A wonderful task! but Dewey was a wonderful man. He understood his business. He had been trained under the eye of the great Admiral Farragut and had fought long and hard in the war for the Union.
354. The Remarkable Naval Victory at Manila.—Dewey's fleet arrived before sunrise in front of the forts and the line of Spanish ships. The battle at once began. Our vessels kept moving on the curve of a long ellipse or flattened circle, and every time each came around it poured a series of rapid and accurate shots directly into the enemy. They answered furiously, but not deliberately. Round and round wheeled our ships in a slow and deadly circle. Our men could see the walls of the forts crumbling, some ships all ablaze, and others shattered and sinking.
After two hours of these tremendous circuits Dewey stopped firing and moved his ships about three miles out of range to rest his men, give them breakfast, and look after his ammunition. The men, in fine spirits, ate their morning meal, and rested. It was a stoker on the flagship Olympia who said that below "the temperature is nearly up to two hundred degrees, and so hot that our hair is singed."
Before noon Dewey returned, circled nearer still, and fought even more fiercely. In an hour and a half more the work was finished. One ship was riddled, then reeled and sank; then another; one was broken midway and went down; now one was in flames, then a second, and so on till the entire Spanish fleet, besides gunboats and transports, were sunk or burned up or shot to pieces!
Battle of Manila.
How did our ships stand the contest? Only two or three were hit at all, and none seriously injured. Our six had destroyed thirteen Spanish vessels and silenced their forts. The Spaniards had lost six hundred and thirty-four men, killed and wounded. We had only one man killed and seven slightly wounded.
355. The Nation's Grateful Appreciation of Dewey's Victory.—Thus was fought, on May Day, 1898, at Manila, perhaps the most surprising naval conflict the world had ever seen. In three and a quarter hours the naval power of Spain went down in the blue waters of the bay, and the splendid fame of George Dewey echoed round the globe. Congress gave him a vote of thanks and a gold medal; and he was made Admiral, the highest officer in the American navy.
Many years ago Admiral Farragut said to the father of the hero of Manila, "Doctor Dewey, your son George is a worthy and brave officer. He has an honorable record, and some day he will make his mark."
Never before in the history of our country was there projected a series of patriotic demonstrations grander in their purpose or finer in their execution than those which greeted Admiral Dewey on his return to this country, in the fall of 1899, from the scene of his famous victory.