Show THU THE FIRST VICTIM the first officer of the united states to fall in the present war wax was ensign bagley who was struck by a fragment of shell during the bombardment at Cai cardenas denas and hurled without the slightest warning into eternity but he was not the first victim that in ia there was an officer who was injured in battle prior to the ensigns death the injuries resulting fatally this was waa captain charles vernon vemon gridley who commanded the olympia at cavite and previously he was at his post in th the conning tower during that hot ana rapid combat and while reasonably pro protected by thick steel walls with only sufficient narrow openings to enable him to see on every side a missile found one of these places and inflicted a wound which was not at the timet thought to be serious it resulted in a rupture however and the captain was wad invalided invalid ed or given indefinite leave of absence because of sickness and waft waa homeward bound when death resulted somewhere near if not at kobe japan captain gridley was a man of faan lly ily having a wife and three children he was 53 63 years of age his standing in naval circles was very high and an ditke most officers of the army or navy of y the united states he was of hio high character and rare courage |