troops which were being disembarked, was the principal work of the war-ships on the twenty-second of June, except in Guantanamo Harbour, where volunteers were called for from the Marblehead and the Dolphin to grapple for and remove the contact mines in the harbour. It was an undertaking as perilous as anything that had yet been accomplished, but the bluejackets showed no fear. Four times the designated number came forward in response to the call, and before nightfall seven mines had been removed. The battle-ship Texas was assigned to duty off Matamoras, the works of which were to be bombarded as a portion of the general programme for this day while the troops were being landed. The men of the Texas performed their part well; the Socapa battery was quickly silenced; but not quite soon enough to save the life of one brave bluejacket. The last shell fired by the retreating Spaniards struck the battle-ship twenty feet abaft the stem on the port side. It passed through the hull about three feet below the main-deck line, and failed to explode until striking an iron stanchion at the centre line of the berth-deck. Here were two guns' crews, and among them the fragments of the shell flew in a deadly shower, killing one and wounding eight. Later in the day the Texas steamed out to sea to bury the dead, and, this sad duty performed, returned before nightfall to her station on the blockade. June 23. General Shafter thus reported to the War Department: “Daiquiri, June 23. - Had very fine voyage; lost less than fifty animals, six or eight to-day; lost more putting them through the surf to land, than on transports. “Command as healthy as when we left; eighty men sick; only deaths, two men drowned in landing; landings difficult; coast quite similar to that in vicinity of San Francisco, and covered with dense growth of bushes. Landing at Daiquiri unopposed; all points occupied by Spanish troops heavily bombarded by navy to clear them out. "Sent troops toward Santiago, and occupied Juragua, a naturally strong place, this morning. Spanish troops retreating as soon as our advance was known. Had no mounted troops, or could have captured them, about six hundred all told. "Railroad from there in. Have cars and engine in possession. "With assistance of navy disembarked six thousand men yesterday, and as many more to-day. "Will get all troops off to-morrow, including light artillery and greater portion of pack-train, probably all of it, with some of the wagons; animals have to be jumped to the water and towed ashore. "Had consultation with Generals Garcia, Rader and Castillo, on afternoon of twentieth, twenty miles west of Santiago. These officers were unanimously of the opinion that the landing should be made east of Santiago. I had come to the same conclusion. "General Garcia promises to join me at Juragua to-morrow with between three thousand and four thousand men, who will be brought from west of Santiago by ships of the navy to Juragua, and there disembarked. "This will give me between four thousand and five thousand Cubans, and leave one thousand under General Rabi to threaten Santiago from the west. "General Kent's division is being disembarked this afternoon at Juragua, and this will be continued during the night. The assistance of the navy has been of the greatest benefit and enthusiastically given; without them I could not have landed in ten days, and perhaps not at all, as I believe I should have lost so many boats in the surf. "At present want nothing; weather has been good, no rain on land, and prospects of fair weather. The boys of '98 occupied the town of Aguadores before nightfall on the twenty-third of June, the Spaniards having applied the torch to many buildings before they fled. The enemy was driven back on to Santiago, General Linares commanding in person, and close to his heels hung General Lawton and the advance of the American forces. June 24. It was evident that the Spanish intended to make a stand at Sevilla, six miles from Juragua, and |