The New York Herald Newspaper, March 8, 1868, Page 4

- os OUR NAVY. ITS ORIGIN AND GLORIOUS ANNALS, Sketches of the Great Commanders of the Past and Present. Naval Asylums, Ordnance and Personnel. SIDES OF OAK AND IRON-SIDES. THE NAVY OF THE FUTURE. ‘The early history of the United States Navy is tnvolved in so much obscurity that at this remote day it is dificult to rescue from oblivion the frag- mentary data that are still Noating on the vast ocean ofTime, But it must be borne in mind that during the greater part of the Revolutionary period all the records pertaining to the organization of the navy were confided to the care of temporary boards and committees, and therefore lost in the confusion and irresponsibility incident to inexperienced legislators. The first step taken by the Continental Congress on the subject of a navy was in October, 1775, when two small cruisers were ordered to be equipped for sea, and all merchantmen were forbidden to tly a pennant. Later, on December 18 of that year, thirteen vessels, corresponding in number with the thirteen colonies, were directed to be built. These ships were armed with nine and twelve-pounders, and with fours and sixes aftand forward. They averaged from 600 to 800 tons burden, and their spar decks were formed of gratings, At that time the models assimilated to the French, Spanish and Greek, with high poops, square sterns and ponderous quarter galleries. Live oak, which was first used in ship building at Charleston in 1750, formed most of the frames of these new vessels; but copper was not then in general use for the pro- tection of bottoms, and this rendered them of little service in tropical latitudes as cruisers. The great obstacle which Congress now had to encounter was in the selection of officers and the enlistment of seamen; the first, because there were none to choose from who had ever been trained to the use of ordnance at sea or who had been subjected to naval discipline and the control of large bodies of men, and the second because few sailors would enlist for more than a single short cruise while the authorized capture of British vessels by privateers held out so many inducements for gain. Added to this was the multiplied character of the appointing power of of- cers. Under these circumstances it was impossible not to blunder, but these errors were more than compensated for by the selection of such men as Nicholson, Biddle, Barry, and that most intrepid of naval heroes, John Paul Jones. It is said that we lose nothing because history repeats itself, and it is perhaps equally true that history loses nothing when we repeat it. COMMODORE JOHN BARRY, who is called the ‘Father of the Navy,” was a native of Wexford, Ireland, and to an accidental meeting with Washington in Philadelphia, at the house of Mr. Meredith, a merchant, for whom Barry com- manded a London packet called the Black Prince, the country is indebted for his selection as # naval oMcer. Washington, with that unerring judgment of character for which he was remarkable, discovered in that rough and hardy Irish sailor the elements of great professional skilt, + aunted courage and the most inflexible integrity and patriotism. Nor did Barry fail to exhibit in all the trying circumstances | of the revolution this high estimate of his manhood. His continual self-sacriiice and his noble example in- spired his followers with the most enduring love of country and the highest conception of duty. the close of the war in 1783, and until his death, twenty years later, he was constantly engaged in superintending the progress of the navy and the in- troduction of many wholesome reforms. In 1794 he rose to the rank of senior officer in the service, and he died in Philadelphia September 15, 1803, bequeath- ing the bulk of his property to the orphan children of that city. The dificulty of obtaining men for the navy has already been referred to, and this was one of the evils that Commodore Barry sought to remedy. Being himself an Irishman by birth, he used every effort to induce the seafaring portion of his country- men to emigrate to the United States, and during the rebellion in Ireland in '98 a large number came over and joined the navy. Subsequently, in 1802, the period of enlistment was made two years, and thenceforward there was no lack of men. All of the pupils of Commodore Barry, whom he delighted to cail his “boys,” became distinguished naval heroes, as Barron, Blakely, Dale, Shaw, Chauncey, McDon- ough, Lawrence, Hull, Decatur, Stewart, Somers and Porter. These were thé naval architects who laid upon the rolling deep the foundations of that super- structure which the American people have ever since regarded as the right arm of our national But shining pre-eminently in the galaxy of tionary heroes is JOHN PAUL JONES. Like Commodore Barry, he was a foreigner. Tie ‘was the youngest of five sons of a Scotch gardener named John Paul, and was born Juiy 6, 1747, at Ar- bigiand, on the Frith of Solway. In early life he followed the sea, and was apprenticed to a ship- master trading between Scotiand and Virginia, where subsequently his elder brother settled on a plantation near Fredericksburg. Passing over the events of his youth, history first discovers him travelling on foot in the depths of winter in 1775 from Fredericksburg to Philadelphia, alone and friendiess, but nerved with the resolve to fight for the liberties of his adopted country. Here he pre- sented himself before the Marine Committee and of- fered his services in the navy then about to be formed. But he had affixed the name of Jones to that of John Paul, and although he was known to Richard Henry Lee, a member of Congress, for some time his identity was doubtful. It is not easy to dis- cover now why this name was assumed, but tradition has it that some years previously Paul had been in- Btrumental to the death of a mutineer in the West Indies, and he probably feared the consequences of a legal investigation. Be this as it may, John Paul Jones was commissioned as senior lieutenant of the American navy, with rank from December 7, 1775. Two months afterwards to this oMcer belongs the high honor of having hoisted on board of the frigate Alfred, in the Delaware, the first flag of the United Colonies. This is represented to have borne the device of a rattlesnake in coll, with the motto “Don’t tread on me,” worked on a field of yellow silk. A duplicate of this fag was displayed in the Andria Doria, Captain Biddle; and on the occasion of his visit to the Island of St. Bustatia, in the fall of 1776, it was saluted by the forts, and thus, for the first time, was the American flag acknowledged by a regular gov- ernment. But this mark of recognition cost the Dutch Governor his high office, and he was dismissed, It was not until June 14, 1777, that the present na- tional colors were adopted by Congress, and Paul Jones again was the first to hoist the new standard of the Stars and Stripes from the masthead of the In 1776 Jones rose to the rank of captain, and although engaged in many perilous adventures, and had fought battles on the Atlantic seaboard, he was at the same time, either personally or by letter, the chosen adviser of the Marine Committee, to whom the suggested many improvements in shipbuilding, equipments and naval discipline. But his restive spirit and the comprehensive views he expressed to Congress of the necessity for inflicting the greatest ‘annoyance upon the British nation gave rise to @ roving commission on the seacoast of England. In command of the Ranger he made his appearance in the channel, and history tells us how quickly the English people were taught by this undaunted man the salutary lesson that her ma- Tauding policy carried with it the moral of an unre After ; NEW YORK HERALD, SUNDAY, lenting'retaliation. |For every exploit he performed everywhere in and Holland there beat re- sponsive hearts in of the brilliant achieve- But the crowning laurels of to be gathered on the bloody Richard. No man was bet- special service for which this than Jones, for he knew every t of the coast of the British kingdom. It is recarded of him that on one occasion he appeared off the northern shores of Scotland with his little fleet, with view to capture the town of Leith and lay the itants under a heavy contri- bution for the wrongs that had been inflicted upon his adopted countrymen. The same authority in- forms us that when his vessels were discovered from Edinburg castle the utmost consternation prevailed among the people, who betook themselves to prayer to escape the impending danger. At Kirkcaldy the old Scoteh minister flung himself upon his knees among a terrified group of his rustic parishoners and prayed thus for deliverance:— ‘Now, deer Lagrd, dinna Ye think it a shame for Ye to send this vile piret to rob our folk o’ Kirkcaldy, for Ye ken they’re poor enow already and hae nacth- ing to spare. The wa the wind blaws he’ll be here in a jiMe, and wha kens what he may do? He’s nae too guid for onything. Mickle’s the mischief he’s dune already. He’ll burn their hooses, take their very claes, and tirl them to the sark; and waes me! Wha kens but the bluidy villain may tak their lives! The puir weemen are maist frighted out o’ their wits, and the bairns skirling after them. I canna thol’t it! Icanna thol’t it! Ihae been lang a faithful servant to Ye, Laird; but gin Ye dinna turn the ween aboot and blaw the scoundrel out o’ our gate, I’ll na staur a fit, but will just sit here till the tide comes. Sae, take yere wull o’t.”” And the “ween” did come in the shape of a gale that compelled an abandonment of the project. THE BON HOMME RICHARD. As long as history shall chronicle the deeds of he- roic men, so long it will continue to pregerve upon its brightest pages the record of the fearful contest between the Bon Homme Richard and the Sera- pis, on the night of the 23d of September, 1779. AS @ battle between single ships it has no parallel what- ever in the naval history of the world, and the con- duct of Paul Jones in that engagement stamps him as one among its greatest leaders. In that ghastly scene of mangled and dying men—amid the thunder of battle, the cry of fire, the crash of falling spars and the deadly shots of the treacherous Landais—Paul Jones stood that dark night, with calmness and un- filnching courage, upon the deck of his shattered and foundering ship, the embodiment and personifl- cation of a hero ! The protracted character of this remarkable strug- gle, the endurance of the combatants, the anomalous position of the two ships, the closeness of the en- gagement and the severity of the punishment given and received, have ever been a favorite theme among naval men of all nations; and impartial history con- cedes that the tide of battle was turned solely by the efMiciency of the topmen and sharpshooters of the Richard and the tenacious courage of Jones and his faithful first lieutenant, Dale. On Jones’ arrival in France after this celebrated victory the enthusiasm of the French Court was boundles&, and he was presented with a magnificent sword by Louis XVL, bearing this inscription:— “Vindicati mans Ludovicus XVI., remunerator strenuo vindici.", Ata later period, on his return to the United States, Commodore Jones received through the French Minister the Cross of the Military Order of Merit. Congress voted him its thanks and gold medal; and from this time forward, practi- cally, his connection with the American navy was at anend. Butheleft to it the rich legacy of his glo- rious example and an imperishable fame. After the close of the Revolutionary war Paul Jones visited Europe, and he was induced by the Empress Catha- rine to enter the imperial navy of Russia with the rank of rear admiral. He was placed in command of the feet in the attack on Oczakow, and with dauntless courage he dashed into the midst of the Turkish gallies and scattered them to the winds, For this act of valor, he was decorated with the order of St. Anne, and presented with a gold sword and the gratuity of a year’s pension. Not long after he re- tired to Paris, where he died July,18, 1702, To the disgrace of the American nation, the dust of this great man is mingled forever with the clods of the cemetery for the poor in the French capital, and to- day his piace of sepulture In unmarked and un- known. TUE REVOLUTIONARY NAVY. ° From the first organization of the navy down to the close of the year 1798 the progress of its im- provements was slow and spasmodic, owing to the temportizing policy of Congress, the want of finances and the inaliferent character of the ordnance with which the vessgls were supplied. Prodigies of valor had been performed, and the history of the times was replete with deeds of dgring, but most of the coinbats had been between single ships. The projectiles used possessed neither penetration nor accuracy of flight, and the contests generally ter- minated in a hand to hand encounter, with an in- discriminate use of bar and chain shot, hand grenades, biunderbnsses, fire balis and “stink ots—a’ class of missiles, by the by, that ave long since been stricken from the roll of ordnance supplies inthe navy. Withont the protection of copper on the bottoms of the vessels, with single stick spars, cumbersome rigging, hemp cables, imperfect charts and ill- assorted crews, to say nothing of models of the most indifferent design, the results obtained by the Ame- rican navy seem at this distant day almost incredible. During the Revolutionary war upwards of 650 Eng- lish merchant ships were brought into port, nde- pendent of those ransomed or destroyed at sea. And yet, to form an idea of the way in which war vessels: were then constructed, we may cite the case of the John Adams, which was built by contract—one man building one side of the ship and another the oppo- site. The consequence was, the vessel had several inches more beam on one side than on the other, and of course she not only steered badly, but there was @ marked difference in her sailing qualities on each tack. THE WAR WITH FRANCE. From 1799 to 1801 was productive of far more en- during consequences tothe navy, by developing a better class of vessels, more reliable crews, many improvements in gunnery and equipments and a higher standard of efficiency and discipline. Under the law of 1798 Benjamin Stoddart was appointed the first Secretary of the Navy, and at that time it con- sisted of twenty-two vesdels, mounting 470 guns. To these in 1799 were added eleven more, armed with 262 guns. In 1800 the navy was further augmented by five frigates, one sloop and one brig, carrying 228 guns. i is curious to note dui this year (1800), in contrast with the startling ex, jitares of our own day, that the total appropriatidm for the navy and marine corps was but $2,452,955-, The yeasels rating twenty-fotit and twenty guns were old-fashioned sloops-of-war with gun decks, like the English “jackass frigates” or the French corvettes, and were armed with long nines and sixes. In 1801 the carronade was introduced into the navy, and many improvements in naval architecutre were borrowed from the French and the Neapolitans. ‘The most brilliant feature in this short and irrecalar contest with France was the action between the Con- stellation and the frigate Insurgente; cnd although the war itself was barren of political results it added Many names to the list of naval heroes and gave the navy a prestige which it has never lost. in every engagement with the French the Lit was success- ful. But this arose from no superiority in the arma- ment of our ships or their ter construction, be- cause it is an acknowledged fact that in matter of ordnance and in models the French were far in ad- vance of us. ‘The results in our favor were obtained because on all occasions we out-manwuyred them and out-fonght them, With peace there came a serious reduction of the naval establishment. Most of the captured vessels were restored to France, All the ships belonging to the service were ordered to be sold, except fourteen, and the number of officers was reduced to nine cap- tains, thirty-six Heutenants and one hundred and fifty midshipmen, while the grade of master com- mandant was abolished altogether. This was the condition of things when we were pushed into THE WAR WITH TRIPOLI, which afforded but few opportunities; but under Commodore Preble it reached a high degree of dis- cipline, and that officer is regarded, even to this day, as the discipiinarian of the service, But it may be said that no commander ever had among his sub- ordinates better material or a class of men animated with more esyrit de corps. During that epoch the naval records are illuminated with the names of Dale, Bainbridge, Decatur, Stewart, Porter, Somers, Wadworth Israel. The burning of the Phila deiphia in the harbor of Tripoli by tur and his brave companions challenged the admiration of the civilized worid, and opened wide to him and them the doors of the Temple of Fame, beneath the altars PBs RT a ee pO poh for Somers an jose who perish in the ill-fated ketch Intrepid. ns To ‘ve the continuity of this historical synopsis we must go back to tlie formation of THE MARINE CORPS, This veteran corps, which constitutes so essential @ part of the navy, and 7 Which the preservation its internal discipline has so long depended, isthe oldest regular mit organization in this country. It was first created by act of Congress November 1775, and then consisted of two battalions (drawn principally from the army) under the command of a colonel, one major, #ix captains and ten lieutenants, A detachment of these were first employed in the expedition under Commodore Hopkins, with Paul Jones, in the attack on New in the Ba- hamas im February, 1776, in command of Major Nichols, who, landing under cover of the fire from the ships, captured the forts and obtained" jon, te place, By shin bandage 07) Penta undred on. a juan! stores fell into the hands atthe Americans. On the 11th of July, 1’ @ new marine corps was established by law, the old one ha been dissolved with the navy of the Revolution, to which it belonged. This contained eight hundred and eighty-one officers, officers, musicians and privates rs. In many of the ves- the unetring ‘marksmen and were the un marksm +f conflict with the auspices Derne, with a view to co-ope! malli, in the attempt to overthrow his younger brother Jessuff, who had usurped the sovereignty of Tripoll. Here again the bore a conspicuous under Lieutenant O'Bannon, who land: stormed the principal work, upon the American flag, and for the first time in the history of the country the Stars and Seinen floated from the ram; of a Moslem ‘Throughout the subsequent war with Great Britain, in the suppression of the — in the West Indies, to Bioelie, ta Maxion and alifornia and dui the late rebellion—in fact, wherever the navy has been called into requisition, whether afloat or ashore— the Marine has been signally conspicuous; Ona ull: 16 has. ane nerncipatnd. in. the. glories of the service without ostentation, and shared with- out complaint its privations and dangers, it has ever preserved the of its ancient organization and maintained ceptine. Keeping pace with the march of the times, it steadily ad- vanced in the path of military +l cepa and efficiency. As organized at present men are en- listed under the same system as adopted for recruit- ing service in the army, and when employed at a navy yard or shore station their exercises, parades, gui mounting, reviews, &c., are made to corre- spond with the regulations. In matters of ag- imilated rank the line oilicer of marines takes pre- cedence next after the line officer of the navy, and when serving on shore with a mixed detachment composed of sailors and marines the marine officer exercises command according to his relative rank. On bao wet the marines are required to be in- structed in the exercise of great guns and as sharp- shooters, 1t is somewhat curious to note that of all the Military Academy at West Point but five ever en- tered the Marine corps. In July, 1862, the corps was reorganized under the command of a colonel who has the brevet rank of a brigadier general, and the Speen of officers, non-commissioned onicers, musicians and privates was fixed at 3,166 men. The pay is the same as the United States infantry. THE GUNBOAT MANTA, The persistent policy of Great Britain to maintain the right of search forced a reluctant war upon the country, and the affair of the Leopard and Chesa- eake in 1807 furnished the unmistakable indication ‘hat a collision was at hand. But so strong was the pone belief in the overwhelming naval power of ingland, as illustrated by the victories of Exmouth, Nelson and Collingwood, that the idea of maintain- ing a successful contest on the sea against such odds was regarded as rap aaron, Cooper 8, With great truth, a3 applicable to that period:—“The his- tory of the world cannot probably supply a parallel to that forgetfulness which the American govern- ment has manifested of all the known incentives of human exertions in the management of the navy.” At this time there were sixty-nine small gunboats belonging to the naval establishment, and imme- diately on the: assembling of Congress propositions were made for the substitution of this insignificant Class of vessels for the entire navy, and to place the country in an attitude of defence instead of one of aggression, a policy well calculated to stifle the yearnings of patrietism and to dethrone the pride and the morals of the service. A mania for gunboats not unlike that which seized upon us during the rebellion for ‘éron-clads” and “double-enders” ssessed the authorities, and on the 18th of Decem- r, 1807, @ bill was paanedl authorizing the construc- tion of 188 additiona: pL aanonts, making a total of 257. These were modelled after desi obtained from Spain and Naples, and were long, low, narrow craft, principally ‘sloop-rigged, armed with one and two ly-two-pound carronades, and constracted solely for harbor defence. As an evidence of the ignorance of the Navy Department, the absurd re- commendation was made to Congress to raise for “this gunboat service” 1,272 men, who, being ap- portioned among the 257 vessels, would be less than crew of five mento each. Fortunately, however, this bt Pie was defeated, and although the country was saddled with a fleet of useless vessels, wiser counsels prevailed, and the hopes of the navy were revived by a material increase of sea-goimg ships and men. Two years later, as matters culininated in acts of open hostility, there appeared on the stage of action a man whose name 1s now closely interwoven with the naval history of the United States. That man was HENRY RCKFORD, who was the founder of that school of naval! architec- ture which is now recognized as purely American, and from the teachings of which all of our shipbuild- ers have 80 abundant locum Henry Eckford was born in Irvine, in Scotland, on the 12th March, 1775. At the age of sixteen he emi- grated to Canada and took up his abode in Quebec with his uncle, John Black, who was a shipbuilder, Five years afterwards, in 1796, when he had attained is vever, began by working in a boatbuilder’s shop in Dover street for $1 25 per day. habit to obtain from the raaster of each vessel, on her return to port, a minute account of her perform- ances at sea and her behavior under all the inciden- tal casualties of navigation. With the experience thus gained he improved upon every succeeding model, and he soon gave to New York that su- remacy in naval architecture which came to be ac- nowledged throughout the civilized world. One of the secrets of Eckford’s success was that at that time he was almost the only man in the country who understood the art of shipbuilding as a science or who could expand the body of a vessel from a drawing. In the construction of merchant ships he increased the length and gave flat floors with short turned bilges. He added also to their beauty and comfort by — rais- ing the transoms and giving lighter and haud- somer sterns, with better quarters. His designe were everywhere regarded as the best for carrying cargoes and for speed. As a practical mechanic he ‘was the best of the age. It is no matter of surprise, therefore, that the eyes of the Navy tment were fixed upon this man. During the war of 1812 Eck- ford contracted with the United States government to construct the squadrons on the lakes, and ina few weeks he had them comp!ete, notwithstanding it was necessary to fell the timber in the neighboring forests and to transport the Syeinmente fromthe sea- board, at a time, too, when New York had neither steamboats, canals nor railways. His first vessel on Lake Ontario was the Oneida, of sixteen and on November 26, 1813, he launched the Madison, the timber for which was growing but nine weeks previ- ously. In like manner he built the Sylph in twenty- one days, and by saiting the frames the vessels were prevented from eigen But, apart from his untiring perseverance and skill, he placed not only all i e but 18 professional knowledge he , entire fortune, at the disposal of the gov- ernment. Thus brightly shining through the halo which encircles the famine of Chauncey, Perry and McDonough, are golden letters that spell the name of Henry Eckford. In 1814 he designed the stcam frigate Fulton, of 2,000 tons, and which cost the government $320,000, This vessel subse- quently was destroyed by the accidental explosion of her magazine at the Brooklyn Navy Yard in 1829. Upto 1816 @ wooden model was unknown in this city—every vessel being built from drawings or designs on paper. As nearly as can be ascertained the first wooden model was made by Christian Bergh, with the assistance of William (otherwise called Doctor) Vincent, and thenceforward, under the auspices of Eckford, the model became @ feature peculiar to American shipbuilding. In 1819 he: par- Ucipated in the construction of the steamship Savan- nah, of 300 tons burden, and successfully demon- strated, by a voyage to Europe, the feasibility of transatlantic steam navigation, This vessel was built by Fickett & Crockett, and was originally designed for @ Southern packet. Her es were made at the old Allaire Works in this city. Her wheels were entirely unprotected by guards, and the jour- nais for the shaft rested on the planksheer. In 1820 Eckford accepted the appointment of Naval Construc- tor at the Brooklyn Navy Yard, where he designed the line-of-battie ship Ohio and the frigate Hudson. But the red ee and the old fogyism of the navy were too much for him, and he resigned on the day the Ohio Was launched. In 1822 he constructed the steamer Robert Fuiton, which made the first successful voyage by steam to Havana and New Orleans. She ‘was subsequently altered to a sailing vessel, and be- came the fastest corvette in the Brazilian navy. Eck- ford also built several war vessels for various European governments and for some of the South American republics, cially the little fleet under Commodore Danels, which contributed so much to- wards the liberties of Venezuela. Upon the accession of General Jackson to the Presidency he invited Eckford to furnish a plan for @ new organization of the navy, and although twas not adopted he offered many judicious and practical suggestions. About this time he project a work on naval architecture and the establishment of a rofessorship on that branch of science in Columbia Jollege, In 1831 he built a sioop-of-war for Sultan Mahmoud, and received from that sovereign an invi- tation to enter his service as naval constructor. He accordingly took up his residence in Con- —T where he organized a Navy Yard and id the keel of a line-of-battle hy however, he did not see completed, died there on the 12th of November, 1832, Some time afterwards his remains were brought to the United States in a bark which bore his own name and were a ‘ited in the family burying ground at Hempstead, Long Island. While a resident of New York he lived in Water street, be- tween Clinton and Montgomery, and his shipyard was the spot now occupied by the Tobacco Inspec- ja Henry vane pel was “e nocean t oa but jarge frame, with a pale and strongly mari coun- tenance, brown hair and broad forehead. He was a man of extraordinary abilities, and he rose by his own industrious efforts to the highest rank in his profession. We have thus dwelt somewhat at length upon the leading incidents in the life of this remark- able Ry! only for the sake of the exemplary tty, bur to prowsrve for history "s few isolated ‘date 7 iatory o few that might otherwise be lost. * oa THE WAR OF ag A period of nearly thirty years elapsed since the acknow it of the independence of the United States by England, and of all the men who Partictpated in Mewosable strucule there was which, for he a MARCH 8, 1868—TRIPLE SHEET. ae ef ge ai Pe & i : if 8 i may serve the existence of the navy in the sea fights which occurred may be ap- propri “NAVAL DUELS,” wheretn mccess was dependent upon combining good guntery tactics, It was the practice of our offtzers in falling in with an enemy to en- deavor tocripple or dismantle him, and then “force the tirg” at close quarters, 80 as to make the hull the chief object of alm—laying the guns ally level ‘vith the plane of the deck and firing from the top ofthe wave, wataling coretall the lee and weather rolls of the ip. the other nand, invariably opened fire at long range, and paid s0 much attention to their breech at is Res sights, to estimates of distance, &c., that much ‘ime was ‘ost in elevating and depressing the guns, without to the angles of the pitching motion or the lurches of the ship. The capture of the Pea- cock, Avon and Frolic are examples of this. In the action between the Guerriere and the Con- stitution there was a good deal of manceuvering, and ‘up’ of an hour's distant cannonading occurred before the vessels were brough' when both bore pistol shot of each other, a running fire for nearly an hour. fired low, and so completely riddled her antagonist that she sunk soon after her colors were struck. This was a yard-arm and yard-arm fight between two frigates nearly equally matched, But the Guer- Tiere lost the battle by manceuvring too much. These rapid changes of position, fighting first one broadside and then the other, distracted the gunners, whose ranges were destroyed, and produced a random fire that was ineffective and measurably harmless. ba the leeward ship at the outset of the engage- ment she had all the advantage of compelling her enemy’s approach. In the action between the Macedonian and the United States the tactical circumstances were dif- ferent from either of the preceding cases, for the Brit- ish ship was to windward and had the choice of po- sition, “But her commander committed the grave error of running down directly upon the American frigate, instead of manceuvring to come down in her wake. The consequence was, she was so disabled by the raking fire of her antagonist (which lay steadily to leeward) that when the ship approached within musket range the Macedonian was in a condition to surrender, ‘The capture of the Cyane and Levant by the Con- stitution under Commodore Stewart is classed amon; the most brilliant examples of manceuvering in nav. annals, it being considered impossible fora single ship to engage two others without being raked. The Constitution not only avoided this, but she actually raked both of her opponents in succession. The en- gagement opened with the two English ships to lee- ward in a line with each other, and the Constitution to windward and abeam between the two, at a dis- tance of about a cable’s length, thus forming an equilateral triangle. Cooper’s description of the battle is as follows:—“‘In this masterly position the action commenced, the three vessels keeping up & hot and unceasing fire for about a quarter of an hour, when that of the enemy sensibly slackened. sea being covered with an immense cloud of smok and it being now moonlight, Commodore Stewal ordered the cannonading to cease. In three minutes the smoke had blown away, when the leading ship of the enemy was seen under the lee beam of the Con- stitution, while the sternmost was seen intended to — tack and cross her stern, Giving a broadside to the ship abreast of her, the American fri; threw her main and mizzen topsails, with topgallant sails set, flat aback, shook all forward, let sit er fb shect and backed swiftly astern, compelling the enemy to fill again to avold being raked. The lead- ing ship now attempted to tack to: cross the Oonsti- tution’s forefoot, when the latter filled, boarded her fore tack, shot ahead, forced her antagonist to wear under a raking broadside and to run off to leeward to escape from the weight of her fire. The Constitu- tion, perceiving that the largest ship was wearing, also wore in‘her turn, and crossing her stern raked her with effect, though the enemy came by the wind immediately and delivered her larboard broadside, but as the Constitution ranged up close on her weather quarter she struck. The prize proved to be the British ship Cyane, | in Falcon. In the meantime the ship that run to leeward had no intention of abandoning her consort, but had been forced out of the combat by the sripnien condi- tion of her running rigging and to avoid the weight of the Constitution’s fire, She was ignorant of the fate of the Cyane, but at the end of ‘about an hour, having repatred damages, she hauled up and met the Constitution coming down in quest of her, Tt was near nine before the two ships crossed each other on opposite tacks, the Constitution to windward, and exchanged broadsides. The Eng- lish snip, finding her antagonist too heavy, immedi- ately bore up, in doing which she got a raking broad- side, when tho Constitution boarded her foretack and made sail, keeping up @ most etfective chasing fire from her two bow guns, nearly every shot of which told. The two ships were so near each other that the ripping of the enemy’s planks was heard on board the Constitution. The former was unable to support this long, and at ten P. M. he came by the wind, fired a gun to leeward and lowered his ensign. ‘The prize proved to be the Levant, 18, Hon. Captain Dougias.” Three hours later the Constitution was ready for another action. ESCAPE OF THE CONSTITUTION. But the masterpiece of nautical skill and seaman- ship, combined with tactical strategy during the whole war, was exhibited by Commodore Hull, in the mem- orable escape of the Constitution from the British fleet in July, 1812. Coming suddenly in sight of the enemy, Whose vessels appeared in the horizon at almost every point of the compass, cap- ture seemed inevitable. The sea was per- fectly smooth and all parties were vexed with calms or light baMing airs. Under these circumstances, being on soun Commodore Hull resorted to the novel expedient of kedging, by means of a series of long light lines and the use of his boats ahead, For some tlme the cause of this marveilous movement of the Constitution through the water was undiscovered by the enemy, who were not slow to imitate the experiment. At every “cat's paw’ the devoted frigate struggled for the eae eee 80 as to keep her pursuers astern and to leeward. ‘As the enemy gained and opened fire, heavy guns were brought aft to respond, so as not to deaden the wind; every plece of fending rigging was fitted with fight- wy pers; the y: Ww rovided with extra sil mynd racked aloft, sails wet down fore and aft, kept in hand and the falls a, to whi the boats up ina moment. Thus for three ne an three nights was the chase maintained, until finally aheavy squall came up, and as it approached the Constitution her sails were clewed hg and clewed down in.an instant, as if overwhelmed by its force, and when the weight of the wind was received she sheeted home, set topgaliant sails and flew off before the wind with a spanking breeze, while the English vessels were laying by on different tacks to reef. THE CRUISE OF THE ESSEX. > Among all the officers in the navy, no one resem- bled more closely Paul Jones in character ‘than Com- modore Porter. Possessed with the same indomita- bie courage and the same inflexibility of purpose, he courted danger on every occasion. To a rare know- ledge of seamanship he added t physical strength, ‘8 constitution of iron, a bi measure of old-fash- joned common sense and the views of a practical statesman. Nothing, perha) dari this whole contest rendered greater service to the country, or sooner quickened the dis) ition for peace in Eng- Jand than Porter's cruise in the Essex and Wyle -g ries he inflicted upon British commerce in the Without money or Raed oreven a friendly port for shelter, he successfully eluded the vigilance of the enemy, broke up the whaling inte1 in that distant ocean, and not only largely increased the force and efficiency of his own command, which he Maintained without cost to the government, but when the inevitable hour of his capture came he fought his two antagonists with the dauntless cour- age of a hero. The cruise of the Essex and the dari! exploits of her defender have passed into history, ant many & youthful aspirant for naval honors will feel a thrill of generous emulation when he recites the deeds of David Porter. THE LOSS OF THR CHESAPRAKE. While the country had reason to rejoice over the few detached combats that had occurred, the navy acquired an instructive lesson in the school of adver- sity which has never been lost. This was learned in the capture of the Chesapeake by the Shannon. It seems not to have been enough for this ill-fated ship to have been sent once before to sea with a crew Who did not even know their stations at the guns, and with her decks lumbered up with hemp cables, hawsers and cap: bars, as was the case in the affair with the Leopard; but with a hue and cry not unlike the “on to Richmond” shouts of our own day the Chesay e was hurried out of Boston harbor with an ill assorted and turbulent crew, who had never been exercised but twice at general quarters, to engage one of the finest in the British navy. The total lack of in the American is well known, and it is notorious that before was outside of Boston light one-third of the crew were prostrated by sea sickness. It was easy, there- fore, to estimate the chances of disaster. In less than fifteen minutes after the action began the Chesa- peake was reduced to a charnel house and her fag was ingen? hauled down. Cee her com- tander left an imperishable record of valor and died nobly in defence of his ill-starred ship, will ever fas gy with this luckloss defeat, THR NAVY ON THR LAKES. Politically considered, the naval operations on the Pe exercised Un in ag upon Lag wd were productive commen i the isolated duels wi occurred between Lg the and equip- modore McDonough’s sq ‘and it is reported of him that he worked a whole winter in the rigging loft at Plattsburg, strapping blocks and turning In dead. e Finally both were ready very at the same time, on the 11th of September, 181: tish fleet rounded Cumberland Head an came down in two columns uj the vessels of icDonot who was an in echelon, with double sprit on his cable ane in such a manner that he could only be by the enemy bows of his line could not be re and the shoals at and the manner a @ miniature very different results. McDonough’s lines the ene! 0} If in & oul de sac, in which he was toanchor, and before he could spring his les to excl the fire he was cut to of this signal victory over iperic from the masterly manner In which it was achieved, were most important, be- the British army and ended the war on the northern fron- tier. Not long after this event was declared. Thus for the United States, t) ar of 1812 settled the arrogant demands rates for tribute. But it did more than this, It demonstrated to the nations of the Old World that there resided on this continent the elements of a great and overshadowing naval power. It inspired the American ple with an aie confidence in the bmg Bras e right arm of heir defence, and it eer to historians and poets and painters an absorbing theme in the record of its triumphs and the deeds of its heroic men. A assionate review of the contest discloses the fact that most of the engagements took place upon nearly equal terms so far as the distribution of force and armament was concerned; nor was there any great superiority in the of our ships over those of the English navy. But it cannot be dented that in professional skill and practical knowledge our officers had vastly the advantage. The state of war which prevailed almost uni- versally throughout Christendom from the beginning of the nineteenth century to 1815 had given a sur- prising impetus to naval eqns in every mart- time nation, and the people f the United States were not slow to adopt the penvernonts which sci- ence developed or experience purchased. Atthe close of the war, therefore, our navy stood vis-a-vis in fair comparison in all its appointments with the naval establishments of Europe. Under.the teachings of Eckford and pane the cumbersome, old- fashioned hulks of the Revolutionary period had given lace to substantial frigates and sloops of beautiful lines and harmonious proportions. e principle of reducing the number oi and increasing the calibre of the battery not only augmented the weight of metal thrown, but it imparted greater strength to the top frames and provided better sonrers for the crew in battle. Attention was likewise paid to the considerations of capacity and speed; made spars came into vogue; @ greater spread of canvas was obtained; tron began to be used in rigging; vessels were cone ere and lightning conductors were pro- vided. Such, in fact, was the condition of the navy at the end of the last war with England. ‘The total naval expenditure from 1812 to 1815 was reaepteee which includes the construction and out- {t of the squadrons on the lakes. NAVAL ASYLUM AT PHILADELPHIA. This institution was authorized by Congress as early as 1811, and was originally included among the naval hospitals. Its pbject is to provide a comforta- ble home for ‘disabled and decrepit naval officers, seamen and marines,”? who entitled to the benefits of the institution, It is maintained out of the hospital and pension fands, of which the Secre- ee ¢ Navy is made the trustee, and he is re- to invest them in registered securities of the nited States, It is presided over by a naval ofiicer, who is styled “Governor,” and whose rank is not below that of captain. All peplicnns, for admission are required to produce evidence of twenty years’ service in the navy and @ naval surgeon’s certificate that the spplican’ is not able to support himself by manual labor. If the applicant is a pensioner the pension may be commuted for a place in the asylum with the consent of the Secretary of the Navy. beneficiary is entitled to $3 per month for clothing and an allowance of $1 per month for tobacco and pocket money. The punishments consist of confine- ment in cells, diminished rations, stoppage of pocket money’, tobacco, &c., and, for serious offences, dis- mi from the asylum. The benefits of this insti tion to the worn-out veteran of the navy are incalcu- lable. Hi under a mild and wholesome system of discipline, with every attention and comfort, are ag- gregated the few surviving companions of the naval heroes of 1812, and now the sole custodians of the glorious traditions of that eventful period. THE BOARD OF NAVY COMMISSIONERS. In 1815 a Board of Commissioners somewhat simi- lar in its organization and duties to the British Board of Admiralty was created by the ae of five officers of grade of cap! . In the long inter- val of peace which occurred from their 01 to 1842 Kir they were finally ousted) these “ fine old jemen, all of the olden time,” became a seri- ous impediment to the service, and were likened to go many huge barnacles on the bottom of the navy. An examination of the history of Congressional leg- islation during that inte um of more than a quae of a century exhibits how little was done in the way of moral advancement. In 1817 an act was «passed authorizing the protection of the live oak and red cedar timber lands in Florida ; and in 1819 the names of the yessels of the my By ite by law,; those of the first class to be called after the of the second class after the rivers, and those of the third class after cities and towns. This as the “Stu ba ‘al Say ing Molly,” "Bact lor Jon,” &c., Wi mon to an earlier and more exciting epoch. During Mr. Lincoln’s administration he si eet as an idea the application of Indian names naval vessels. Under the comunis- sioners thirty-one vessels, or abo one an- nually, were added to the navy, including the steam Le ar Fulton No. 2, which was built in 1837, Saad ‘ork, ty +e C3 a oS. She was design Samuel Humphries, and her engines were constructed by 0. W. a. FIRST EXAMINATIONS OF MIDSHIPMEN. In 1822 all midshipmen were required to ae an examination in seamanship and navigation re & board of captains as a condition precedent to their ee, erate ot ta and (3 ve Tise 2 the le of “passed midshipman. rO- mn of six years’ service was also required, veskaes s sea journal, a pobaat of moral ats es tness, & release from boarding jouse land- ladies, tailors and bootmakers and the ability to ‘work out ‘dead horse” and a lunar. A married mid- shipman stood no chance whatever, At first these examinations were very irregularly conducted—the boards meeting sometimes in one place and some- times in another, until finally the Naval Asylum in Philadelphia was made the focal point, and so tt con- tinued until the establishment of the Naval Academy at Annapolis in 1845. This institution is now on a — with West Point, and under the superintend- ence of Vice Admirai Porter it ranks among the best naval colleges in the world. NAVAL DRY DOCKS. The subject of dry docks was early one of absorb- ing interest to the navy. The first two were built at the Boston and Norfolk Navy Yards. These were commenced in 1827, and completed simultancous!, in March, 1834, They are constructed of granite, an were di ed by the celebrated civil engineer, Loami Baldwin. The following are their ge dimen- feet wide and sions:—Interior of chamber at = fe. ene ve W ; F ‘h are com- 253 feet long, to the face of the arc! total length of dock, 306 feet; width of chamber floor, 30 feet; length, 228 feet; cope, 30 feet, and depth of water, af ordinary high tide, 38 fost. ‘The Philadelphia dock is sect |, with a stone basin and marine raliways. It sections, six of which are sufictent to largest steamers or ships of the while @ sloo} of-war can be docked with the remi The bottom of the basin 1s 360 feet 101 feet wide, 18 feet to top of side and end Ww: nd with 11 fee water in basin above floor at mean high tide. It was commenced in December, 1 completed in June, 1851. The San Francisco dock is similar to the one at Philadelphia, but exceeding the latter in dis- placement and lifting power about ten percent. It consists of ten sections, The New York Dry Dock is of granite, like those of Boston and Norfolk, of which it tt is a prototype. It was several years in process of construction, owing to the diMiculty of pile the foundation; but it was completed ready for shipping early in the spring of 1852. The Portsmouth Rg is@ balance dock, with @ stone basin a ways. The balance 8 366 feet long, 105 feet wide and 38 fect deep, with an interior ith of 90 feet. The basin is 360 feet Jong, 120 feet wide at bottom and walls 14 feet high. The railways are similar in character and dimensions to the Phiiadeiphia dock. It was commenced in 1843 and finished in 1861. The Pensacola dock consists of @ balance dock, basin and marine railways. The balance dock is precisely like that at Portsmouth, ore that it is pi led with extra fixtures to steady vessels when used as & camel for carrying them over the bar of the bay. The stone docks are regarded as masterpieces of engineering, and the total cost of all these structures, exclusive'of New ork, Was upwards of $6,000,000. BNTIFIC EXPEDITIONS. of nine long and left all classes military in seeming inactivity and idleness afforded a scope of fe = refreshing =a a4 which Were obtained exRe expeditions of Wilkes around the world, of to Japan, of to Behring’s Straits, of to Darien, tothe Py yp Gipbon se te the great ocean bave the $ Na’ VAL ORDN, Tho war with Mexico, ao far as any active “ vad ion by iy was scarcely broke Tong Tranguility fd “beyond the landing of the trdbps of Gene: Vera Cruz, the service of a battery in the siege, a few unimportant expeditions seg ae Gulf coast and some skirmishes in rna, it was entirely over+ shadowed by the army. But the events of the war and the gun which was awakened attention to the long TEvising She SUiargely indented aa Uy Aticica babe count 380 en for 4 successful labors in that branch, Start- out with an insignificant appropriation in one of the vacant Workshops. 2 the ‘Washington iy Yard, he struggl unt against the jealousies of his seniors and the rejudices of the foundrymen, until he revolut The whole system of naval ordnance and laid the foundation for @ school of accomplished moe, who rendered our arms victorious at Fisher, Adi 1 Was NO nt of the nine-inch gun which bears his and which is considered the most effective plece of ord+ nance in the navy, but he devised a howitzer system for armed boats and artillery service on shore, besides introducing many improvements in rifle Jectiles, fuzes and primers. While the naval ries in tne rebellion shall hold @ place in the memory of men the name and the eminent services of gren will be coupled with their glories. The method of inspecting ordnance for the navy 1g exceedingly rigid, and consists—first, of the in- strumental test, to ascertain the accuracy of the bore, the position and inclination of the vent, the thickness of metal, &0.; second, the powder proce, rounds, wilt an which is obtatued by a number shot and shell at full and reduced cl H lastly, the water proof, which is made by a hydraulie press, to discover if there are any indications of “weeping,” or dampness in the bore of the gun. Nearly all the guns now in use in the navy are with Dahigren’s elevati screw, the threads oi which are so adjusted that one turn is equal to a de- gree of elevation or depression, Vice Admiral Por- ter, also, is the inventor of a quoin fitted with a roller and ratchets to correspond with certain eleva- tions. It is of great Ses ip rg at —_ when the breech sights cannot used, and it is now the established quoin of the navy. or French carriage is in general use for all cannon mounted in broadside. It differs from the old four track carri: in suppressing the rear axle, and ex- tending the brackets to the deck, while the training, &c., is facilitated by a roller handspike placed under the rear of the carriage. During the late war the eight and. nine inch guns were frequently loaded, Tun out, fired, spo! |, loaded, and transported to the o) ite port and fired In in legs than two minutes! Lately a wrought iron carriage has been introduced, and there are many points in its favor. + Most of the powder used in the navy is manufac- tured from the nitrates obtained from the limestone caves in Kentucky, Virginia and Tennessee, and the proofs of its quality are obtained with a ballistic pendulum, firing service charges in the arms for which the powder is designed. The shot and shell are made from gray mottled fron, soft and of good quality, and are inspected as to weight, calibre, strength, &c. Round shot are passed through ring and cylinder gauges and drop- ped from a height of twenty feet on a solid platform of iron. Shells are exarained with calipers, bellows, sounding hammers, and fuze gauges. In addition to the Dahlgren gun and the fifteen- inch smooth bore the Rodman and Parrott guné enter largely into the equipment of our naval vessels, and the war satisfactorily demonstrated etfec- tive character and great merit, Indeed, in matters of ordnance it may be safely asserted that there is no navy in the world which is equal to our own, and there no branch of the Navy Department go ad- mirably managed or so thoroughly organized in all its details as the Bureau of Ordnance. When the country yond pi lompo late war, while oh ee every other arm of defence paralyzed, nai needed no time to prepare its artillery, or to educate its gunners. In estimating naval pores. we must not accept the number of ships and the number of guns. they asis of the calculation, but Re must of the vessels. and throw as the correct ex’ capacity. The combat between the Monitor and the Merrimac and that between the Weehawken and the Atlanta demonstrated the application of this rule, while the destruction of the Pay and the Cum- berland settled conclusively the helplessness of wooden ships against even a pigmy C1 in armor. These memorable contests ina ted a new era in naval warfare, and from their instructive lessons we derive two propositions which must enter into all naval estimates for the future:—First, thata small ship with a few guns of large calibre is more effective than a |: ship with @ numerous batt of light ns ; and, second, that no naval establishment can complete without invulnerable ships and ist. ible projectiles, The Monitor model, with ite revolv- ing turret, and the fifteen-inch gun are close appro: mations to this great end. Hereafter the nav: tect and the ordnance officer must take counsel of each other, and the hull must be suited to the battery and the battery to the hull. The only subtle foe that the Monitor has to fear is the torpedo. WHOLESOME LEGISLATION AT LAST. r years of shameful neglect Congress seems to have awakened suddenly to a sense of its duty to- wards the navy; and there are no acts of the national legislature that exercised a more wholesome influ- ence upon the morals of the service than the tion of flogging in 1850 and the plan of giving hon- orabledis charges passed in 1856. These were followed up in 1861 by a law authorizing medals of honor for men who might distinguish themselves in battle or pa conspicuous acts of valor in the line of duty. ‘he next great step was to abolish the ration and revive the apprentice system. In like manner laws amendatory of the Prize Money and Pension acts were passed, and the pay of officers and men considerably increased. The labors of the Navy De- partment were divided into bureaus, a of ad- mirais, commodores and lieutenant commanders was created, while by the same bill passed midshipmen became ensigns and pursers were turned into pay- m: The rules and regulations for the mevye which had become mildewed and obsolete from their antiquity, underwent a thorough revision by a board consisting of the best officers in the service, and thus a classified vade mecum was produced that cannot fail to establish the best economy and insare the most efficient discipline of which a man of war can be rendered capable. Hitherto much of the bee oe of to the wants of the navy had nm attribu to the pe ode poe character of its officers and the ane sibility of making it a political machine. Be as it may, the navy can boast of ite entire freedom from litics, and the steadfast. manner in which it has owned down the influences and overtures of party ig one of its distinctive honors. The 08 the other aoe has been @ continual for the growth of all sorts of political aspirants. The history of the Military Academy of West Point exhibits no less that two hundred and fifty of its graduates.as havi been partakers of the “flesh pots,” while there is not a ene politician in the country who can claim the navy as his alma mater. Even now the highest oMcer in the military service of the republic has become the Fetich of a political party, and is a longing candidate for Presidential honors. THE NAVY RATION. There is no naval service in the world where the men are so well fed as in our own, or where ter attention is paid to the subject of diet, consists of a certain breve mets Scere gee y cot ¥ va 8, . iki i sugar, Fue ave ia por oy abating at ead for placate and meat reqetabies for salt beef and pork. The utmost care is taken in the se- lection of these supplies; and to secure the whole- some character of the rations issued, the medical officer is required to make frequent examination of their quality, to test the purity of the water from the tanks, and to exercise a constant supervision over the cleanliness and preparation of the men’s food. NAVAL APPRENTICES AND THR SCHOOL SHIPS. The necessity for maintaining a powerful navy is no longer a mooted question, and the country has a) plauded the Navy Department for its revival of the apprentice system, as the surest means of providing areliable nursery for seamen. The first legislation upon this subject was in 1837; but at that time the navy was small, its discipline was lax and there were no ships suitable for the instruction or proper care of youth. The law of Congress was based upon the lan of a nautical school, submitted by Sailing Master ‘homas Goin; but his system ‘7as radically defective, and the Navy Department Bip) no helping hand to the philanthropic effort. The school resulted in & ped and for many years the enlistments were 0] 5 AS now constituted the rule requires that the ay prentices must be enlisted between the of thir. teen and eighteen years, to serve until they are twenty-one. Each candidate must know how to read and write, have the consent of his parents or guardian, be free from pl defects, and posscsa @ good moral character. He then enters the third class and receives $8 ‘ee month; the second clasg gets $9, and those of the first class $10, ten per cent of which is reserved until the termination of his en- listment. But he receives no advance at the outset, and no part of his pay can be allotted. The enlist- ing officer is strictly forbidden to hold out any prom- ises with regard to future promotion or transfer to the Naval Academy; but every apprentice enters the ual footing, and with an equal ent as cadet midshipman, th prel he is placed on board of one of the school ships, from which he cannot be transferred until he is eighteen years of when ne ceases One adhool ship the apprentice is dally lemy. In the school s! e app’ dat pred in ae rediments, of Bugis education, the elements of navigation, use of nautical instru. &c. He is also taught practical seaman. all its branches, boat and ship building, sail. nnery, infantry tactics, rif howitzer drill and sword exercise. In of education ts com) . past for the reception ces, viz.:—The Sabine, es and w With these ret Lowry; the sara. toga, Captain Upshur, Portsmouth, Captain Skerrett. These oMicers rank Smong tne best in the service for their profeasional skill, high naval char- acter and thorough dae the wants and roe- quirements of the navy. greatest attention ia pala to the clean! health, comfort, moral cul- re and the tices, who are di into one at stat to opr their