“By aid of glasses Commander Lilly of the Mayflower, which was flying the pennant, made out the larger vessel of the two, which was two hundred feet long and about forty-five hundred tons displacement, to be the cruiser Alphonso XII., and the small one to be the gunboat Legaspi, both of which were known to be bottled up in Havana Harbour.
“At first he supposed that they were taking advantage of the absence of the heavy fighting-ships, and were making a bona-fide run for the open sea.
“As superior officer, he immediately signalled the other war-ships on the station, the Vicksburg, Annapolis, [pg 139]Wasp, Tecumseh, and Osceola. The little squadron gave chase to the flying Spaniards, keeping up a running fire as they advanced. The Alphonso and her consort circled inshore about five miles below Havana, and headed back for Morro Castle.
“Our gunboats and the vessels of the mosquito fleet did not follow them in. Commander Lilly saw that the wily Spanish ruse was to draw them in under the guns of the heavy batteries, where Spanish artillery officers could plot out the exact range with their telemeters. So the return was made in line ahead, parallel with the shore.
“Commander Lilly had not been mistaken. As his ships came abreast of Santa Clara battery the big guns opened, and fired thirteen shells at a distance of about five miles. The range was badly judged, as more than half the missiles overshot the mark, and others fell short, some as much as a mile.
“The big Alphonso and her convoy steamed swiftly from the dark shadow of the harbour’s mouth, and, turning sharply east, ran along the coast as though to slip through the cordon of blockade.
“It was a bold trick and not at first transparent, although the folly of it created a suspicion.
“The Spanish boats crowded on steam and stood along the coast as long as they dared, to give zest to the chase. The Mayflower signalled her consorts, ‘Close in and charge.’
“Seeing that the bait had apparently taken, the [pg 140]Spaniards veered about, and, bringing their stern-chasers to bear on the Americans, doubled back for Morro.
“Two of the shells from the Vicksburg burst in the rigging of the Alphonso, and some of it came down, but it was, of course, impossible to know whether any fatalities occurred. The American fire was much more accurate than the Spanish, as every shell of the latter fell short of their pursuers.