noon
Under my reluctant eyes the great , dreadful spectacle of the Santiago fight displayed itself in peaceful Kittery Harbor . I saw the Spanish ships drive upon the reef where a man from Dover , New Hampshire , was camping in a little wooden shanty unconscious ; and I heard the dying screams of the Spanish sailors , seethed and scalded within the steel walls of their own wicked war-kettles . As for the guns , battle or no battle , our ships , like `` kind Lieutenant Belay of the ` Hot Cross-Bun ' , '' seemed to be `` banging away the whole day long . '' They set a bad example to the dreamy old fort on the Newcastle shore , which , till they came , only recollected itself to salute the sunrise and sunset with a single gun ; but which , under provocation of the squadron , formed a habit of firing twenty or thirty times at noon . Other martial shows and noises were not so bad . I rather liked seeing the morning drill of the marines and the bluejackets on the iron decks , with the lively music that went with it . The bugle calls and the bells were charming ; the week 's wash hung out to dry had its picturesqueness by day , and by night the spectral play of the search-lights along the waves and shores , and against the startled skies , was even more impressive .