Rensselaer Democrat, Volume 1, Number 4, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 6 May 1898 — From the Front. [ARTICLE]

From the Front.

Dewey’s Great Success the topic of the World. Soldiers May Laud in Cuba Inside the Next Week. The past week with regard to the Spanish-American war, has certainly been a histo/y maker for the people of this continent. During the past week a goodly number of rich prizes have been taken, by Admiral Sampson but it remained for Admiral Dewey to make a record for the country in the way naval battles Saturday night with his fleet of six gunboats he entered the harbor at Manilla in spite of the fact that it was laid with sub-marine mines, and on Sunday morning engaged the entire Spanish fleet of eighteen vessels and the forts surrounding the qity in one of the fiercest battles in the history of the navy. Official information concerning this first great battle of the navy, are very meager, but the reports as sent to other nations are of the most satisfactory and thrilling character. The battle as nearas can be learned lasted only about an hour and fifteen minutes, but must have been one of the fiercest in the history of naval warfare. In that remarkable short time the Americans had silenced all the harbor batteries, and had sunk, burned and destroyed the enemies whole fleet. Commodore Montejo, cammander of the Spanish fleet lost his flag ship, the steel cruiser Reina Cristina, which was burned; the cruiser Don Juan de Austria was blown up, and several other ships were riddled and sunk. Other ships which were too badly disabled to be saved, were sunk by the.Spanisli themselves. The battle occdfeperl nig o'clock _l*tthe ®om-i ing, and took place in the Earbof of the city, under the very guns of the surrounding forts.

Just how great the loss of life was on either side can not be definitely know at this time but by the Spanish, it must have been something terriffic. It is thpught that the American loss of life is very light and that the American battle ships sustained very little injury.

The carrying of this fight to a successful finish, has crowned Commodore Dewey with a renoun that will last as long as history of the United States is known, and he has justly won all praise. The ships that Dewey took into this battle were as follows: U. S. cruiser Olympia, the flag ship, cruisers Baltimore, Raleigh, and Boston, and the gunboats Petrel and Concord. A fact which makes the victory all the greater is that only one of the American ships were protected by steel armor plate. . It was indeed a piece of collossal nerve that induced Commodore Dewey to take his fleet into the very face of what might easily be expected to be utter destruction, and to succeed far beyprid the expectations of almost everyone. It is- also asserted that Dewey has shelled the city of Manilla and compelled its complete surrender, and he is now in possession of the wjnnd. If this is the case it is likely that troops will be sent at once to take possession and hold the island. In the meantime the North Atlantic Squadron under Sampson is waiting anxiously for a chance to measure their strength with

the Spanish flotilla, now supposed to be on their way towards American waters/ In case this fleet does not show up here in a reasonable time, it believed that Sampson will cross the Atlantic and engage them in combat in their own waters. Indeed it has already been asserted that a part of the Samjjson fleet has goigf' east for the purpose of hunting up the Spanish and putting the finishing touches on this war. There is little or no dfeubt that another battle, if it is fought will be as successful as the first, as the Spanish nation is not prepared and cannot stand another defeat such as they have just stood. In the mother country the residents are almost in open revolt, and an insurrection is to be momentarily expected. Up to yesterday morning no official information had been received by the government about the Dewey battle, but grave fears are entertained at Washington, for fear the fleet has met with some disaster in the harbor where the fight took place. Information that partial report has been received at the capital is circulated but the truth of the matter can not be relied upon. This report states that the Americans have lost 50 killed and that 100 were wounded, also that two bl the cruisers were pretty badly injured and that a relief ship would probably be sent from San Francisco. That Sampson has really sailed to hunt up the Spanish squadron, now in the neighborhood of Cape Verde islands, is now considered a certainty. He took with him the seven strongest ships in the fleet namely, the New York, lowa, Indiana, Puritan, Cincinnati, Detroit and Mayflower. If this fleet ever comes in contact with the Spanish boats there will undoubtedly be fought the most severe naval battle in the History ornre wona. At Madrid the riot has become so great over the news of the Spanish defeat that the troops have been compelled to fire on rioters. There is talk of the Queen having to retire from her throne because of the liability of an uprising among her people which would dethrone her.