Young Glory and the Spanish Cruiser (Paperback)

Excerpt: ...gun-boat had slackened speed, but had not changed its position. Captain Long was discussing the situation with his lieutenant, and the men at the guns were busily doing the same thing. "It's a fine ship," said one of the men. "Which?" "Why, Dan, how in thunder can you ask such a question? The Spaniard, I mean, of course." "An' it's a quare name it has." "Cristobal Colon Oh that's named after Columbus." "Ah it's himself would be the sad man if he could see his own people now." "Never mind about that, Dan, this is a fine ship, and don't you forget it." Dan shrugged his shoulders scornfully, and put a plug of tobacco in his mouth. "Arrah it's the little boat for me." "But think of their guns." "What of them?" "Why, they've two ten-inch breech-loading rifles, and she has between thirty and forty quick firing guns." "An' faith, we have eight." "That's so." "An' enough," answered Dan, obstinately. "One American equals ten Spaniards. That's my way of looking at it, so, begorra, eight guns equal eighty. Shure, an' it's all in our favor." Having made this wonderful calculation, Dan walked away with a satisfied expression on his face. Captain Long had been speaking to Young Glory. It was an unusual thing for an officer to take advice from a seaman, but then Young Glory was a seaman of no common order. Everybody knew that his place Pg 18 was the quarter deck, and that time and again he had refused the promotion which had been offered him. "There can be only one result," said Captain Long. "True, sir." "And the fight won't last long." "You think not, sir?" "No, one shot from one of their big guns will put us out of the way if it strikes." "Then it mustn't strike." "It can't be prevented. The Spaniards are poor gunners, that's our only chance." Boom "Hulloa, she's opened fire " The Spanish cruiser began the attack by firing one of her great guns from the barbette in the bows. The shot went very wide of the mark, and the Yankee sailors shouted with...