Evening Star Newspaper, December 30, 1893, Page 18

THE EVENING STAR, ‘SATURDAY, DECEMBER 80, 1893-TWENTY PAGEs. —_——; KAISER’S SSS ACHT “HOLIENZOLLERN.” THE KAISER’S SHIPS. Gtrength and Character of the Pres- ent German Navy. MAMMOTH MEN OF WAR. ‘The Emperor's Private Yacht : Hohenzollern. BOTS 'go PROTECT THEFATHERLAND | ppottten for The Evening Star. T THE PRESENT time Kaiser Wilhelm and the German pa- tion feel very com- fortable over the se- curity of their coun- try. She has not only an immense and per- fectly trained army to guard her bor- ders from attacks by her enemies, but she is also carefully pro- tected long her 1 somewhat limited fmoast line by a thoroughly equipped ficet | @f war vessels, and a large number of for- ' | tresses, which are placed at intervals on the shores of the Baltic sea and German @cean. The recent acquisition of Helixo- Jand has deprived foreign nations of a | mafe coaling harbor. The extensive fortifi- ations on the island are now completed, | ana consist of very powerful underground t Batteries and of several towers, overlook- ing all parts of the coast, from which peep ut the muzzies of the heavy cannon, made by the famous Krupp works at Essen. Un the south side of Heligoland a granite Breakwater has been built for the pro- | fection of the war ships which seek shelter ~ fhere. Thus, the approach to the German Kaiser Wilhelm on His Yacht. } Boast is as well protected on its western ‘ms on its eastern side. In 1895, it is expected, Germany will have full control of her entire northern border, @s at that time the “North and ialtic sea anal,” which has been under contempla- fion for forty years, and where workmen @re now busy night and day, witl be fin- fshed. Many serious difficulties have been met and overcome, aad it will not be long Defore the largest iron-clads may pass in gafety from the harbor of ‘<iel to that cf Wuhelmshafen, having smooth water fcr twenty-four hours, while the enemy's ships @re struggling through rough and boisterous OS SS TRON CLAD “SIEGFRIED.” * broad openings to the sea. The outer har- bor will accommodate at one time from four to six armored vessels; the inner hav- en is 400 yards long by 300 wide, and on its front are three dry docks, two of which will hold the largest iron-plated ships. There are also two “slips” for shipbuild- ing, and a haven for smaller vessels. On the wharf at Wilhelmshafen are the build- ings in which great warships are built and the iron plates and lighter guns of the bat- teries are made. All the heavy guns and cannon are made at Spandau, or by the celebrated Krupp iron works. The en- trances to the harbor are strongly fortified. The harbor on the Baltic coast is at Kiel, and it is near this home for war- ships that Prince Henry of Prussia, brother of the emperor, who has always been the > Prince” of German: in the world and it has taken many years to complete it. Here, also, war ves- sels are built, armed and launched, which S. M. S. Gnetse: latter ceremony is usually graced by the presence of Kaiser Wilhelm, who shows the deepest interest in all matters con- nected with his navy. The entire cost of the Kiel harbor was ten million dollars. A third harbor,accommodating only small- er vessels, is at Danzig, not far from the Russian frontier. Ready for War. Both Wilhelmshafen and Kiel are well supplied with naval officers and seamen who are ready for war at a moment's no- tice. The barracks at Kiel hold 2,000 men, and Wilhelmshafen has a smaller divisi At both places are divisions of naval ar- tillery, while a third is kept in reserve, and a fourth will soon be sent to Cuxhafen. At Wilhelmshafen there are now eight large ironclads, eleven armoi vessels, twelve protected cruisers, three cannon boats, four dispatch boats, two schoolships and three vessels for other uses. At Kiel are twelve ironclad ships, six cruisérs, four dispatch boats and five vessels for other purposes. The Navy as It is Today. In the past twenty-three years ef. fort has been to bring the navy into the first rank, and the best foreign inven- tions have been adopted. The character of the vessels has been improved from year to year. The invention by Grueson of a spe- cies of cast-iron which is as hard and smooth as glass, and the wonderful guns and cannon which Krupp provides for their especial use, have enabled the Germans to build some of the most powerful warships in the world. Those who watched the naval maneuvers of last October, and saw the fleet of twenty-two large iron-clads and thirty-five torpedo boats when they drew up in line and fired a military and royal salute as Kaiser Wilhelm reviewed them from his yacht could not fail to be im- pressed with the sight. Compared with England's immense navy, Germany's fleet small, but, taking into consideration the Imited coast line which she possesses, and the comparatively small number of her colonies, she may safely boast that her navy holds the third place among those of the other great powers. Number and Strength of the Ships. Every month news comes of the launching of a new ship, each one of which shows some feature making it better than the last. In the fall maneuvers two new iron clads of the first class—that is, of not less than 10,000 tons—took part. They were made entirely from German steel, manufactured in the Rhine provinces, and cost $4,000,000. Two more of the same class are now ready ‘waves around the rugged point of Denmark. Special ships are being built for the pro- tection of the new canal, and large forts Guard it at either end. It is spanned by two bridges, high enough to allow the ras- @age of the tallest masted vesseis. The Naval Harbors. Germany possesses three harbors for her to be launched. The cost of German war ships ranges from $1,000,000 to $4,000,000. The ships are armored with heavy plates made in the country from the heavy 13-inch “Mantle-ring cannon,” with which the armored cannonboats are supplied, to the small 3-inch boat cannon, all are of home manufacture. The rapid fring cannons are used on many of the newer ships, and all large tron clads have two bomb batteries,one ‘warships. The one on the North sea is or two torpedo boats, and are proyided with Wilhelmshafen, lying in close proximity fo Cuxhafen, and Bremerhafen, from which ports the Hamburg Packet and North Ger- man Lloyd Companies send out their ships to all parts of the world. In case of war, all these swift-flying vessels would be at once placed at the service of the kaiser. ! all machinery necessary for carrying pow- der, heavy bombs, etc., from one part of the vessel to the other. Each crui is able to carry coal for long distances, and has a machine which converts salt water into good drinking water at the rate of 1,100 to 1,400 quarts a day. In order to have a proper idea of the In 1848, when the Prussians were looking | Strength of the German navy one must for a harbor, they found no suitable place on the Baltic coast, which is exposed to the washings of heavy storms. In this di- Jemma the province of Oldenburg offered to sell them the site of Wilhemshafen for about half a million dollars. Many and t were the difficultics encountered here. No railroad could be completed for rs and the meanwhile all material Dp to be brought through the rivers Weser | Armored Frederick Ca and Elbe "e was swampy and un- healthy, workmen to suffer much from fevers, and the supply was tainted with were finally removed, ing supplied by two ar Rot until 1870 that ir. enter in order to ur until ISSS was the of water be- ian wells. haven completed. ten | ward bought by the Prussians, | vessels. look at the number and equipment of its It possess fourteen large armored war ships, of which ten are frigates and four corvettes. Three frigates are still in the ship yard, but will be launched soon. The “Konig Wilhelm” is the largest and oldest frigate, and was built in 1867, in England, for Turkish use, but was after- She is still a staunch ship, notwithstanding her ser- vice in the Franco-Prussian war. Her length is 450 feet, she is of 5,938 displace- ment, and is plated with armor twelve inches thick. She has nineteen guns of 10- inch caliber, and four of S-inch. All the newer ships carry no masts, and those of the “Konig Wfhelm” will soon be re- moved. She carries 732 men, a much larger number than fs required on the newer v sels, and makes about fourteen knots an hour. ‘The ships which have been built during the last ten years are much more strongly armored. Among them are five corvettes intenfed for use in the North and Baltic seas. Of this class is the Baden, which is one of the newest. She is armored with compound plates 17 inches thick, is of 10,000 tons, makes about 16 knots and carries six | Krupp guns, from 10 to 12-inch, besides light- er arms. ‘There are, also, ten smaller armored ves- sels, four of which will soon be launched | and three others are now being built, which hindrances | heavy It was | clads were able to | anu are easily manipulated. The two new- » repairs and not | est, Brummer and Bremse, are the first ves- The | sels built Barbor consists of two havens, with two! from steel. will guard the North and Baltic sea canal when it shall be completed. leven other ironciads of a still smaller size, called armored cannon boats, carry nnon. ‘They were built to protect the mouths of the rivers Jade, Weser and ibe. They have a signal mast, two screws for the German Bavy entirely Unarmored but protected ships are divid- ed into classes of cruiser frigates, cruiser’ corvettes, cruisers, cannon boats and dis- Patch boats, or “avisos.” ‘The first three classes are intended for transatlantic ser- vice, while the smaller ones are used at home. The frigates ere three-masted and carry a battery below and a few guns on deck. The corvettes are armed only on the deck, and the cruisers carry only a small deck battery. Frigates are manned by 450, corvettes by 30U and cruisers by 150 men, Cruisers, Frigates and Corvettes. At present there are only three cruiser frigates in service, the older ones having been taken for school ships. In addition to these there are ten graceful corvettes and three others will soon be added to the num- ber. To this class belongs the Kaiserin Augusta, which was sent by Germany to represent her navy at the great naval re- view in New York. The Kaiserin Augusta bas three screws and is very long and sharp pointed. Another corvette is the Irene, named for the wife of Wrince Henry, the commander of the ironclad Beowulf. Both are new ships, provided with modern in- ventions. ‘hey have from 8,000 to 10,000 horse power ana attain a speed of from 20 to 23 knots. ‘hey may be coaled for a dis- tance of from 4,000 to 5,000 sea miles. Their decks are heavily armored and their inter- iors are plated with steel. ‘The battery con- sists of twelve 7-inch guns, two cannon of 18 caliber and four revolving guns. There are eleven cruisers, armed with light weapons and able to carry coal for 4,000 sea miles. These cruisers are sta- tioned in the German colonies and are changed every three to five years, as a long stay in the tropics is highly injurious to Only three protected cannon-boats are now in use, and, although many were employed in the Franco-Prussian war, the government has not ordered any new ones. They have light guns and, in the center, a large bomb battery. A neat trim vessel is the dispatch boat, or “aviso.” The government can command ten of these. Being built for spies and speed they carry only very light arms. The oldest “‘aviso” was built in 1860, and is called the Grille. She was much used by the late Emperor Frederick and his family, who were very fond of the ocean. The Grille made a good record in the Danish war. The Blitz, P’feil and Meteor are steel vessels, provided with iron-plated decks, are lightly built and attain high speed. The Meteor is the newest, built in 1892, has 5,000 horse power and moves at the rate of 22 knots, Torpedo Boats. Not the least important are the death- dealing torpedo boats, of which, in 1885, "the reichstag ordered that 150 be built. Of this number, 90 are ready for use. Their speed is 26 knots. These boats are designed as protectors for the north coast of Germany and will be dangerous enemies for foreign vessels to meet. Besides these torpedo boats there are eight torpedo “hunters,” known as “torpedo divisions boats.” They are twice the size of the smaller vessels, carry light guns and are also arranged for torpedoes. Their coal supply will suffice for 2,500 set miles, and they are intended for use in fo! eign seas. Several of the fleet are used as school- have served their time in active service and ere not included in the list given above, serve as transport and coal shi; The Kaiser's Yach: No German would consider a descriptioh of his navy complete without some mention of the emperor’s yacht, in which he makes Pleasure excursions with his charming wife and Itvely boys, or visits foreign powers, and from which he reviews his navy. In 1878, the Grille was found to be too small for the Emperor Frederick’s family, and a new yacht, the Hohenzollern, was built at Kiel. Up to the present time this has been the royal yacht, but now its name has been changed to Kaiseradler, and the old family name, Hohenzollern, will be conferred on @ fine, new vessel, which is still in the ship- yards of Vulcan, at Bredow. It is finished, “8 Armored Corvette “Baden.” but is now in process of seasoning, which in case of large war ships is often continued three years. The new Hohenzollern is not designed merely for a pleasure yacht, but is so stanchly built that she will serve as @ commander’s vessel when the kaiser takes personal charge of the fleet, or in case of war. According to an official report, made in last October, by order of Kaiser Wilhelm, the German navy consists of the following vessels: Thirty-five ironclad ships, several others in building; 18 protected ‘cruisers, | and several more in the shipyard; 6 cannon boats, 9 dispatch boats, 150 torpedo boats, 8 divisions boats, 15 school and irial ships. There are also for special use the kaiser’s yacht, a transport ship, three surveying vessels and four ships for harbor service. Manning of Warships. No warships are more completely manned than are those of Germany. The discipline is exceedingly strict, the punishments se- vere, but the results are satisfactory. The Germans say that the drams of whisky and rum which Brittania provides for her seamen daily have no place in their bill of fare, and they claim to produce more relia- ble sailors from men who are restricted to @ moderate use of beer and light wines. The German “Jack” does not have mich money to waste when he gets back to shore, for his wages are low. Ordinary seamen are divided into two classes, of which the first receive $4.50 a month, the second $2.25. Extra allowance is made each month for clothing. Officers also paid at a moder- ate rate. The first mate receives about $12 @ month and the second $9. First-class deck officers receive about $450 a year and second-class officers only $300. ‘The seafaring population of the empire, all of whom may be called out in case of war, number about 55,000. When all the warships are manned there will still be a reserve force of 5,000 men. Hach year tl number of boys applying for the “ship youngsters’ " place, as the Germans say, is increasing. Last spring 250 new ones were placed on the school ships, an increase of 100 over the previous year. The seaman’s course admits boys from twelve to fourteen years of age, who are reasonably healthy. They first serve six months on the Nixe, as she lies in the Kiel harbor, and afterward on other vessels. The second year they make a long voyage to South America or the West Indies on the Gneisenan, and the third year study artillery on the ship Mars. At present there are about 600 boys on the school ships. Musical training is considered desirable, and every school ship carries its boy band, which plays at drill the well- Protected Corvette Irene. known strains of the Prussian hymn, or lightens the hearts of those on board with merry dance music. There has been also a marked increase in the cadets who have entered the navy this last year; 105 new ones were admitted, a number three times as large as in 1S, Cadets are not received unti! they are at least eighteen years of age,.and the authori- ties much prefer that they should have fin- | ished their course at the gymnasium and, if Possible, at the university. The officer of a warship must be a well-educated man, and especially familiar with modern languages, which are considered an essential. The cadet passes through a course of six months on a cadet ship in the northern seas, six months in the marine school at Kiel, six months on an iron-ctad, takes a long voyage, In which he has much practice as well as theory, and then,’ after passing. a strict examination, he may, become an under officer. F. B. —<—<—_ A stimulant is often meeded to nourish and strengthen the roots and to keep the hair a natural a ao Hall's Hair Renewer is the vest tonic for e jen 4 ships for cadets, and many others, which! ABSOLUTE MONARCHS Unele Sam's Naval Commanders and the Powers They Possess. THEY CRUISE ABOUT IN FORTRESSES, Which Are Bits of United States Territory Afloat. THE MAKING OF HISTORY. HETHER CAPT. Wiltse did or did not upset the monarchy in the Hawatian Is- jJands, it is certain that our naval chief- tains are privileged to exercise amazing Powers. ‘The com- manding officer of a ship of war is, on a small scale, an abso- lute monarch. He cruises about in a steel-clad fortress which ts a bit of United States territory afloat, wielding a despotic authority over a small army of men. When it seem good to him, he is privileged to commit acts of open war on his own responsibility. For what- ever he does, the government may be held to account, inasmuch as he is a quasi-dip- lomat as well as a military agent, repre- senting the flag and credit of his country wherever his ship may be. What he says is law. He has power of life and death over every one on board his vessel. It has been said that he can do anything except boil a midshipman in the coppers. Must Act Quick. ‘The commander of a ship of war occasi- onally finds hims2if in a position where whatever he does is sure to get him into trouble. Nevertheless, he must act, and with boldness, If he fails to do so, he will be held guilty of timidity, which is the worst fault of which he can be accused. He may even be driven to infringe the laws of nations. During the late civil war, in the hatbor of Bahia, Brazil, Capt. Collins of the United States Ship Wachusett, forcibly vio- lated that neutral port by seizing the Con- federate steamer Florida. Our government apologized for the offense and acquiesced to Brazil's demand that the vessel be given up. But, to avoid the necessity of doing this, a transport ran her down and sunk her in Hampton Roads, quite by accident. Collins was publicly reprimanded, privately patted en the back, and soon received a better command. The mischief done by the Flor- ida and the desperate state of the nation’s affairs were considered to warrant his sct- jon. Must Assume Respo: There are times when a must assume responsibilities not laid down in the law books, If he hesitates to take risks, he is likely to tind himself in trouble. In the harbor of Ferrol, Spain, Capt. Cra- ven of the United States Ship Niagara, had an Opportunity to attack the Confederate ironclad Stonewall, which had been fitted out in a French pert. He failed to do so, and for his non-action he was afterwards tried by court martial. Though acquitted, he was practically shelved and never got another important command. Of course it is possible for a commander to go too far. Capt. Wilkes did so when he took Mason and Slidell, the Confederate commissioners, off the British mail steamer Trent, while on the way to Englan}, and carried them to Boston. Ot course, the prisoners were promptly demanded by Great Britain, ard Secretary Seward gave them up. Though Wilkes was reprimanded for this flagrant breach of international law, he soon got another command. Jefferson Davis once said: “The Ameri- can people are tolerant of the offense of fighting too much.” In July, 1853, Martin Kozta, who had been military secretary to Kossuth, was confined in irons on board of the Austrain brig Hussar in the harbor of Smyrna. He had been seized on Turkish soil. Next day the United States ship St. Louis, commanded by Capt. Duncan N. In- gtaham, arrived. The latter demanded the person of Kozta, on the ground that he had declared his intention to become an Ameri- can citizen. The Austrians, who had, be- sides the eighteen-gun brig, a twelve-gun schooner and three armed merchant ves- sels, refused. But Ingraham meant busi- ness and cleared his deck for action. Hos- tlities were only prevented by the yielding up of the prisoner. A fight would have meant war with Austria. On the voyage home the St. Louis fell in with the United States sloop-of-war Levant, the commander of which as the ships passed yelled through his trumpet: “Ingraham, you have ruined yourself!” Nevertheless, in the diplomatic dispute which followed our government sustained Ingraham, and Congress gave him a gold medal. A Different Foteign Policy. Those were days when we used to have a foreign policy. It is different now. Not very long ago there was trouble between the United States and Portugal respecting an American citizen of Dutch birth, who had a farm on the east African coast which the Portuguese claimed. A special agent of the Department of State was sent out on @ war vessel to settle the difficulty. He satisfied himself by investigation on the spot that the Dutch-American was in the right. But the Portuguese admiral, with three men-of-war, was determined to have his own way, and finally he gave notice to the Dutchman that he would shell his place if he did not get out by wee the next day. In his behalf the United States agent appealed to the commander of the Amert- can ship, but the latter pulled out his in- tructions from the Navy jhowed that he had orders to give only “moral support” to our side of the ques- tion. Said the agent: “You pull up anchor and go home; for I am going to do some- thing that will make you feel real morti- fied. ‘Thereupon the agent went to the British consul in the port and stated the case to him. That official replied: “Oh, I will man- age that for you with pleasure.” He order- ed a signal to be run up on the flagstaff over his office, by which communication was made with a British gunboat in the harbor. It was a very dwarf of a gunboat, not much bigger than a cigar box. It re- minded the observer of the steamboat of Abraham Lincoln's story, which came to a full stop when it whistled. Presently a dingy put off from the gunboat and an officer in full uniform came ashore in it. He touched his hat to the consul and the latter said: “Please notify the Portuguese admiral that he will not fire upon the Dutchman's place.” The officer returned to the gunboat, and presently another boat was seen to make its way to the Portu- guese flagship. It conveyed the command- er of the gunboat, who calmly informed the admiral that if he attempted to carry out his threat the gunboat would blow him out of the water. Of course, the admiral could have sunk the gunboat with one shot, but inside of twenty-four hours there would have been a dozen British warships in the harbor, and where would the Portuguese have been then? Boldness Tempered With Judgment. Boldness, tempered with judgment, is the best policy a naval commander can adopt. In 1873 there was trouble about Cuba between Spain and the United States. At that time three Spanish ships of war chanced to be in the harbor at New York, undergoing small repairs. Their guns were ashore for the time being, and their am- munition had been landed on Ellis Island. One of the vessels was in the dry dock at the navy yard. The fuss having arisen, a coal barge, by a most convenient accident, was sunk directly in front of the gate of the caisson. The ship was ready to leave the dry dock the next morning, but this rendered it impossible to move her inside of three weeks. Meanwhile extraordinary difficulties interfered with the return of the guns and ammunition to the vessels. Thus the three warships were rendered practically hors de combat. If hostilities had broken out they would have been seized at once. The whole scheme was en- gineered by the United States officer in command at New York. At the same time the fuses, of secret manufacture, were abstracted from some of the Spanish shells and forwarded to the Navy Department at Washington for examination. As may well be imagined, the excitable Spantards were almost, crazy over the situation in which tf at, they found themselves. But all is fair in war. At about the same period the beginning of a conflict between Spain and the United States was narrowly averted at Colon, on the Isthmus of Panama. The Spanish con- sul at that place threatened to seize an American vessel which was charged with having furnished arms to Cuban insurgents. But the American consul there gave clear- ance paers to the craft. In that port at the time were the United States ship Yan- tic and the Spanish man-of-war Pizarro. The commander of the informed Capt. White of the Yantic that he would make the vessel a prize as soon as she went to sea. Capt. White replied that he would resist. In due time both warships ran Sag <a iar harbor, the American com- mander to quarters and for action. A fight would indoubtedig have occurred, but the vessel in dispute hada start and, showing a clean of heel, ran away ‘from the slow Pisarrs and made good escape. ‘When He Will Be Sustained. A commander who protects the interests of his country, within limits of common sense, may be confident of being sustained. In 1864 Admiral Baldwin was sent in pur- suit of the Alabama. While at Cape "Town he got wind of an English vessel that had been sent out to furnish coal to the con- federate steamer. The vessel was in a was upheld. It appeared that the the governor of ( the islands British ponscsutete i been indorsed by the on that ground his was held consistent with international law. matters boldness counts for Jackets of the Baltimane nce of itimore ae Bob” Evans na again he would fire raiso. It did not occur . A naval commander must know a 00a deal about international law. Though ris Policy ordinarily is one of the strictest neutrality, he may be called on at any time to take overt action. He is required to protect citizens of the United States at all times with all the force of his command. But American citizens in a foreign country must get themselves and their property = of the way in case of war. That is ing to his countrymen in the harbor at The commander may land marines and blue jackets to protect a United States consulate or legation. This would not be done in civilized Europe ordinarily, where good police are at hand, but it has fre- quently been necessary in South and Central America. In that part of the world United States ships of war have often granted asylum to political refugees from motives of humanity. Revolutions in those coun- tries are frequently lawless and always sanguinary, and, when one political party gets the upper hand, the usual plan is to shoot the prominent men on the other side, Great Britain’s Policy. The policy of Great Britain is always much more positive and aggressive than ours. She backs up her naval commanders in whatever they may do, always indors- ing their actions publicly, even though the latter may be secretly at the admirality. The captain of an English ship of war always feels that he has the entire power of his country behind him. Thus he is able to act with much greater decision and effect. But even the com- mander of a United States war vessel is &n absolute monarc! ‘small scale commits the mont vo od The rage ee pay that Though not possessing in law a power ot life and death over Sue subordinates, he can actually execute any of them. The case is not yet forgotten of Capt. Alex- ander Slidell Mackenzie of the brig Somers, who hanged Midshipman » @on of the Secretary of War, on a charge of mu- tiny. Though tried by martial for murder, he was acquitted. On shipboard the commander must main- tain the role of it he says monarch. is law. At the same time he is chary ministering punishment, for the reason t any common sailor has the ear of the commander's own masters if he has an abuse to complain of. For the captain is obliged by the regulations to forward to the Secretary of the Navy at Washington any document which the meanest blue Jacket may choose to hand him for such trans- mission. He may mark it “Not approved of,” but he has got to send it, and it may court-martial and even dis- missal from the service in case the com- plaint is of a sufficiently serious nature and is sustained. But if the commander is a disagreeable man he can make life ‘wretch- ed rapes for femeind and men without ex- ceeding the authority which the regulation: give him. “em His Oficial Record. In the navy every officer, high or low, is always under a master’s eye. To get away from it is impossible, save by leaving the service. The authority is inexorable, never forgetting and never forgiving. In the rec- ord books of the department at Washington each officer has a page, on which is inscrib- ed everything bad that he has been found out in since he entered the Naval Academy and up to date. Nothing is ever rubbed out from that page; it stands always ready to accuse him of past misdeeds if there is oc- casion to examine into his professional his- tory. If he ventures to owe a debt the de- partment will compel him to pay it. And a naval officer has exceptional opportunities for running into debt, too. Any one will trust him—even urge him to on credit—because the money is alyays to be got readily enough. One would imagine the position of a na- yal commander to be a very enjoyable one. It is hardly such, for many reasons. To begin with, it is exceedingly difficult for the captain of a ship to maintain agreeable relations socially. with his officers and to keep up strict discipline at the same time. If he were seen to indulge in a familiarity with one of the lieutenants that single act would loosen discipline all over the vessel. From that time on the midshipman would be more at ease with the executive officer, the petty officers would be a trifle more familiar in address- ing the yo Heutenants, and the blue jackets would pay a slightly less respectful attention to the orders of the petty officers. Everything on board a man-of-war must outwardly preserve an air of the coldest formality, else before you know it there will be trouble, which can only be settled by putting a score of the men in irons and dropping all social courtesies between the captain's cabin and the ward room. RENE BACHE. ‘Talk About Turf Affairs. From the New York Tribune. Racing news of the last four weeks in- dicates that the future of racing 1s not all that is desired by the true friends of the sport. In Washington the Engeman crowd is attempting to race in the face of the de- cided opposition of the better element of turf supporters in the capital city. The end of the fight between the sand fleas of Brighton Beach and the advocates of mer- Ty-go-round racing at Clifton ts looked for by all classes of turfmen. Representatives of both the Brighton Beach and Gloucester associations have attempted repeatedly to secure the Pimlico track at Baltimore for the purpose of winter racing. Be it said to the credit of Col. Hoff and his associates that they refused to have anything to do with them, Winter racing is not popular in the north, and no matter where the per- sons who have done so much to bring rac- ing into discredit attempt to push their plans to race day after day in all sorts of Weather, turfmen who love racing as a sport have made such a determined oppo- sition that the schemes of those who have disgraced the turf in the neighborhood of this city have been foiled. It is a pity that such a great sport as racing should be placed in this ludicrous position by a class of men who have neither a reputation for honesty in their own class nor the slightest position in any grade of society. The glowing accounts of the indignation of the business men of Washington at Dis- trict Attorney Birney’s position are laughed at by turfmen. If the keepers of bar rooms and disreputable resorts represent the business men of the capital it is high time that an indignation meeting were held to suppress Mr. Birney’s activity. ep A Painful Fact, Painfully Stated. From the Chicago Record. “Do you think it right,” queried the idiot, cheerfully—“‘do you think it right to call a box at the opera a music box?” “Hardly,” said the unfortunate who was his friend; “I should prefer to call it a chat- ter box.” ———_——+e+ Hamfatte—“Did you hear of the accident that happened to Fakeleigh?” Swallowed his diamond ring. Tiwalker—“Kind of tough on him to lose a dollar that way in these times.” Uncle Sam Proposes to Inoculate Them With Typhus Bacilli, THEY GOBBLE UP THE CROPS Just Now They Are a Plaguw*in’ Scotland. RECENT EXPERIMENTS. ACILLI OF “MOUSE typhus” are being propagated just now im the laboratory of the bureau of animal industry here. The cially with the germs in question. The lat- ter were first isolated and identified by the German Prof. Loeffier, who by means of them is said to have cleared Thessaly of & Prague of these animals during the last. year. A similar affliction has now attack- ed southern Scotland. From time to time mice of the same family, though of a dif- ferent species, become epidemic, as it were, in one part or another of the United States, doing great damage to the crops. Prof. Loeffler was employed by the Greek government, which paid all the expenses of his work in the province of Thessaly. On reaching the scene of the plague he pre- pared many gallons of an infusion of oat and barley straw. The straw being boiled, the water from it was poured through a sieve into tin vessels resembling milk cans. ‘Then a little glucose was added, and the mixture was dosed with a small quantity of gelatine containing a pure culture of the typhus bacilli. Finally, it was subjected to @ temperature of 86 degrees Fahrenheit. Under these conditions the germs were propagated by millions in the solution with- im a few hours. It only remained to dip in- to it pieces of dry white bread, a bit of which was placed in each mouse hole. Ate the Bread and Died. few hours. To begin with, an experiment was made with a field which was so thickly infested with the vermin that the ground was literally riddied with their holes. Around this area a ditch was dug, so as to isolate it, and then the infected food was A fortnight later not one of the rodent peste remained alive. It bap- pens that the disease is one to which no other animal is subject, so that no danger is involved to man or domestic beasts. In order to satisfy the people in Thessaly of this fact Prof. Loeffier and his assistants ate in their presence pieces of the ed bread and fed them to dogs cows. Mouse typhus is not contagious. Recently @ scientific commission was ap- pointed in Scotland to investigate the plague there, and members of it traveled all the way to Greece for the purpose of observing the results of Prof. Loeffier’s work. They were not satisfied that his achievement was as satisfactory or complete as had been rep- resented. The disappearance of the mice might be attributable to one of those epi- demics which naturally arise among animals that have multiplied excessively. This is one of nature's methods of keeping down the numbers of species which might other- wise overrun the earth. Another objection to the remedy was based on the non-con- tagious character of the disease, which is only communicated to those mice which actually swallow the bread. Healthy indi- viduals are su to be infected by eat- ing the bodies of dead ones, but this is not Proved. But the most important difficulty was con- sidered to lie in the high cost of the inocu- lating gelatine culture, which Prof. Loef- fier Turnished to the Greek government at $1 for a small tube. However, Uncle Sam’ bacteriologists do not indorse these view: They say that, with the plant possessed by | the bureau of animal industry, the stuff | could be turned out for ten cents a tube. Now, the contents of a single tube are suf™fi- cient to fill with the germs a volume of bouillon or other suitable solution equal to that of all the oceans of the world. All that the microbes need is a start and food to live on. Thus it will be seen that the requisite | disease-producing material could be made| cheap enough, the amount of bread needed for treating even a large farm being not very great. The gelatine culture preserves its properties for two months. . Different Species of the Same of Gen: The field mice of Thessaly, Scotland and the United States are three different species of the same genus. Unlike the others, those of Scotland do not live in burrows, but in the herbage. All of them eat the roots of every kind of vegetable. In meadows they live almost entirely on the roots of grasses, thus reducing the yield of hay per acre often very largely. When they become so numerous that their ordinary food supply is insufficient, they devour They do great damage winter by gnawing away the trunks from the ground level to the sur- face of the snow. In this way they will @estroy entire orchards and in the same manner tens of thousands of maples and beeches are killed. In Scotland they have infictea a much injury on y ruin: srass crop. During the the — were present in such swarms that the everything green. to fruit trees in the bark all around corn, which on an ass and brought to his mill. second load, but on his army of mi and to carry off the grain. There is mention of such plagues of small rodents in the Bible, and the ancient Greeks had a mouse-killing god—. lo Myoktonos. The field mice of the United States are Rot more plentiful in any particular part of the country than elsewhere. From time to time they increase enormously in num- bers in one section or another and become @ plague for one or more seasons. Like the Greek species, they live in shallow burrows, each pair having its own dwelling, in which they rear their young and deposit a store of food for the winter. These sub- terranean houses are kept scrupulously clean. The animals produce three or four litters a year for each female, with five or six young ones at a birth. Sometimes this rapid rate of reproduction is increased be- yond the normal limit. The causes which bring about the are It to as- certain. In Scotland the present trouble is attributed in part to the destruction of the natural enemies of the mice, such as owls, crows and weasels. The Most Deadly Foes. The most deadly foes of field mice are the short-eared owls, which are always present in great numbers when a plague occurs. Enemies quite effective in their way are adders, but it would hardly be practicable to encourage the propagation of dangerous serpents for such a reason. In South America the plains of the Argen- tine are much infested by these rodents, which are preyed on to some extent by armadilloes. That these queer and clumsy animals should be capable mousers is hard to realize, but such is the fact. One of the most curious methods adopted for fighting these vermin ts to scatter about a mixture | of powdered burnt gypsum and dry wheat | meal, to which sugar and a little aniseed vil are added. The mice eat the stuff with avidity. When taken into the stomach ft combines with the gastric juices to form a solid ball, and Mr. Mouse dies of indi- | Germany, the farmers catch the mice alive and smear them with a mixture of cart grease and fish oll, after- ward letting them run free. The odor of this preparation is so offensive to the pni- mals that they leave their burrows oud are easily killed, while it is said that many actually run themselves to death. One | efficient, though costly remedy, is the dig- the sheep industry te mouse plague indisposed to sac il es? i i H disorder, ft the Egyptain hand. Very nearly related to the lemmings, which the most remarkable They are about five inches long, wit short tails. Dwelling in the great central mountain chain way and Sweden, of cious. When escape they sit ing fight. Certain cultivated districts Sweden and Norway, where these creatures inarily unknown, are occasionally, at intervals of from five to twenty-five years, overrun by armies of FY isis ! fs ans of ie is wild Even domestic reindeer join in The Onward None of these turn by the The onward ceases until they reach they plunge, and, swimming same direction : i fa ut Het herited from are still seeking a & supposed submerged Atlantis, to which their ancestors of wont to resort when driven from their or- dinary dwelling places by crowding ana ——_—+ee- HER ONLY WEAPON A LANTERN, How an Arizona Sheep Herder Kept a Bloodthirsty Pama at Bay. Jabez English, a sheep herder living not far from Tombstone, had a singular adven- ture a day or two ago with a mountain lon, the skin of which now decorates his cabin. sayS @ correspondent of the Philadelphic Times. English was building his cabin, his former one having been destroyed by 5 and was busily at work on its roof when saw an animal steal out of the woods | by and fling itself upon the pail con’ his dinner of cold boiled bacon and He recognized this animal for a but thinking frighten it away, threw his The tool struck the animal on giF i li Fy ad : | to see her, but the lion did, and made for her with a scream of rage. As the great beast came leaping at her out of the dark- oe sé i g att athe i & | Ereetitbinrest came out in time to see the ‘ay to run back. pursued killed him, and then went frozen herder. His wife, chatty little Mexican woman, cl skin of the J = a id puma, saying hers, as she alone had brought to the village, and it was presented for the new home in the valley. ss &E 5 Miss Sumner (coquettishly)—“Now, Gear old England, Mr. Parke, it tom for a gentleman to kiss finds under the mistletoe, 1 believe? Mr. Hyde Parke (siding toward th —aw—yes! I believe it ts