The Spanish gunners seemed unable to get the proper range and many of their shots were very wild, though a number of them fell dangerously near to the mark.

Two guns of the battery just east of Morro also took part in the game and their shells fell around the American ships.  Many of them struck the upper works of the fleeing Spaniards and must have resulted in killing and wounding many of their men.

The Spanish ships had now reached a point about seven miles west of Morro and a mile or two beyond the place where the Furor was burning and the Pluton broken in two against the cliff.

The flagship and the Oquendo were the first to show signals of distress.  Two thirteen-inch shells from one of the battleships had struck the Maria Teresa at the water line, tearing great holes in her side and causing her to fill rapidly.  The Oquendo suffered about the same fate and both ships headed for a small cove and went aground 200 yards from the shore, flames shooting from them in every direction.

The Gloucester, after sending a boat ashore to the Pluton, steamed along the coast to where the armored cruisers were stranded and went to their assistance.  There was danger from the magazines, and many of those on board jumped into the water and swam to the shore, though a number were unable to reach the small strip of sandy beach in the cove and were thrown against the rocks and killed or drowned.  Many of the wounded were lowered into the ships’ own boats and taken ashore, but this task was a most difficult one.

The Gloucester had all her boats out and one seaman swam through the surf with a line from the Maria Teresa, making it fast to a tree on the shore.  By this means many on the flagship, including Admiral Cervera, lowered themselves into the Gloucester’s boats.  The wounded were taken to the Gloucester as rapidly as possible, and the lower deck of the yacht was soon covered with Spanish sailors mangled in limb and body by the bursting of shells.

Chase of the Cristobal Colon.

The Brooklyn, Oregon, Massachusetts and Texas and several smaller vessels continued the chase of the Cristobal Colon, and in less than an hour were lost to view of the burning ships on shore.  The Iowa and Texas both gave assistance to the imperiled crew of the Vizcaya.  Her Captain surrendered his command and the prisoners were transferred to the battleship.  The Vizcaya probably lost about sixty men, as she carried a complement of 400 and only 340 were taken aboard the Iowa.

Soon after Admiral Cervera reached the shore and surrendered he was taken to the Gloucester, at his own request.  There was no mistaking the heartbroken expression upon the old commander’s face as he took the proffered hand of Captain Wainwright and was shown to the latter’s cabin, but he made every effort to bear bravely the bitter defeat that had come to him.  He thanked the Captain of the Gloucester for the words of congratulation offered on the gallant fight, and then spoke earnestly of his solicitude for the safety of his men on shore.  He informed Captain Wainwright that Cuban soldiers were on the hills preparing to attack his unarmed men and asked that they be protected.