A Gunner Aboard the Yankee | Page 3

WE
ENTER THE "THEATRE OF WAR" VIII. WE JOIN SAMPSON'S
FLEET IX. CLEAR SHIP FOR ACTION X. WE BOMBARD

SANTIAGO DE CUBA XI. A PERILOUS MOMENT XII. IN
SEARCH OF ADVENTURE XIII. A NARROW ESCAPE XIV. WE
ENGAGE IN A SEA FIGHT XV. COALING IN THE TROPICS XVI.
"REMEMBER THE FISH" XVII. IN GOD'S COUNTRY XVIII. THE
"YANKEE" ARRIVES OFF SANTIAGO XIX. HOPE DEFERRED
XX. TAPS APPENDIX

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
THE NAVAL RESERVES LEAVING NEW YORK--GOING OFF IN
THE TUGBOAT TO MAN THE "YANKEE" Frontispiece
"THAT FAT MAN IN THE CELLAR WANTS ME TO SLEEP IN A
BAG--"
"THE GIG WAS LOWERED"
"THE MEN ON THE STAGES"
"STAND BY, MEN. BE READY FOB INSTANT ACTION"
"THE 'YANKEE' DROPPED HER ANCHOR OFF
TOMPKINSVILLE"
"WITH A FRIGHTFUL ROAR THE DEFECTIVE CARTRIDGE
EXPLODED"
"THE SIX-POUNDERS ON THE 'YANKEE'S' FORECASTLE
JOINED IN THE CHORUS"
"CLEAR SHIP FOR ACTION!"
THE BOMBARDMENT OF MORRO CASTLE, SANTIAGO
ON THE GUN DECK DURING THE BOMBARDMENT
THE SEARCHLIGHT "SWEEPING BACK AND FORTH ACROSS

THE BLACK OF THE HORIZON"
"THERE WAS TEMPORARY CONFUSION"
"THE FUSILLADE WAS LIVELY"
"THE SPAR DECK WAS COVERED WITH RED SHELLAC"
"THE MARINES AIRED THEIR HAMMOCKS ON THE
FORECASTLE DECK"
"HE GOT HIS ORDERS FROM THE BRIDGE"
"ALL YOU MEN WHO WANT TO GO IN SWIMMING MAY DO
SO"
MARCHING THROUGH CITY HALL PARK, NEW YORK CITY

PREFACE.
When the important events of the first part of April, 1898, were shaping
themselves toward an inevitable conflict between Spain and the United
States of America, the authorities at Washington began to perfect their
plans for an immediate increase of the navy. The Naval Militia of the
country, of whom Assistant Secretary Theodore Roosevelt had a very
high opinion, came in for early attention, and word was sent to the
different States to prepare for service. Several days previous to the
actual outbreak of war, messages were forwarded from the Naval
Reserve receiving ship "New Hampshire," lying at a dock in the East
River, to a number of young men, members of the Naval Militia,
residing in New York City. These summons contained simply a request
to report at once on board the ship, but they resulted in a most curious
and interesting transformation--in fact, they formed the foundation of a
chain of events which was destined to amalgamate into a common
grade--that of a naval bluejacket--several hundred young Americans,
who, in their natural characters, were sons of rich men and of men of
moderate means, of doctors and lawyers and brokers and clerks and

bookkeepers, and of all sorts and conditions of respectable citizens.
Patriotism was the incentive which called these youths of various
stations together, and sheer love of country and the courage to fight her
battles formed the cement which bound them cheerfully to their duty.
To fight for pay and as a profession is one thing; to offer your freedom
and your life, to endure discomforts and actual hardships, to risk health
in a fever-stricken foreign country, and to sacrifice settled ambition for
mere patriotism, is another. It is the latter which the Volunteer Naval
Reserve of the United States has done, and every American citizen with
a drop of honest blood in his veins will surely give the organization the
praise it so richly deserves.
On the third of May, while Cervera's whereabouts was still an
absorbing mystery, the "Yankee" (an auxiliary cruiser, converted from
the steamship "El Nort") went into commission at the Brooklyn Navy
Yard. She was manned entirely, save for the captain, executive officer,
navigator, paymaster, and the marine guard, by members of the New
York State Naval Militia. For four months she remained in commission,
weaving the threads of a glorious record which will ever redound to the
credit and honor of the Volunteer Naval Reserve. Truth is ever stranger
than fiction, and the simple story of the boys of the gallant "Yankee,"
as set forth in the diary of Number Five of the After Port Gun, should
appeal to the heart of every reader in this great country of ours--a
country made grander and better and more potent in the world's history
by the achievements of such brave lads as those who formed the crew
of the "Yankee." Number Five's diary was written simply for his family,
but the fame gained by the "Yankee" leads the publishers to believe
that it will prove interesting to Americans far and wide. It is set forth in
narrative form, but the incidents and the straightforward, simple, and
sailor-like words are those of the actual participant. This is his story.
CHAPTER I.
IN WHICH THE "YANKEE" GOES INTO COMMISSION.
U.S.S. "NEW HAMPSHIRE," April 26, 1898. Report at "New
Hampshire" immediately, ready to go on board auxiliary cruiser

"Yankee."
(Signed) JOHN H. BARNARD, Lieut, commanding 3d Division, N.Y.
State Naval Militia.
It was this telegram,