Richard Castle and the USS Santa Barbara
By
UCSBdad
Disclaimer: Except for the true parts, this is fiction. Rating: K, mostly. Time: The turn of the 20th Century.
Author's note: As with other historically based stories, (Swordwriter, I'm looking at you.), the background of this story is mostly historically correct, the details are fictional. There never has been a US Navy cruiser named for Santa Barbara and there is no Marviles Archipelago in the Philippines. There was a 31st US Volunteer Infantry Regiment, but its actions in this story are fictional. A few things have been moved around in time. For instance, in the year 1899, Richard Castle uses a Model 1900 Colt pistol.
US Naval Headquarters
Manila, Territory of the Philippines
February 19, 1899.
"Lieutenant Richard Castle, reporting as ordered, sir."
Captain Waller looked up from his desk and got his first look at Lieutenant Castle. He was a tall man, broad of shoulder and narrow of hip, and quite good looking. He was clean shaven, as were most men of his age these days and his hair was quite short.
Waller nodded.
"Stand at ease, Lieutenant. In fact, sit down. We could be here a while. Would you like some lemonade? The Spaniards left behind one of those new-fangled refrigerators. It'll be cold." Waller didn't wait for a reply, but called to his mess steward for two lemonades.
Castle found the lemonade to be very good, but wondered why Captain Waller thought they'd be here for a while.
Finally, Waller spoke.
"I've been reading your report, Lieutenant. It's quite…politic."
Castle colored and opened his mouth to protest, but Waller waived him to silence.
"Please, Lieutenant, I meant no disrespect." Waller touched his hair which was longer than was common these days and he wore a long beard, as was in fashion during the Civil War, when Waller had entered the Navy.
'I didn't get all of these grey hairs going into Mobile Bay and facing the Rebel ironclad, the Tennessee. I got most of them working at the Navy Department in Washington, DC. You're lucky, young man, to learn just how much politics there is in the Navy, in everything, in fact. Now, tell me what wasn't in your report."
Castle was sure that Waller knew what had happened, but wanted to hear it from Castle.
"I was sent to the British colony of Hong Kong to facilitate the purchase of coal for the Asiatic Squadron. There being no naval officers in Hong Kong, the purchase of coal had fallen to the US Consul, a Mr. Huntington. I regret that Mr. Huntington made a hash of everything. The man is incompetent and should be replaced."
Waller nodded.
"Not that the Department of State will appreciate the Navy pointing out their faults. Proceed, Lieutenant."
"Having arranged for the shipment of coal to Manila, and there being no US Navy ships in Hong Kong, I arranged passage on a Demming and Company ship, the SS Pacific Pearl. The captain was a Thomas Demming, a grandson of Sir George Demming. Thomas Demming was, I regret to say, a hopeless drunkard. His engineer, a Swede named Sorenson was also a drunkard as was his chief officer, a man named Colin Hunt. The rest of the crew were Chinese and spoke little English. As the officers were too drunk to navigate, the Chinese crew simply took a compass bearing in the general direction of the Philippines and followed it."
"Did you try to assist them, Lieutenant?"
Castle colored again.
"I did and was told to get off the bridge by Captain Demming."
"Which he was within his legal rights to do."
Castle went on.
"We arrived in the Philippines some two hundred miles north of Manila at a place called San Benito. Regrettably, Captain Demming decided to dock the ship there himself. Instead, he ran the ship onto some rocks, holing the hull. There was only a fathom or so of water under the keel, so the ship settled onto the bottom of the sea. At that time, we came under fire from the shore."
Waller smiled.
"Ah, yes. The famed battle of San Benito."
Castle did not smile.
"I took a boat to shore and found two companies of the Colorado Volunteer Regiment fighting with Filipino insurgents. Their commander was a Major Erik Vaughn. At first, Major Vaughn demanded I evacuate his command on the Pacific Pearl. When I explained the ship was on the bottom, he demanded that I evacuate him and his officers in the ship's boats. Apparently, he intended to leave his men behind. I lied and said that the Filipinos had small craft that could easily overtake our boats and massacre us. At no time did I ever see Major Vaughn expose himself to enemy fire or do anything but hide. The man is a coward, sir. As were his officers, except for a Lieutenant Hood and a Lieutenant McAllen."
"In the absence of any leadership from Major Vaughn, you organized the defense of San Benito, did you not, Lieutenant Castle?"
"I did. Luckily a merchant ship passing by saw us and notified the Army. We were relieved after two days."
"Erik Vaughn is quite the politician in Colorado, you know. He wangled a commission in the Colorado Volunteers at the start of the war with Spain, hoping it would advance his political career. Now, as the self-identified hero of the battle of San Benito, he'll probably be a US Senator from Colorado in another year."
Waller picked up another file.
"He has had nothing but high praise for you, Lieutenant." Waller read. "I would be remiss in not mentioning the sterling service of Lieutenant Richard Castle, USN. He is the very model of the perfect American naval officer. His courage, good humor, intelligence and knowledge mark him as a coming man in the US Navy. He stood at my side during the whole battle and whenever a desperate deed needed to be done, he was the first to volunteer."
"He said that?" Castle said, outraged.
Waller laughed.
"The man's a politician and knows how to brag. He doesn't brag about himself, you see, that would be unseemly. Instead, he brags about Richard Castle. And then casually mentions he was right beside you when the bullets were flying."
Castle was speechless.
"You're going to have a patron in Washington, as long as you don't go around telling the truth about Major Vaughn, or Mister Vaughn as he now is, having been discharged. Since the Navy can use all the friends it can get in Washington, I strongly suggest you never contradict soon to be Senator Vaughn."
Castle nodded, but it left a bad taste in his mouth.
"And you have a friend in Sir George Demming. Demming and Company is one of the wealthiest companies in all of Asia. The command of the Pacific Pearl was Thomas Demming's last chance to prove he could be a man and not a container for alcohol. He's been relieved of command and given a sinecure ashore. He'll be able to spend his days at his club, drinking himself to death. Sooner rather than later, everyone hopes. Sir George appreciates your silence on his grandson's drunkenness."
Waller put Castle's report away.
"Now, what do you know about the Marviles Archipelago?"
"It's in the southwestern part of the islands, sir. I've studied the nautical charts of the area, but I know little else about the area."
"Like in most places, the locals fought the Spaniards. They'd fight us, but we have no troops, yet, to send there. They've declared themselves the Republic of the Marviles. They have no use for Aguinaldo and his Philippine Republic. They do have someone to fight, though. The Moros. You've heard of them?"
"Yes, sir. They're Muslims and they'll all over the southern Philippines, the Dutch East Indies and the British colonies on Borneo. They're pirates, slavers, and all around bad people."
"And they're raiding the Marviles." Waller said. "The local president, calls himself General Rios, has got the weapons the Spanish left behind at the end of our war. He has about five hundred Spanish Mauser rifles and an equal number of Remington single shot rifles. He also has a cannon of two, but little in the way of shells. He's badly outnumbered by the Moros and has decided that the Americans must be better than the Moros. He's asked for our help. Naturally, we'll help him out. We'll just have to make sure that when this Moro business is over that we come out on top."
Waller picked up another sheaf of papers.
"Now, what do you know about the Army?"
"Very little, sir. I know we have very little in the way of troops here. Most of the state volunteer units have either gone home, or are in the process of leaving. That leaves only three regiments of Regular Army infantry and one of artillery. Just enough to hold Manila and the surrounding area."
"What do you know bout the new US Volunteers?"
Castle thought. He knew very little about them and decided it was best to admit it.
"Very little, sir."
"During the late war, almost all of the Regular Army was sent to Cuba. While they won the war, they had problems. Their supply system collapsed, and the troops were deprived of enough rations and medicine. Worse yet, Cuba is infamous for malaria. It swept through the ranks of the army there, both Regulars and State troops. The State volunteer regiments have been discharged, but too many Regular units have suffered deaths, disability and soldiers being discharged. The Regular Army is in no condition now to come to the Philippines to fight. Congress has approved the raising of twenty-five US Volunteer regiments for two years to hold down the Philippines until the regulars can get here in enough force to do anything."
"I see." Castle said, although he had no idea of how this pertained to him.
"The field grade officers in these volunteer units, majors, lieutenant colonels and colonels, are almost all regulars, given a temporary promotion. The junior officers have been selected from the State Volunteer units. The Army will be selecting these men, so there'll be no political officers like Major Vaughn."
Castle just nodded.
"But, there's a problem. Congress approved troops to fight in the Philippines and that was all. General Otis not only commands all of the Army troops in the Philippines, but he's the military governor of the Philippines. Responsible for the whole kit and caboodle. Regrettably, Congress neglected to approve any additional troops or other personnel to run the place. When US Volunteer regiments arrive, General Otis grabs whatever officers he needs to help him run the Philippines. For instance, the 31st US Volunteers, the unit that'll eventually go to the Marviles, lost its colonel, lieutenant colonel and all but two majors. The battalion that'll be going first to the Marviles is commanded by a Captain."
Waller shuffled through some papers on his desk.
"Yes. Captain Kevin Ryan. Served as a Lieutenant in the 71st New York in Cuba and did quite well. Hmm. Apparently, he has an older brother who's a state representative in Albany. Let's hope Captain Ryan isn't a politician who slipped by the Army."
Castle was beginning to wonder if all this talk about the Army and the politics of the Philippines meant anything to him, or if there was some simple explanation for this that he had managed to overlook.
"Now, Lieutenant Castle, what do you know about the USS Santa Barbara?"
Castle brightened at once.
"She was built by the English firm of Elswick for Spain in 1895. She missed the battle of Manila Bay last year because she was having her boilers repaired at Subic Bay. She displaces about 2500 tons, has a main battery of five 5- inch guns, plus, I believe eight 57mm guns. Her top speed is 21 knots. She was towed to Cavite Navy Yard where her boilers were repaired and will be commissioned in the US Navy as USS Santa Barbara, the same name she had as a Spanish ship. And if I may, I'd like to volunteer to be her gunnery officer, or assistant gunnery officer."
"I'm afraid both positions are filled, Lieutenant." Seeing Castle's crestfallen face, Waller smiled. "However, you are to be her captain."
Castle was shocked.
"Sir, I appreciate the offer, but surely a cruiser, even a small one, is a command for a commander or a lieutenant commander at the very least."
"Normally, that would be the case. General Otis, or perhaps someone on his staff, is afraid that if the ranking Navy officer is a commander or a lieutenant commander and the ranking Army office is only a captain, the Navy will somehow end up in charge of the Marviles campaign. Nonsense, of course, but to assuage their feelings, Admiral Dewey has agreed that the senior naval officer in the Marviles will be equal in rank to Captain Ryan. Now, don't you worry, young man. Plenty of young lads went into the Navy back in '61 to fight the Rebs, achieved rank faster than you have and did just fine."
Waller rose from behind his desk.
"Now, if I were you, I'd want to visit my new command."
TBC