Show SIMS THE SLANDERER Lieutenant Commander Sims of oC the I navy has taken good care to damn himself He not only declares the ships of ot the American navy are ant and always alwa's have been worthless but hut that the battles of Manila and Santiago were disgraces to American arms armB He supports this statement that although thousands of shots were fired at the tho Spanish ships only a 2 few foW hundred shots were hits bils T r But Lieutenant C Commander mma Sims entirely en tire overlooks the essential fact that tha S rJ y 55 5 t i.- i. S S i h.- h. THE ENEMY'S SHIPS SHIPs' WERE DE DESTROYED DESTROYED DE- DE la In both those b battles battles- and ld the the- ere ree e battles batUt the battles the Americas c l leMe eMe seis es 3 e escaped c d Injury a and inflicted ed total ot annihilation ail on Oil the f fighting I fcc I of the tee Sin Spaniards I Quibble and contend ont nd as one rna maT th tb the fact remains rl that the American ships I won tho the victory by br brab ab absolute and actual fighting There was no rn ruse e no stratagem stratagem stratagem strata strata- gem no trick no accident It was simply r f shooting at them and hitting them No one can cnn remember that maneuver maneu manen- ver er or or- orthe the ships ship under Dewey Dewe at Manila Manila Ma Ma- nila aDa the wonderful figure figuro eight which his course courso described the device dovice de ete- I vice by which every gun on both sl sides es of or ever every ship was brought Into action I and the tho destructive effect no of It Rail all no no one ono can remember the tho feats of that Mayday May day morning in 1808 1898 and amI truthfully call it anything less than n a splendid vic vie tory And at Santiago triumph came through fighting The enemy would have escaped anything less than superIor superior super super- br speed and superior marksmanship As It was they did not escape Every ship of ot the Spaniards was riddled with cannon shot driven to the shore or sunk in man many fathoms of water It ItIs ItIs Itis Is traitorous slander to call caB either of those battles discreditable to American Amen Ameri can naval arms There may mar be defects in the material mater mater- ial ml or the construction of or the American Ameri Amen can fighting ships It may he be they can I be bo made better But improvement will never come at the instance or with the help of men who lie and slander their own countrymen And that is what Lieutenant Corn mander Sims has done |