Evening Star Newspaper, April 23, 1898, Page 18

THE EVENING STAR, SATURDAY, APRIL 23, 1898—24 PAGES, MAIN ROAD ACROSS SANTA CRUZ. ONE OF OUR NEEDS Importance of a Naval Station in the West Indies. ——__ + -—_ DANISH ISLANDS MIGHT BE SECURED —_—_+_—_. History of Former Efforts Towards Their Acquisition. a ee QUAINT OLD ST. THOMAS = = Written for The Evening Star. HE UNITED States is deprived of the advantage of a coaling station in the Danish West Indies by the refusal of the Senate to authorize the President to pur- chase the Island of St. Thomas. Upon the urgent recom- mendation of the President and State Department a resolu- tion was recently re- from the Senate foreizn relations mmittee authorizing the purchase of this : a base of supplies. The re discussed € session it finally strated that it could not pa: drawn. It was understood that the most determined r nee to the ure came from the opponents to the annexation of Hawali, who feared a pre: T austively In exe being demon- it was with- at the time ce then there has been talk of secur- | ing a coaling station at St. Thomas, but | the Danish government declined to permit this with the purchase of the island. © of the first lessons of the civil war, impressed during its continuance and 2m- bhasized at its close, was the necessity for @ Warport, or coaling and refitting station, in foreign waters. Even President Lincoln, prudent, economical, conservative western man that h2 was, had this necessity thrust upon him, and acknowledged it. And When, in January, 1865, Secretary Seward proposed tha quire, if this government should ac- ible, such @ station In West | . he gave his hearty assent. | sh in their minds, then, were the trou- {| Fre bles ate nt upon the coaling of our ; -n in pursuit of the southern | i they could recall that, while ate ivateers und blockade ished by the British with at our v doors, our nied ail aid and refresh- they ordered from Brit so from ports in the Azores, { Our own. foreig: aid to have ever one— } quisition of territor 1 worl It was only to S we could turn; to thos fred harbors, lying South America, and these island: choice. In th x of Britain | ¥ acquisition was te Bermudas, lying off | of Hatteras, and | fortified, | , in- reef: our « reinfor Kk of coral plotted for mines, and pos b floating docks in essing one this hemisphere. in the Bahamas is only one good harbor, | our government attempted to | was made t both belonging to Spain, and not at pres- ent In the market. France owns two fine islands—Guade- loupe and Martinique, in the latter the magnificent harbor of Fort Royal, with protecting fortress and large floating dock; but Frénce, like Spain, knows the value of its West Indian possessions, and will not part with them unless by compulsion. Holland has control of a few small is- lands in the Lesser Antilles, only one of which, Curacao, off the coast of Venezuela some forty miles, has any harbor at all; and this, though entirely protected, land- locked and capable of defense, is too small for effective use. There remain Haitt, Santo Domingo, and the Danish islands. The choice as presented to Mr. Lincoln and his Secretary of State lay between these three as the only acquisitions in prospec- tive with even a remote possibility of suc- cess. They did not at the outset enter- 17 its alienation with extreme suspicion, and would doubtless oppose any attempt of their rulers to convey it to a foreign power. Not Altogether Desirable. So far as the present government of Santo Domingo is concerned, it would prob- ably ‘now entertain a proposition looking toward the sale or lease of the Samana peninsula, as its state of chronic indebted- ness is aggravated by a foreign loan, the managers of which have sole charge of the customs and dole out to the president and his henchmen hardly sufficient for their most pressing needs. But after they had absorbed the payments on account of such a transaction there would be the common people to reckon with, who, not receiving any of the receipts, would be likely to start an investigation in the shape of a “revolution,” which would have to be sup- pressed by force of arms, and perhaps by United States arms at that. It having been shown, then, what islands were not obtainable, theenext step would, be to indicate what were, or presumed to be. There was one power, during the dark days of the rebellion, always consistently friendly, and that was litte eae whose ports were open to our warships 0 the same terms that others obtained. Not- ably free to our naval commanders was the port of Charlotte Amalia, in the Island of St. Thomas, and there was established a coal yard for the use of our ships. It was the one port to which we could have free access, and, what is more to the point— egress, when a confederate crutser or block- ade runner, having availed itself of this port for coaling and refitting, was about to ‘depart. When, therefore, a coaling sta- tion was thought of, and the subject broached to President Lincoln, in January, 1865, it was with the {sland of St. Thomas in mind that Secretary Seward broke ground. He lost no time in sounding the views of the Danish minister at Washing- ton, and in inducing him to communicate with his government. He and Mr. Lin- coln had agreed upon this particular Island of St. Thomas, for the reason that it was most commandingly situated as to the other West Indian islands; also, it belonged i to @ nation friendly, and what is of im- portance, impecunious. It was shrewdly ecnjectured, by our astute Secretary of State, that Denmark might wish to sell this outlying possession of hers, for reasons of her own; at all events, that she would en- tertain the proposition in a friendly spirit. It so happened that Denmark was in need of several millions of dollars to strengthen her defenses; at the same time she did not dare risk offending her sister powers by openly assenting to a sale of even so small @ portion of her territories as St. Thomas, that bit of earth and rock in the far Carib- bean sea. But her objections were finally overcome, CHARLOTTE AMALIA, tain the two first-named; but subsequently secure con- in sent to the establishment of stations each one, and miet with its usual repulse. Since the time of Columbus, when that great navigator discovered the island of Haiti, in 1492, its beautiful harbors and bays have been coveted by the seafarers of several nationalities. Spain only let go her grasp when compelled; France held on to Cape Haitlen until Bonaparte's bro- ther-in-law and thousands of French sol- diers had perished of yellow fever; England made two or three futile attempts to seize and hold the island; and the Haitiens, hav- ing In mind the great desirability of their neble harbors, have viewed askance every fresh negotiation looking toward their use, even, by others. The coveted possession of | the Haitiens, considered desirable from its strategical situation, is the Mole St. Nico- las, In the extreme northwestern tp of Haiti. An lmpoertant Point. The mole commands entirely Windward channel, between Haiti, through which all pass between the Atlantic United States and Jamaica and the Isth- mus of Panima, as well as of Nicatagua. Should a canal ever be constructed across Nicaragua or Panarna, this would be a Most important point, in case of war, and the most advantageous for the assembiing of a nay squadren. An abortive attempt secure this port for a coaling ation in 1800 by Rear Admiral Gherardi, acting in the interests of the United ates and in the nature of a reward by Haiti for services rendered. The “inside history” of this affair was published by the late Fred- erteck Pouglass, then our minister resident at Haitl, in the “North American Review” for September and October, 1801, and is a strong ex parte statement of the transac- tion. At all events, it failed; not from any negligence on the part of Admiral Gher- the great Cuba and shipping must ports of the . and that {s too small for ration in this connection. Jamaic das several fine harbors, particularly thos: of Kingstoa and Port Reyal, with deep water, and well fortified. England Well Supplied. Of the remaining British tslands, in the Caribbees is Saint Lucia, with its recently fortified and land-locked harbor, where im- Mmense supplies are copstantly retained; a ¢oaling station of the first class; eastward of St. Lucia, Barbados, incapable of be- fig well defended, but with strong garri- gons of British soldiers. In the English fslands of Dominica and Antiqua are good Qnd sheltered harbors also; so it will be geen that Great Britain 1s well supplied ith prospective coaling and refitting sta- in any event of war or future com- ions. islands belonging to other powers, 4g Cuba, with scores of excellent ha: and Puerto Rico, with two or three; {ara but from the repugnance of the Hal- tens to part with any portion of thelr ter- ritory. This reduces the “availables” to two— Santo Domingo and the Danish Islands. Santo Domingo has at least one magnifi- cent harbor, or port within a harbor, in the Bay of Samana, on its north coast. The great Gulf of Samana 1s about thirty miles long by ten miles wide; but fts entrance is very much contracted by an extensive reef, which stretches from the southern coast almost over to the opposite shore, so that the really navigable channel is not more than a mile or so in width. The real harbor of Samana lies some five or six miles within the gulf, and is known, from the town on its shore, as Santa Bar- bara. It is a perfect cul-de-sac, with deep water close up to the protecting cays that separate it from the open bay, and abso- zutely protected from the gales’ that some- times vex these seas. The same general objection can be w against its acquisition ag inst Mole Bt. Nicolas—that the Dotnini would view though she was very coy at first, and in- ‘d upon knowing just how much Uncie am was wiiling to pay for her West In- dian Islands before proceeding further. Her minister was instructed w obtain a reply, when there intervened that terrible tragedy by which onr nation’ lost its Pre ident, and Mr. Seward himself was pro: taated by the hand of a would-be a: n. A natural delicacy prevented the subject from being reopened by the Danish minis- and it was not until January, 186: t Mr. Seward, having meanwhile made yoyage to the West Indies for the re: toration of his health, resumed the tenta- live negotiations. He had visited St.Thomas and all his previous impressions of its be ing a desirable acquisition for our gove ment were confirmed. A basis of negoti tion was finally secured, and our min at Copenhagen was instructed to offer 00,009 for the three islands—St. ‘Thomas, Santa Cruz and St. John. This offer declined, but Denmerk made counte proposition, offering to cede the three is- lands for $15,000,000, or St. Thomas and St. John for $10,000,000, with an option of Santa Cruz for 000,000 more. A compro- mise finally effected at $7,500,000. for the two first named—St. Thom: John. It was in July, 1867, that Mr, erd cabled to Copenhagen: “Close Denmark's offer; St. John, St. and a half millions. Send treaty | immediately. But the Danes are a leisurely people, and it was not unti! October that the treaty was signed and conciudec Meanwhile there was a question as to the wishes of the inhabitants of the islands with refer- ence to a transfer of ulleg’ and an agent was sent by cach nation for the purpose of taking a pleb! rived in St. Thom November, '67; a ite. They ar- bout the middle of days later occurred and a tidal wave, have become matters of historical sent! ment in the United States was doubti turned against the treaty. It is not known that the island ever experienced a similar visitation of such’ terrible character; it certainly has never had one since. But this was sufficient to set in motion all the antagonistic elemenis of earth and sea, a3 if the very stars and planets fought against the project. Agreed to the Transfer. Notwithstanding the predictions of the superstitious people of the island, however, @ vote was taken, which was nearly unani- mous, for transfer to the authority of the United States. Considering the preliminary convention as binding equally upon both | parties to the agreement, the King of Den- mark had sent out, by his commissioner, his royal proclamation, announcing the severance of their relations, beginning: “We, Christian the Ninth, by the grace of God ‘King of Denmark (etc., ete.), send to our beloved and faithful subjects of St. ‘Thomas and St. John our royal greeting. We have resolved to cede our islands of St. Thomas and St. John to the United States of America, and have to that end, with the reservation of the constitutional con- sent of our rigsdad, concluded a conven- tion with the President of the United States.” Concluding: “With sincere _sor- row do we look forward to the severment of those ties which for many years have united you to us and the mother country, and, never forgetting the many demonstra- tions of loyalty and affection we have re- ceived from you, we trust that nothing has been neglected upon our side to secure the future welfare of our beloved and faith- ful subjects, and that a mighty impulse, both moral and material, will be given to the happy development of the islands under the new sovereignty. Commending you to God. ‘Given at our palace of Amalienborg, the 25th of October, 1867, under our royal hand and seal. CHRISTIAN, R.” ‘The popular vote was taken on the 9th of January, 1868, which was made a universal holiday, and the American flag substituted for the Danish on every point of promi- nence, tower and hilltop. The treaty was submitted*to the Danish rigsdad, and by them promptly ratified, the king affixing his signature the same day, Tune 80, 1868. ‘The position of Denmark, acting in good faith, and presupposing that the United States would do the same, wa#now irrevo- cable. She had offended several of her mightier neighbors, Germany, France, Eng- land, who looked upon this ‘acquisition by the United States as prejudicial to their in- terests. Over the subsequent proceedings we must draw the veil of charity, to avoid the use of harsher epithet; for the conclusion of this chapter 1s by no means creditable to the United States. Four months were allowed for the ratification of the treaty by our Senate, then extended to a year; again extended, to the 14th of April, 1870, when the committee of foreign relations ja fe a terrible’ earthquake which importance, inasmuch as the tide j While the eastern, or Round, bay has ¢ recommended suspenSion of action, and in- dorsed it adversely. — Denmark’s Flag Still Waves. The affair has dragged through three ad- ministrations, and had been the sport of different sessicns of Congtess, only to be ignominiously smothéred tn committee and pigeonholed, with Denmark's royal signa- ture. affixed and the ratification of her sen- ate. Thus the treaty intention was ig- nored; thus the King:of Denmark had the humination of recalling his disappointed but still loyal subjects; and the flag of Dannebrog yet wave! over the Islands of St. Thomas and 8t. John. It needs but a glarice at the situation of these Danish islands ‘to be convinced that they would become measurably as valuable to us eventually as the great territory of Alaska, which Secrétary ‘Seward was in- >trumental in adding to our possessions. In fact, these tropical islands would act as a balance to that frigid land of gold and glaciers, stretching over toward the Asiatic continent. Just now they are of greater value, strategically speaking, tham ever they were, for our navy is larger and our needs for coaling stations greater, and our international complications more extensive. In the first place they. produce what our country cannot—tropical products pure and simple, like coffee, spices, dye and cabinet woods, cocoanits and sugar in vast quanti- ties. Situated within the 17th and 18th degrees of north lutituée—1,600 miles south of New York—they* are within the bound- aries of the tropics, where perpetual sum- mer reigns and where the vegetation is rankly luxuriant. Three islands are mentioned, but only one has the necessary attractions to be- com? a subject of international negotiation. The largest of the Danish group is Santa Cruz, known also by its French name-—St. Croix. This island is about nineteen miles long by four broad, is hilly in its northern part, with one elevation—Mount Eagle— 1,164 feet high, but in the main level and Battery of St. Thomas. cultivable, with a fertile soll and numerous plantations devoted to the culture of coffee and sugar cane. The total population is perhaps 25,000, with two towns, one on the northern coast called Christianstaed, with about 10,000 inhabitants; another on the western shore, known as Frederichstaed, with a better harbor, but fewer inhabi- tants. Smallest of the Group. The smaliest of the group is St. John, which is about eight miles long by four in breadth, with a very rugged surface, one elevation of 1,000 feet, and watered by numerous small streams. Its fragrant for- ests are very attractive, with bay and cin- namon, mahogany and wild coffee; but it is scantily populated and still less éutivated, with perhaps 2,000 pecple all told, very few of them white or even light colored. The tiveness of St. John lies in its great stern harbor, which, though never ve by keel of larger craft than an occasional drogher or turtler, could float the ship: a small navy in’ security. This haven, known as Coral bay, is, in fact, a triple harbor, sheltered by a lofty promonioi The middle harbor, called “Hurricane Hole, a safe anchorage during the hur- riecane months—from July to November— anchorage, with teen fathoms. the xreat depth of thi nese advantages are thus particularly set forth, because of the ob- security in which this lovely isle 1s shrouded. With its beaches of snowy sand, Its deep, fiord-like bays, its wooded hills, sweet with scent of laurel and cedar, St. John, if an American possession, would soon become one of the most attractive winter resorts instead of existing, as now, in solitude. However, it was not either Santa Cruz or St. John which, despite their manifold at- ‘tions, ised our Secretary of State to his covetous eyeg seaward. It was an {sland adjacent, only four miles from the smallest and forty north of the largest of these tropical Danes in the Ceribbean sea-- St. Thomas, which is about thirtecn or fourteen miles long 1nd three or four miles broad, depending upon the particular spot selected for measurement. It Is as hilly as St. John, more beeut!ful in contour than Santa Cruz, and (to use a Hibernian sim- ile) as barren as both of them put together. lotte, Mes the liquid pearl of St. Thomas— its harbor. There is no other like it !n these seas; that is, with all its manifold attractions of scenery and social life con- tiguous. There is not a sailor who has sailed to the American tropics who does not recall, and with delight, the harbor of St. Thomas: According to the “sailing di- rections” of nautical experts it affords pro- tection from every quarter except from the southwest, from Which direction gales sel- dom come save during the hurricane months. On its west side is what is called the Careening cove, where are large moor- ings on shore, to which vessels can be se- cured, and lie in twenty feet of water, as securely as in any harbor of the West Indies. The average depth of the harbor is over six fathoms; the entrance is open, but sufficiently protected, and is about half a mile in width. Within, the harbor is about a mile across, with sufficient accom- modation, old sailors say, for 200 sail. Th® means 200 steamers, as well; but perhaps 100 will suffice, that being many more than our navy will assemble there, even if we obtain it. As a Conling Station. As to the necessity for this harbor as a coaling station for the United States navy, there are no two opinions among naval men. When Mr. Sumner desired to be in- formed regarding this harbor, he sent for the veteran Admiral David D. Porter, who told him thaf there was no harbor in the West Indies better fitted for a naval sta- tion. That St. Thomas was a small Gi- braltar fn itself, only requiring guns, with little labor expended upon fortified works. Moreover, as to its location: “It lies right in the track of all vessels from Europe, Brazil, East Indies and the Pacific ocean, beund to the West Indies or the United States. It is a point where all vessels touch for supplies; it is a central point whence any or all of the West Indies can be assailed, while of itself it is Impervious to attack from landing parties, and can be fortified to any extent. The bay, at the head of which lies the town, is almost cir- cular, the entrance being by a neck, guard- ed by two heavy forts. In fine, I think St. ‘Thomas is the keystone to the arch of the West Indies, it commands them all. It is of more importance to us than any other nation!” Another gallant officer of our navy, Capt. G. V. Fox, also sent to Mr. Sumner a similar report respecting the immense value to us of that port and island. “The harbor,” he says, “is one of the best in the West Indies, admirable for naval pur- poses, and fully equal to all the require- ments of the commerce of those seas. The entrance is narrow and capable of being obstructed. The hills on both sides have a commanding elevation, sufficient to place the batteries thereon ‘above the reach of the ship's guns, while an attacking fleet Would be subjected to their plunging fire. The harbor on the land side 1s covered by similar eminences. These are conditions which, together with its small area and in- sular position, give satisfactory security for a naval depot. The eminent strategic, geographical and commercial position which St. Thomas occupies arrests the at- tention of the most casual observer of the world’s chart.” But notwithstanding all this expert opin- fon as to the real necessity for a coaling station, as to the superior fitness of the Danish Island and harbor for such a sta- tion, when once the conditions were favor- able for its acquisition Mr. Sumner and his coadjutors let it slip from their grasp. Favor Annexation, The inhabitants of the Danish Islands are still in favor of annexation to the United States, since they know that their fortunes are more cl y allied with ours than wi h those of any European nation. Even among the Danish officials there is the same strong feeling that it would re- sult to th nefit of all concerned, for the rank and file would be relieved from ser- vice .p far from the home counrty, and the higher officers and officials would be retired on ample pensions. The gove ment is at present expensive and somewhat oppressive. The annual deficit to Denmark is from $50,000 to $100,000, and there are no means of alleviating the financial distress. Like the inhabitants of all the islands of these seas, the people here resident that their orly salvation lies in closer po- litical connection with the United States, since that would imply increased commer- cial advaniages and resultant prosperity. As the people here all speak English, even the Danish officials, there would be no violence to national or racial prejudices, and the transfer could be effected with very little friction. The recent movement toward an inquiry into the possibility for acquisition may lead to important results. But it must be con- cted with extreme caution. Denmark Il have every reason to view with dis- sition emanating from the for the same king, whose irthday was recently cele- see PALMS AT THE LANDING PLACE, CHARLOTTE AMALIA, leached from the Long since its soll w: EOS ee rocks by torrential re’ tracted by exhaustive slave labor; its for- ests converted {nto charcoal; but the ine cannot be changed. They still rise in majesty; still shelter within their ho! many a nook made verdant by careful cul: tivation. The highest of them, the main backbone of the island, may reach an altl- tude of 1,500 feet, and from its crest, im: mediately above the only settlement, ts spread out a view which to see were worth many times the cost of voyaging thither. Magnificently Situated. Directly beneath, {n the hollow of the hills, its back against the central ridge, and sticking {ts feet im the placid waters of its peerless harbor, Hes Charlotte Ama- lid, the capital and Gnly town of St. Thomas. Herein ate céngregated the bulk of its total population” of perhaps 13,000 people, most of whom are colored, though the last slave was freed fifty years age. It is one of the prattiest towns in the West Indies, and that is*sayifig much, when one has ‘seen them all, For it has, first, the advantage of unsurpassed situation, pene upon and between three rounded hills,which buttress the baekbone aforementioned. Along the shore ‘@re Btraggling rows of palms, leaning ldzily “above beaches of doubtful cleanliness a oe tae some, of the inhabitants: Btt above street, which runs aroand the bay, shere are others leadingrup tue hills, and man flights of steps.and stairs, | wandering among gardens of fruit trees and fragrant flowers. Within the gaily oma Smee some red, some pink, some Yel smo = & combination of all colors imaginable, ro- side the respectable people of the capita the Danish office-holding class, the foreign consuls, the merchants and the occasiona visitors. Down by the bay stances ee red fort, Just such a one as may be ssen, says an oriental traveler, on the shores of the Bosphorus, and with just such old an; worn-out cast-iron guns, pointing aimlessly at the sky and landscape. Around this fort and its water battery are grouped the quar- ters of a company or so of Danish soldiers, every whit as stiff and formal as though stil in Copenhagen. They are here to guard against insurrection of the blacks, who occastonally. are ungrateful enough to rebel against the mild rule of Christian IX, and go out on plunder intent. Within this setting of brown and sun-burnt hills, and bathing the feet of the Danish Char- brated, sits on her throne today whose sig- nature was affixed to the treaty that fail- ed, and whose sentiments were so outra- seously violated more than a quarter cen- FREDERICK A. OBER. PERSONAL NOTORIETY. The Small Place It Has in an Author's Succens. From Scribner's. Personal publicity, the sort that comes from the distribution of biographical de tails and the publication of likenesses, may be commercially useful to some purveyors of public entertainment, but it seems prob- able that there has been an overestimation of its value to the makers of books. One of the most popular books ever written was “Alice in Wonderland.” Its distribution must have been enormous, and doubtless it sull goes vigorously on, but who had ever seen a likeness of the man who wrote it? When Dr. Dodgson died the other day, and the newspapers told ;who he was and what title he had to be heid in grateful memory, thouands of his debtors identified him for the first ‘time as “Lewis Carroll,” the au- thor of the inimitable stories that are al- most as familiar to contemporary children as “Mother Goose.” Dr. Dodgson liked peace and a quiet life, and very cordially disliked notoriety. Like many wise people, he found great pleasure and recreation in the companionship of nice children, and for their amusement he concocted two of the queerest and most original and de- Ughtful books that ever were written. But he never corsidered that merely because his books became famous there was any need that he should become famous too. No modest author need hesitate to pro- duce a masterpiece, or even a popular novel (which need not ‘be a masterpiece, and usually isn’t one), for fear that his success: will involve the sacrifice of a reasonable privacy. His book must be published if its worth is to be fairly tested; but that he should be published, too, is not at all indis- Pensable. If he chooses not to have his likeness run in the advertising columns of the newspapers, he can keep it out, and his book won't suffer; if he prefers that his Personal idiosyncrasies and circumstances should not be discussed, that, too, can accomplished in great measure withdut much trouble. The only things the public absolutely requires from writers in ex- change for its favors are ideas and good writing. Everything else is thrown in, and may in most cases be easily and safely withheld. WHERE LIFE IS EAS Army Posts Where Uncle Sam’s Boys Like to Serve, ARTILLERY GET THE BEST OF THEM Drawbacks to Duty on the West- ern Plains. INTERESTING COMPARISONS eigenen Written for The Evening Star. HIS GENERAL pulling up of stakes by all of the regi- ments of the United States army is a thing for the soldicrs who have of late years been putting in their service in re- mote and undesirable posts to relish. When the regiments are ready to return from the field there will probably be a gen- reassignment of troops, especially in the cavalry and infantry branche: the men whose nightly music for the past few years has been the wail of the desert wind and the moan of the mournful coyote will stand more than an even chance of catching “softer” soldiering. Few private citizens possess knowledge s0 exact and appreciative of the points of difference between New York and Ari- zona, California and Idaho, the District of Columbia and Wyoming, as seasoned soldiers of the United States army, and especially the men with the shoulder straps. Acquired chiefly through experience by the older officers in the service, and through hearsay by the young fellows fresh from West Point, this tremendous fund of in- formation as to the relative advantages of existence in all parts of the country is of no merely superiicial characte: upon such negative and unconvinc tails as climatic conditions and naiural surroundings, but is founded upon the suf- ferings in exile and zest in eventful re call of army ofhcers. The private citizen and the army officer may differ in minor details of their respective view points as to the inhabitableness of certain sections of the United States, but upon essential matters their judgment will generally be fou to diverge very slightly. It is not for example, that an insurance nt with Washington headquarters would hail with any great degree of delight an from the president of his company transferring him to some spot on the Mo- jave desert or the sage-brush plains of western Nebraska. The whole career of an a officer is made up of such heari- rending shifts, which, officially, they must and do endure uncomplainingly But many a moan they make at mess. Im the Artillery. The artillerymen, especially those ascign- ed to the heavy or stationary batteries, have the best of their brothers in the other arms in the matter of choice assignments The soldiering of the officer in the heavy arUllery branch of the United States s¢ ice is in truth of the supremest kid-gloved order, and the wonder fs not great that the lads at West Point struggle so hard for honors in order to gain the chat to enter tt, The majority of the heay artillery posts are situated in or near th large cities on both coasts, and the is tion of frontier soldiering, which is t common lot of the majority of the infan- trymen and cavalrymen, forms scarcely any part of the existence of the officers whose cape linings are red. Aniong artillery officers there is a fairly even division of opinion as to the respec- tive merits of New York harbor, Fort Monrce in Virginia and the Presidio of San Francises for their line of soldiering, the posts named being always first cholce, the heavy artillery post in Washington coming next. The artillerymen devoted to the chain of posts in the vicinity of New York are generally men with money aside froin their pay and club tastes equal to the task of Gisvesing of it. As a regiment of artillery is usually kept within one mili- department for from eight to ten and occasionally even longer, the attached to a battery stationed at cne of the New Yerk harbor posts becomes ty intimately acquainted with his own cial chair and his own particular tuble t his club. He is exceedingly apt to de- velop into a first-nighter at the theaters and not infrequently becomes one of th dancing men at the cotilions. He is apt to become se completely in touch with the sights and sounds of New York after a te decade of © e within a few miles of it that the universe ordinarily seems blank enough to him when the bombshel! fs ex- ploded at the mess table that his regiment has received orders to move, or t he himself is to be transferred to another regiment. The only thing likely to miti- gate the dismay of an artilleryman thus cruclly wrenched from his favorite New York is an order to proceed either to Fort Monroe, the Presidio of San Francisco or to Washington barracks. At Fort Monroe. The joy of the army officer’s lot at Fort Monroe is pretty well known to the thous- ands of people who make a point of spend- ing a week or so at Old Point during the in-between season. Perhaps in no single military post in the country 1s the army officer with the red stripes on his trousers more in evidence than at Fort Monroe. Old Point Comfort is the congregating place in nter for wealthy southern people who ve spent the summer, or a part of it. at the Virginia springs, and during the balm- jer months the walks around the have- been-impregnable ramparts, plerced for out-of-date fifteen-inch smcoth-bores and muzzle-loading converted eight-inch rifles, are thronged every day with pretty girls from the southland. There is not much “in bar, heave soing on within the confines of the ram- parts of Fort Monroe during this season, but there is a truly wonderful amount of dancing and merry making from high noon to gray dawn. The young civilian, no mat- ter how great his distinction or ample his purse, has never yet been seen who has @ttained unusual popularity among. the girls who flit through the Fort Monroe season. for the attractiveness of a com- bination of red and gilt, when it serves for the ornamentation of a strapping youth With a swagger and a military title. is a matter of common observation. The young eYtillerymen fortunate enough to catch a period of service of »Fort _Monroe—and, nowadays, most of them do, sooner or later, for the artillery school is located ihere—are not infrequently fortunate in marrying wealthy and otherwise well- equipped wives, which is not among the minor reasons why artillerymen consider Fort Monroe an exceedingly desirable post. And then Norfolk, a town neither dead nor sleeping in a social sense, lies only a few miles across Hampton Roads; Balti- more is only a few hours’ ride up Chesa- peake bay, and, more than all, the night boat from Fort Monroe lands the artillery officer on leave in Washington at sunrise. Last, but not least, the New York hungry artillerymea may get a few days’ leave and journey from Fert. Monroe to Manhattan Island in a bagatelle of ten hours. Delichts of the Presidio. , The Presidio of San Francisco is another casis for artillerymen. Besides being the most beautiful military post in the United States, bar none, ft is departmental and regimental headquarters, and the army of- ficer ia as big a factor in San Francisco as the naval officer is in the summer society of Newport and Bar Harbor. The Presidio Dut the artillery predominptss, “any nas but ti ery pr the colonel of the artillery regiment is in command.- The wes of Ban is tIiickly clustered military posts, and the city.offers a field for social exploitation such as is found, one inno other American city, not Washington. Several great marriages have been made drill -by army officers while thus stationed with- in big gun range of the Golden Gate. Four miles from the Presidio a rock rises from cordially detested by is Alcatraz Island, a two-battery heavy artillery post, and the saluting station of the harbor. Bleak and desolate, Alcatraz stands right in the track of the dense col fogs that nightly sweep into the bay fr the Pacific, and during the night hours J catraz is a humorous example of the sloriousness of the certral coast climate of California, as the mutterings of many a shivering officer of the day who has been compel to visit the sentmes on the Al- catraz citadel will attest There are. course seven in the life ht consist occa sional fan artillery in draw- off- “< in Canby, the © are, of cour ts in the Unt . but none of them ts an Canby is in the wilderness of the Siwash country, on Cape Disay pointment, at the mouth of the Columbia river. thirteen miles from Astoria, a town built upon piles, through the flooring of which drunken salmon fishermen are drop- ped nearly every night during the fishing season. There is no very delirious sc 1 whirl in Astoria, which at best is onl reached by a daily boat from Fort Canby traversing dangerous, tumultuous waters. Two miles across a bear-infested trail ts the settlement of I] Waco, where the en- listed man finds a peculiarly barbarous brand of whisky, and which is only visited by the army officer when he goes there in charge of a platoon to hunt up enlisted derelicts. artillery post A Less Happy Let. The brunt of the actual soldiering In the United States service in times of peace is berne by the cavalrymen and infantrymen. Frozen by the bitter winter blasts of Mon- tana for five years, they stand unmurmur- ingly—officially—subject to an order thot may end them to be parched for another half decade by the simoons of New Mexi- can deserts, or to be soaked in the exceed- ing grcat wetness of western Washington, at Vancouver barracks, for example.where, according to an old army tradition, it rains thirteen months in the year. It is a sig nificant fact, by the way, that all of the army officers who have ‘become afflicted th insanity during the last quarter of a century ve belonged to the cav airy or in- fantry branch, and in nearly every case the loss of reason ha been traceable to the monotony, only relieved by severe ship. of frontier soldiering. “Not a single artilleryman or engineer has figured in the lists of insane army officers since the civil war. Notwithstanding the soul-paralyzing shifts to which «: valry and infantry offi- cers are constantly liable, there are a good many posts where officers in these branches may mince through joyous days. For the cavalrymen, Fort Myer, across the Poto- mac, is perhaps the star assignment of the lot. A cavairy officer may have a lot of fun in Washington to atone for whatever misery he may have undergone in the mes- quite country of the Texas Panhandle or among the ed bluffs of South Dakota. There are many opportunities here for him to don his full dress uniform, which may have been wrinkling in its case for an number of years previous nd the drills the Fort Myer troops are attended be sufficient number of prett | girls to make any normal-min man murmur orts living. a Washington d cay ns for the pure § Iry- of Pleasant Billets. Next to Fort Myer, the wearers of the yellow are perhaps more partial to Fort Leavenworth, Kan., than to any other post in which their branch 1s prominent An exceedingly beautiful and attractive post in itself, Fort Leavenworth has gradually, during the past twenty years, su extended its influence to the adjoining handsome city of Leavenworth, the metropolis of Kansas, that the city has become practi- cally an adjunct to the fort in a social sense. There are as many valks” and “crooning rows” and groves” within the boundartes of the Fort Leavenworth garrison as there are at West Point. Moreover, the soldiering at Fort Leavenworth is easy enough for infantry- men, men and light artillerymen and ‘the phere of the post is found sufficiently lively by officers who have been buried for a few years in Fort Spokar I . Tex., or other not-on- the-map-garrisons, whose situations are | only charted in the publications of the gen- eral land offi Infantry officers are generally rather par- tial to Fort Sheridan, near Chicago, which was for so many vears held down by the 15th, banished for ite sins to unspeakable Arizona about a year ago. The infantry officer who has done his four or five years at San Carlos, or at Fort Whipple, or at Fort Sidney, or at Fort Snelling, or at Fort Assiniboine, in any of which and In many similar purgatories he is likely to pine and die for the sight of human countenances, other than those of his comrades in arms, hails with rapture an assignment either to Fort Logan, near Denver; Fort Douglas, near Salt Lake City; San Antonio bar- racks, near San Antonio, Tex., or Omaha barracks, near Omaha. After a few inter- minable years of plugging away with Springfields at night-howling coyotes, of playing endless whist, or even of occas! ally scouting through Arizona after the ever-elusive Apache Kid, there f= glee in the prespect of putting up for a while at a pest where cigars do not wither or free lefore they sre smoked, where all of t femininity dces not consist in the post laundresses and the ordnance sergeant’s gecd-hearted wife, and where a newspaper or magazine is not begrimed with alkall dust before it finally reaches the post li- brary. , More or Less Desirable. Fort D. A. Russell fs on tance ewny from al town after its own peculiar. ern fashion, and for breezy this reason ft Wests wou eem to be a desirable post from’ rs point of view. But it ts not., The reason ft h: achieved a reputat among army officers which clas Fort Yuma or Fort Keogh or an the desolate posts to be avolded, if pos- sible, at all hazards, fs that there fs a disposition on the part of the municipal authorities of Cheyenne to make it so hot, for the enlisted men of the adjacent post, whenever they wander into the town, that all hands at the post, including the off-{ cers, are kept in hot water most of the time. The cavalry or infantry officer who has been cultivating a love for the beautiful while serving as military attache at Ber- lin, or Paris, or Vienna, or Rome, would probably not suffer from shrunken spirits were he ordered to proceed to the United States and report for duty at Fort McPher- son, near Atlanta, Ga. Fort McPherson is actually one of the gem posts of the whole lot, and the life pursued by the army ofl- cer there, as in nearly all of the posts south of Mason and Dixon's line, has sufficient dolce far niente to invite a good many hundred applications to the War Depart- ment every year for assignments in that region. In Atlanta, perhaps more than in any other of the large cities of the south, has the feeling created by the civil war died out—a fact attributable not only to the influence of the late Mr. Grady, but also to the large number of northern’ peo- ple who have established themselves in At- lanta during recent years, so that Fort MePherson, aside from its loveliness as @ place of residence and its contiguity to the singularly pretty city of Atlanta, is in a social sense one of the most desirable of American military pos sit with, other off “We'rs going to the Lyceum night, to see ‘The Merchant of “Oh, you lucky girl! the center of Sn Francisco bay which is | ed to see Irving play artillery officers. It | Punch.