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Page 4
Weyler complains bitterly about the filibustering expeditions. He
declares that the war could have been long since terminated if the
United States had not given so much aid to the insurgents by allowing
these expeditions to be fitted out in her ports.
The _Dauntless_ has been successful in carrying three expeditions to
Cuba lately.
One of them was landed only a few miles from Havana, and passed within
gunshot of the great fortress Morro Castle without being seen by any of
the gunboats which are supposed to guard the shores.
Weyler was furious that such a daring act should have been safely
accomplished, and has written a severe letter to the Admiral in charge
of the fleet, upbraiding him for his carelessness.
In the last of her three expeditious the saucy little _Dauntless_ ran
short of coal and water, and to the annoyance of the Spaniards the
keeper of a lighthouse situated on one of the West Indian keys that
belong to England gave the men the supplies they needed, and enabled
them to make their third trip in safety.
General Weyler has ordered an investigation of the matter, and intends
to make a formal complaint to England about the action of the lighthouse
keeper.
The way the _Dauntless_ managed her three expeditions without being
caught was very clever. All the stores, ammunition, arms, and men that
were to be conveyed to Cuba were gradually gathered on one of the
Florida keys. There are a great number of these little banks and islands
stretching along the coast of Florida, and some of them are so difficult
to reach, for any steamer that draws much water, that they make good
hiding-places.
When everything was in readiness the _Dauntless_ went down to the key,
and one after the other took off her three loads. The hiding-place was
so well chosen that no one knows exactly where it is, and if the Cubans
keep their secret they will be able to send other expeditions in the
same way.
General Weyler has other anxieties on his mind just now. He is expecting
the arrival of a new floating dock which has been built for him in
England, at a cost of $900,000.
This great dock is intended to be used as a dry-dock; that is to say, it
is so made that ships can be lifted clear out of the water by it, so
that they can be repaired, cleaned, or painted.
There is no dry-dock in Cuban harbors, and it is very necessary to have
one. Ships that cruise long in tropical waters are very apt to get their
hulls covered with barnacles and sea-weed. These growths after a while
prevent the ship from cutting easily through the water, and decrease her
speed. All ships that are long in these southern seas have to have their
hulls scraped every now and then. Many of the war-vessels that are now
in Cuban waters have been a year without this necessary cleaning, and to
make it possible to do the work in Cuba, without the loss of time
necessary to go back to the Spanish navy yards, the Government has gone
to the expense of building the floating dock.
There have been no end of difficulties about the dock. When it was
finished it was so big and heavy that it was very doubtful if any ship
could safely tow it across the Atlantic. The shipbuilders added a false
bow and stem to the dock, to make it cut its way through the water a
little, and in this fashion it is now being brought to Cuba; but the
gravest doubts are entertained as to the possibility of its ever
reaching its destination. It is feared that in case of a severe storm
the hawser, or strong rope by which it is towed, will part, and the
costly floating dock be left drifting about the ocean, a danger to
mariners.
But this is not the half of the trouble over the dock.
The greatest annoyance in regard to it is that it was built without
properly considering the amount of water it would draw; that is to say,
the depth of water necessary to float it.
Now that the dock is on its way to Cuba, it is found that it draws too
much water for the bay of Havana, and cannot be brought in and used
there.
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