fact, they formed the foundation of a chain of events which was destined to amalgamate into a common grade—­that of a naval bluejacket—­several hundred young Americans, who, in their natural characters, were sons of rich men and of men of moderate means, of doctors and lawyers and brokers and clerks and bookkeepers, and of all sorts and conditions of respectable citizens.  Patriotism was the incentive which called these youths of various stations together, and sheer love of country and the courage to fight her battles formed the cement which bound them cheerfully to their duty.  To fight for pay and as a profession is one thing; to offer your freedom and your life, to endure discomforts and actual hardships, to risk health in a fever-stricken foreign country, and to sacrifice settled ambition for mere patriotism, is another.  It is the latter which the Volunteer Naval Reserve of the United States has done, and every American citizen with a drop of honest blood in his veins will surely give the organization the praise it so richly deserves.

On the third of May, while Cervera’s whereabouts was still an absorbing mystery, the “Yankee” (an auxiliary cruiser, converted from the steamship “El Nort”) went into commission at the Brooklyn Navy Yard.  She was manned entirely, save for the captain, executive officer, navigator, paymaster, and the marine guard, by members of the New York State Naval Militia.  For four months she remained in commission, weaving the threads of a glorious record which will ever redound to the credit and honor of the Volunteer Naval Reserve.  Truth is ever stranger than fiction, and the simple story of the boys of the gallant “Yankee,” as set forth in the diary of Number Five of the After Port Gun, should appeal to the heart of every reader in this great country of ours—­a country made grander and better and more potent in the world’s history by the achievements of such brave lads as those who formed the crew of the “Yankee.”  Number Five’s diary was written simply for his family, but the fame gained by the “Yankee” leads the publishers to believe that it will prove interesting to Americans far and wide.  It is set forth in narrative form, but the incidents and the straightforward, simple, and sailor-like words are those of the actual participant.  This is his story.

CHAPTER I.

In which the “Yankee” Goes into commission.

U.S.S.  “New Hampshire,”
April 26, 1898. 
Report at “New Hampshire” immediately, ready to go on board auxiliary
cruiser “Yankee.”

(Signed)
John H. Barnard,
Lieut, commanding 3d Division,
N.Y.  State Naval Militia.

It was this telegram, brief but extremely comprehensive, received early on the morning of the twenty-sixth of April, which sent me post-haste to the old receiving-ship “New Hampshire,” moored at the end of an East River dock.  The telegram had been anxiously expected for several days by the members of the First Battalion, and when I reached the ship I found the decks thronged with excited groups.