CHAPTER XXI.
A NEVER-TO-BE-FORGOTTEN CONTEST.
In this tale of adventures in and around the Island of Luzon it is not my intention to play the part of a historian and go into all of the details of the battle of Manila Bay, or, more properly, the battle off Cavité.
To be really truthful, but little of the whole battle could be seen by any one spectator, for the ships were several miles apart, and the heavy smoke hung everywhere over the bay like a murky pall. Near Cavité the fire burst up through the smoke at half a dozen points, and these marked the spots where the enemy's ships were slowly but surely going to pieces.
For the victory was Commodore Dewey's from the start, and a few hours sufficed to teach Spain a lesson which she is not likely to forget for years to come.
Our gallant commodore had come to Manila with six fighting ships, including one which was very small, and but indifferently armed. Off Cavité he engaged eight Spanish warships, and these had the strong support of the fort and the land battery.
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