands in rapid succession,
and the Uncas shot ahead. Every man except for the guns' crews, dropped flat and braced himself for the shock.
Without a word the gruns were trained on that torpedo tube. The helmsman gave the wheel a spoke to port so as to strike her fairly amid hijs Every one of us held his breath and listened for the hiss of air which would mark the launching of the torpedo or crash which would leave our enemy sinking and helpless.
Just then came a hail, unmistakably American:
"Ship 'hoy! What ship's that?"
Tug China, you are. "Torpedo-boat Talbot, from Key West, with mail for the squadron."
The signal jingled in our engine room and the reversed propeller of the Uncas churned the water at full speed in a vain effort to stop her in time to prevent a collision, but it was too late. A crash and the Talbot was cut from deck to water-line. Men standing near her rail were knocked overboard by the impact, while the glare of an exploding lamp made the forward compartment of the Talbot seem a mass of flame.
It was collision drill, fire drill and man overboard all at once, but the well-drilled crew of the torpedo boat were equal to the emergency. The boat we lowered had hardly reached the water before they had fished out their shipmate
P. D. Kelley and Sam Adams left for Chickasaw I. T. this week. They have secured positions with the Rock Island Railroad.
Miss Edna Schebel who has spent the past two weeks with her friend Loren Leslie returns home to Hutchinson, Monday.
A. C. Frank '00 was here the fore part of the week. He went from here to Oregon where he will go in business with his brother.
Stroup, Miller and Loveclace are the only Freshmen engineers who have badly burned hands. All the accidents happened in the chemical laboratory, however.
Mr. Morscher has invented a new electrical machine that is designed to take the place of the plates of glasses that are common in many of our electrical machines.
The Sigma Chi and their lady friends occupied the front section of seats at the Chapel Thursday night in honor of Mr. Harold Henry who is a member of the Sigma Chi fraternity.
On The Hill.
T. M. Bushby, W. A. Wheeler and J.
M. McCarthy have quit school to work in
Hot weather Clothing. ___
"We can supply your wants."
FLANNEL SUITS.
NORFOLK SUITS.
SERGE SUITS.
MANHATTAN SHIRTS.
We Want Your Business.
CHARLES W. KIMBALL.
The correspondent on the newspaper launch at Key West scented a story when he saw a much-battered torpedo boat with a great patch in her side steam into the harbor next morning, but the captain of the Talbot was wise in his way, and out side of the depart ment there has never been a whisper of the occurrence that is set down here.
Of course we still sell hats.
Smith keeps Golf Goods.
OBER'S.
V
and put out the fire below. The Talbot was bulkheaded into compartments after a fashion, and by closing the port midship bunker, in which the cut had been made, they kept her from sinking. But the water gave her such a list to starboard that she could not be steered so we had to take her in tow. We set off for the eastward, and arrived at the little island off Carleana called Piedras Key about daybreak. The machinists patched up the leak with a piece of sheet copper, the pumps were set to going, and in a few hours the Talbot was on an even keel again.
There were many things to be explained at the confrence held that day in the captain's cabin; the red light, the rockets and all the rest. Yet the ex-planation was simple enough after all. The Talbot had carried the regular signal, a red above two whites, but her 10-foot stick of a mast was only high enough to show the topmost light above the funnels. Moreover, it was the Talbot's first experience on the blockade, and when the captain of her found himself off the coast after nightfall he had a very hazy idea of his location. He was sure of one thing—he had mail for the fleet which must be delivered, so he bumped toward touching off the fire works, as he said "to let the vessel or the blockade know he had arrived." And he succeeded beautifully.
a surveying party south of St. Louis They will work for the K.C. & S. of which an uncle of Prof. Marvin is chief engineer.
FISCHER'S
are swell--compare them with all at $5.50 and 8.90.
Patent leather shoes at
FISCHER'S
A. E. PROTSCH Artistic Tailor
_ $5.00
Patent Leather Shoes at
are one of the best shown. If you want
shoes right buy them at
---
$4.00
Norner Warren and Mass. St. Lawrence, Kan.
FISCHER'S
Fresh maple syrup made from this spring's run of sap at
COLEMAN'S
'Phone 40.
Steam Laundry WILDER BROS.
Shirt Waists and Dresses a Specialty.
Calls made Monday and Friday.
Delivered Tuesday and Wednesday.
FRED. S. LISCUM. University Agt.
PARK GROCERY
HAROLD McCRORY
Dentist.
843 Massachusetts Street.
"Hello, Jennie!"
"Why hello, Mary?"
"Say Jennie, we are going to start a tennis tournament on the hill—where do you get your supplies?"
"On, we always get ours of the Lawrence Bicycle Co."
"Is that so? I didn't know they had them."
"Yes they just got a new supply."
"Well I must go, Jennie. There comes Jim, and he will want me to ride with him but I don't going to till he goes to the Lawaence Bicycle Co. and alld gets me a new 1901 National Bicycle. They are just beauties."
The Potraits of Our Presidents
With Biographical Sketches
GENERAL CHARLES M. GROSVENOR.
Title Page Designed by Tiffany.
This Inaugural year, when the public mind is aroused over Presidential questions is a fitting time to issue General Grosvenor book. Its sale it already tremendous, and will perhaps exceed that of General Grant's Personal Memoirs.
Every patriotic American desires to read what General Growner has to say of George Washington, Thomas Jefferson Andrew Jackson, Abraham Lincoln, President McKinley and the other Chief Executives of the United States, and what general Growner, the staunch old Republican leader in Congress, will say of that stumach old democrat, Andrew Jackson, the father of the democratic party. General Growner has thrown into his sketch of Jekk o all the fire and the blood of Thomas Jefferson is grand. The biography of Lincoln is as beautiful as the sunrise on the hips. General Growner has personally known all the Pididents since the time of James Buchanan in American history which has never been put published, written from his own personal observations of these greatmen. General Growner has served in Congress for nearly 1enty years, and he has served, his country in war and in Congress during World War II, twenty four large Photographue Etchings as fine Stain plates printed by hand, on heavy plate paper made especially to order. The 24 Photographue Etchings are different tintes and are worth $2 each, the others are in color and are not embellished by their family and near relatives of the Presidents. Two years time and a fortune has been exchanged in securing these reproductions. The complete book is well worth $8, but the price has been placed so low that you may be tempted to purchase the diagonal sketches are printed in large one size type in two colors; the work is so beautiful that when people see it they want it. The advance sale is very large. President McKinley was the first president of the United States, the President de Grand Luxe, initial letters hand painted, Portraits hand colored, title page hand illuminated, numbered and numbered; subscription price $2.50 Orders and application for territory are coming in rapidly and standing can soon make a wonderful fortune taking orders in this community. Sd references and apply for terms quick as the territory will be assigned soon. ADDRESS THE CONTINENTAL PIERIS.
Corcoran Building
Opposite United States Treasury,
WASHINGTON, D. C.
GEO. W, JONES, A, M, M, D.
GEO. W. JONES, A. M. M. D.
Physician and Surgeon,
Office 743 Massachusetts Street,
Residence 901 Ohio Street.
Telephone, Residence or office, 35.
F. D. MORSE, A. M., M. D.
Residence, 1041 Tennessee Street,
Office over Woodward's Drug Store,
LAWRENCE, KANSAS.
J. W. O'BRYON, D. D. S.
Dental Rooms,
819 Massachusetts Street,
LAWRENCE, KANSAS.
A. P. HULTS,
Shane's
DENTIST,
Office 735 Massachusetts Street,
LAWRENCE, KANSAS.
Photographers.
MRS, SHANE, 615 Mass. St.
J. B. SHANE, 1000 Mass. St.
F. R. BARTZ,
West End Meat Market.
DEALER IN
FRESH AND SALG MEAGS.
Special Rates given to Clubs. Phone, 314.
The Tipton Barber Shop
R. H. SGEWARG.
38 Mass. St. LAWRENCE, KAN
AND BATH ROOMS
Eastern Star Bakery.
AND BATH ROOMS
One Bath... 25c 1 Baths...$2.00
Seven Baths...$1 00 24 Baths...3.00
Baths, School Year...$6 00.
Cream Rolls, Doughnuts, Cream Puffs Maccarooms, Egg Kissies, Bread, etc., etc.
PARTIES SUPPLIED.
J. Donnellg. N. Donnellg.
Telephone No. 100.
DONNELLY BROS.
Liverg, Boarding and Hack Stables.
All Rubber Tire Rigs.
700 to 717.4.t
Lawrence, Kan.
A. J. Anderson
Physician and Surgeon,
Office 715 Vermont Street. Telephone 124 LAWRENCE, KANSAS.
WILLIS.
933 Mass. st. Lawrence, Kan
Commencement Engraving.
The engraving department of the Jaccard Jewelry Company is placed at the service of the College students in preparation for commencement.
Artistic designs
Correct arrangement
Perfect workmanship
Faultless stationery
Absolute accuracy
are guaranteed when ordered at JACCARD'S. We are glad to submit samples upon request.
KANSAS CIGY, MO