The Horry herald. (Conway, S.C.) 1886-1923, December 14, 1905, Image 6
HE RESIGNED, j
t
(
General Gobin's Visit to Augus- J
ta, Ga., Recalls Chivalry of <
!
1
A FEDERAL OFFICER
Captain E, 0. Smythe, Who Was Courtmartialed
Because Me Resigned
(
Rather Than Persecute Defenceless
Women and
rilil.lr.n
VIIIIUI VII.
Apropos the ooming visit to the olty
of General J. P. S. Gobin, of Pennsylvania,
as announced In Wednesday
morning's Issue of The Chronicle, and
his presence In the state last week, a
reporter Wednesday chanced upon a
bit of 'by-history of the civil war, 1
ltd the r to unpublished, that merits attention
because of the interesting and
unusual 3tory of the refusal of an othcerof
a victorious army ,to participate
in uo.ruel opi^-ession of a col que red
peop'e.
Peculiar h>eal Imprest is git-en the
incident hy reason </?* the fact that
the feder'i* othcer who took tills manly
and courageous stanA, in the f?c3
of almost certain disgrace a.nd punish
moot J las for a score or more years
been an honored resident of Angusta
and is no less a personage that the
popular postmaster, Captain E. D
Kmytho This a bit of Captain Smyth's
record that Is not generally known '
to his many friends. ]
It will bo remembered that General ,
Gobln commanded the Pennsylvania r
regiment that was a member of the r
corps stationed here during the Span 1
ish-Americau war. While at Camp f
McK.er.zle Col. Gobln was elected to y
an important state (lllee and is at L
present lieutenant-governor of Penn- r
sylvanla. He is a past commander of i
the G. A. R.; and also had charge of r
the state troops during the great an- s
thracite coal strike in Pennsylvania a
few years ago.
While hire General Gobln had a
number of fast friends among whom t
was Captain Smythe. Put they had c
become acquainted long before that t
period. Tneir friendship was formed \
during the bloody strife that has been \
so aptly termed "the time that tried i
men's souls. " And they o in a to know t
each other is a peculiar capacity tliat ^
served to impress itself upon them i
more than tl\e ordinary intercourse a
between young otlicers lighting in the 1
same army would have done, as we (
brought out by general Gobln him- 1
self, when Captain Smythe chanced \
to meet him in Atlanta the other day, \
while he was in Georgia as a member c
of the Pennsylvania delegation to An ?
der.-onvil)e. *1 c
"boys," said General Gobiu, grip l
ping both of Capt. Smythe's hands in ^
a grasp of good fellowship, "look at]]
old S my the here To see us now you i
would never think that we once occupied
the respective positions of defendant
and prosecutor, tut It Is true, as
he will himself alTirm. He was once i
court-martialed and I acted aB judge- i
advocate. However, he got through ]
all right and ought to be proud of the i
experience which, 1 may say at this (
dis ai ce from the trying times of the j
sixties, but seved to emphasize and
perpo uate a noble stano taken by bim ]
foi '.be principles of humanity that t
should merit for him the esteem of all j
Southern people and hrave men every- {
where." , s
This trial referred to here by Gen- j
eral G 'bin was one of the most mem (
orable experiences In Captain Smytbe's j
career, While c'mmander of Company (
G, 90th New York Volunteers, he was {
S'atlOned with his regimental Kjy y
West, Fla , during the winter aud
spring o 1803 It was there that the
whole . fifair ocoured and Capt. Smythe
still prosei ves and cherishes all the r
p i i v !n c nnection with it, some of 1
which $re now sadly tattered from 1
handling and yellow with ago. He '
ha a c )i y of the whole proceedings l
a Vi p u the v ar cllloe at Washing I
ton, t e < rlginal copy of the c larges <
and hpic licatious in the beautiful and 1
kgir.lo baud writing of the clerk, <
typewriters oemg men unknown, <
% winch wa> served upon 111 no, and of a <
handbill, remarkable like those of the <
present day containing tho order
wl ich was the causa of the whole i
trouble. In largo type It is headed
"Attention!" and reads as follows: <
"II' adqu triers, Island of Iveywest, i
Fla.
"U. S. Barracks, Feb. 17th, 1803.
"General Order No. 10:
"In accordance with Instructions
received from Headquarters, Dep't of
the South, the families of all persons
(whit?) r.aiding within the limits of
this Command, who have hut-bands,
brothers, or ^ons In Rebel employment,
will hoid ,hemsi iVt S In readiness to
emha?k on toud of the first available
Transport, for Ililtou Head, S. U.,
with a view of being placed within
the re bel lines.
"The heads of Mich families will report
In person to the Headquarters
without de.ay, Due notice will be
given as to the Transport and time of
sailii g
"By oommand of
"Jos S Morgan",
"Col. 00th Reg't. N. Y. V ds.
"Cimmandlnir Post."
"W. T. Wooley,
"Lieut, and l\?sv Adjt."
The harshness of the Inhuman order i
;hat the families of Confederate sold
ers be placed within the Confederate
Ines aroused the indignation of all, (
)ven the officers of Col. Morgan's own
command, and they held a meeting
ihree days later to discuss the mat
ter. After long consideration It was
ieclded tha* there was nothing they
jould do. However, C&pt. Smythc's
jcnse of Justice would not submit to
the proceedings, ami with characteristic
frankness he declared, "Gentlemen,
we (lid not come South to make
war on women and children, but to
tight for our country. This Is an un
holy proceeding that I cannot stand
for, and for my p-irt If I can't d > an/
thing else 1 will resign." Tills he did
do and refused to withdraw despite
the urging of Col. Morgan, who ac
circling had him court-martialed.
General Orders No. 118. dated
"War Department, Adjutant General's
Office, Washington, March 24th,
18(ii," gives an account of the trial.
It was during a general court-martial
which was convened at Kort Taylor,
March 28 1803, Major W. H. Gansler,
47th Pennsylvania Volunteers, pres d
lng. Capt. Smythe was arraigned
and tried on three different charges,
Inoludh g live spccitlcatlons, alleging
that he participated in a mutinous
meeting, which did not attempt t<>
suppress, which did not inform hh
commanding i nicer of, that tendered
bis resignation at a critical time, and
refused to withdraw it when urged
tie was fouud "not guilty" of all .
charges and specifications save th<
llrst epeellication of charge three (notwithdrawing
his resignation when
asked by bis superior cffloei), the re
port on this future being "Guilty ex
cept the words "insist upon Its being
forwarded at a time when there wer<
apprehensions of a general resist,unco (
to the execution of an order from {
headquarters of tlic Department of f
ibe South." ,
The f-0,1 lowing is the verdict: "And ,
;he court .being of the opinion tuai ]
jhere wa^ >ao criminality, dot s ther ,
'ore acquit him." Cipt Smyihe war (
atfir reinstated to his old c mmand t
It interesting to note that as i ,
esult of tills cruelty Col. Morgan was t
emoved from c inmand of the punt j
'Ofllvjlal It cords of Union and Con (
ederafre Navies, Series 1. volume 17, t
>age .*17(1," contains a copy of the
irder and a r? quest for Morgan's re- j
noval on account of lUi UUiuaulty b> t
tear Admiral Theodore iUlley, com c
Eiandlng the Eastern Gulf blockading n
(juadrun.?Augusta Chronicle. r
Death hist Of hakes. f
According to tlgures complied by ^
ihe Lake Marine News bureau, toe a
leath list on the Graet Lakt-s during
die season now closing has been the
leavlest of any year since big steel
ressels began to he used on the lakn* C(
\. total of 215 lives were lost. (> s
?bese, lid were lost during the ihret <
treat storms of this fall. The remain f
ng 99 were lost by falling overboard y
>nd like causes. Durii g toe season of j,
904 only 49 lives were lost on the ^
*reat Lakes, this being the smallest t
oss oimec )rci, ana only two or these B
vore due to shi wrecks. LakeJJjEMe, i
vhlch led the list of dead for a num a
)f yearp, this season gave place to Lake u
superior, where 95 sailors w r? ost, ns s
compared with 40 for Lake 10Me, 38 8
'or Lake Huron, ,15 for Like Michi
jan, 10 for Lake .Ontario, 11 for tht f,
Detroit and St. Clair river passant, L
ind 0 for the Soo passage e
o
Ju(Ik? Oaiy's Help up. ^
The Columbia Record says; Will v
\. Teague, a white man was arrested f
ast night In the mill villag by Oilicer Knox,
on a warrant sworn out by II. t
W. and J. J. Holloway, on thecharg* 1
)f robbing Judge Ernest Gary some i
jlone ago. It wih be recalled that
lome time ago Teague was arrested i
'or participating in a cutting all ay <
ind at the time the police *uspbcied 1
dm of complicity In this hold-up. A f
ihain found in his possession was 1
ihown Judge Gary, but. it could not be <
dentitied and he was not held on this (
sharge. Teague claims that Will 1
VIeetze, another while man uow in jiil
m the charge of robbing a drunken 1
nan, knows something of the hold 1
ip.
i
Olljjll f to tlnvc 1 t.
Senator Stone, of Missouri, Intro !
luced a petition yesterday that calle'
'??r a few words of i x, no .1-on, s&ys ;
Washington Dsp.Gcii corresoonrioi t ]
?rni. i ? i ? - - -
xmsisouooi my con .ntue i v'salr i
the Senator. "1 think his case ?houlo
se passed on favor bly w thouu t<?
jlose scrutiny. President Olevelanvetoed
many special ponsio s Hut 1
:lo not think President Ro ' eve tc .
souslstentley veto a bill to tf1" .m In i
urease of peuslon to Pulllp Ivorucoan
[>f Willow Springs, in iny S ate, lie i
is, an I said 89 years old. Nine years
iKO he married a youiitf woman, as
many old pensioners d), for the sake
l>f wifely care and to bestow his penslen
rights somewhere after death
They have two lusty, bright boys."
1V1 ailn I i(iv<. Tii A Ik..i>.
J. 1\ Kimbrough is a native of German
town, Tenn., and was appointed
to the naval academy by RepresentstlveM.
H. Patterson of the Tjnth
Tennesee dlstrlot. Relatives say that
recent letters fn m y ung Ivlrubrough
tell of some of his experiences at Annapolis.
One letter states that a
broomstick was drrssed In female apparel,
and tlmt the young man was
fojc^d to "make love" to the dummy.
Hwi'co I1) i>{lnn Amuck.
At EvansvllJe, Ind.; a switch ene
.j umpf d the main tiaok on the Illinois
CiiUtrU Friday m rning and
ploughed into the f< ur story building
of the Indiana Stove company at
Pennsylvania avenud and Sixth street.
It buried- the engineer and iheman in
the wreck and their bodies have not
yet been rescued. It is beli ,ved both
ire dead.
CHINESE DOCTORS POPULAR.
Have a Lucrative Practice In Western
Cities.
The method of treating sick persons
in some cities is similar to that of the
other physicians of the United States
and those of Great Britain. They depend
much, nowever, on the examination
of the jiulse. Their sense of touch
is so wondertully developed that it is
Baid they can determine the condition
of tlie heart as well as some of the other
organs merely by the feebleness or
strength of the beats; but they say
there are no less than twelve different
movements of the arteries in the human
body, all of which can be detected
by feeling the fingers, wrist und
arm, says an exchange.
When a patient calls on him for examination,
the doctor first presses the
arm, wrist and fingers, touching nearly
every part. Sometimes ten or fifteen
minutes is occupied with this examination.
Then he may ask if the patient
is married or single, and also his uge;
but this is about the limit of the examination.
Apparently he can tell th#
nature of the disease without questioning
further, and if the caller wishes a
prescription ho writes one in the ordinary
Chinese characters on a generous
sized square of paper.
Kinging a bell, he hands the prescription
to the Chinese attendant who enters,
for each physician has his own
ihop, lilled with the ingredients which
le uses in treatment. If he has a large
practice he may employ a native cheinst,
who makes up the prescription.
One of the curious features of Chinese
medical treatment Is the way in
which lue physicians administer their
remedies. Nearly all the offices of the
principal doctors have what may be
sailed a tea room attachment. This is
i spacious apartment, well lighted, freluently
ornamented with oriental potery
and pictures, and containing small
ables, each with two or three chairs.
'f In.roll.l ? -
. .....tuvi huco uvji wish to nine ma
tiedlcine at home, he is ushered into
hia room, and, while seated at one of
he tallica, drinks hia proscription as ha
would a cup of tea or a gbuss of wine.
iVith but few-exceptions the medicine
s in liquid form, and served hot in
lainty Chinese bowls, for most of it is
sovnpoRcd of a decoction of herbs.
Each table contains a bowl of rnisna,
and when the attendant brings in
he medicine he also brings in a glass
if tepid water. If the drink la bitter,
ia it usually Is, the patient can oat
onie of the ralMns to roniove the taste,
vhile with the water ho rinses his
nouth and throat. Then no is ready to
;o home, returning the next day for
,pother examination and dose.
Charities of Joe Jefferson
"There need he no surprise at the
omparatively small estate left by Joeph
Jefferson," said A. L. Erlanger,
To be sure, the immense earnings
rom his many seasons in 'Hip Van
Vickie' and his keen sense of business
2d the public to believe that there
rould be millions of dollars left when
be great old man of the American
tage died; but to those who knew of
lie charitable side of his personality,
nd the free hand with which he gave
louey away to members of the profeslon
who needed it, there should be no
urprise that tills is not the case. .
"I was associated with Mr. Jefferson
or many years, and knew, probably,
iiore about his charities than any one
ise. In fact, 1 distributed thousands
f dollars every year for him, without
>eing asked to account for it in any
vay. At the least call for aid Mr. Jeferson
would say, 'Look up this fellow
?I used to know him?and if lie needs
he money let him havo it; only he's
tind of proud, so don't Jet him think
t's charity.'
"If 1 wanted to, I could toll you the
lames of a dozen or more actors, some
)f them now living, who received regular
weekly amounts from Mr. Jefferson,
ranging from $25 up to $100. The
ate C. W. Couldock 1 used to pay $100
ivery week, and it was Mr. Jefferson's
jrders that Couldoek should never
want for anything.
"Couldock was a peculiar old man,
honest and candid, and a little tiling
like $100 a week did not prevent his
saying what he thought of Mr. Jefferson.
Once Jefferson bought an apartment
house up in Harlem, a fine, new
building, then very fashionable and
well appointed.
" 'Couldock needs a good place to
live," he said to mo. 'Furnish a nice
apartment in the hops.j for him, and
toll him to occupy it, rout free, with
my compliments, just as long as ho
wants to.'
"1 sent for Couldock and gave him
the glad tidings. Ilif gratitude was
something surprising. lie stormed,
fume 1 and swore, and finally blurted
out in ill mo; t approved 'You are no
longer a ohee?lid of mine* tone:
" 'What! Live In a tenement on that
old mi er's bounty 1 No, sir. No, sir.
Never-r-r-r-r!'
"He stalked out of my office, pounding
the floor with his cane, and I never
dared mention the subject to hiui
again."
The Power Behind the Puree.
The determining factor in all modern
life is money. The hand that holds the
purse rules the world, though the spirit
must regulate it, Man is the wageearner,
but tbo purchasing power of
the nation is in the hands of the woman?that
is, among the only women
who are of any account in the empire,
the women of the middlo (in all its
tiers) aud the lower classes.?London
Mall. v
Liberia exports about 50.000.00u gallons
of palm oil a year. It is made from
the outer part of the palm nut, not
from the kernel.
In Bangkok you travel from the
steamer to the hotel on tho back of an
elephant. ^
BALTIMORE OF THE FUTUREFireproof
Structures, Widened Streets
and Growing Commerce.
The area ravaged by flames consisted
of bu city blocks, or more than 14U
acres, bounded by Ldberty, Baltimore,
Fayette, Lexington and Gay streets,
Jones' Fulls to the water irout and
Pratt and Lombard streets, in Ibis section
were 1,382 buildings, and with the
exception of about 30 of them, every
one was luid low either by ilauies or
by city officials in fighting the lire, and
the section, which beiore the lire hud
been the finest in the business d?strict,
was leit practically a teiritoiy or unimproved
land, says the New York
lleruld.
Immediately after the fire Baltimore
began planning improvements, livery
street in the burned district was narrow
and unable to accommodate the
city's rapidly increasing trade, and the
main thing planned was the widening
of these streets. Haiti more street, the
most important thoroughfare and the
dividing line of the north and south
streets, was not widened, though agitation
of it held up Improvements on the
thoroughfare for more than three
months and it was several times beiore
the city council. Business men who at
that time opposed the widening and
won their light have in many instance*
admitted they were at fault, but too
late. In addition to widening streets,
the eity made provision for a large
plaza on the west front of the court
house, a building which cost nearly
$4,000,000, and is considered one of the
very finest of Its kind in the worm.
The city has also planned to take possession
of all the property south of
Pratt street and extending to the water
front. It will build new docks and will
lease space on them to individuals and
corporations, a system similar to that
in vogue in New York city.
With tlie property condemned for the
improvements named, there were actually
U5S lots upon which the habituation
of the burned district depended,
and on these permits for 44G structures
have been issued or applied for. But
as these t tti nnrmits: ill tmiiiv ciiBnc I'lin
resent two or more lots, about 770 ol
the 958 have been covered or will soon
be improved with new uuildings.
The tax assessments on all the buildings
which occupied all the 968 lots in
(he burned district before the lire
amounted to $10,810,975, which Is $4,098,145
less than the declared cost of
the new ones erected or now in course
of construction.
All of the' buildings are as thoroughly
fireproof as man can matte them. It
is doubtful if any city in the country
has as many fireproof buildings at this
time its Baltimore. In the construction
only improved methods were used, and
there are quit? a number of buildings
about the city now that have not a
particle of wood in them. Practically
all of the new buildings have metal
window frames, with metal sashes fitted
with \\ .i e glass on the most exposed
parts.
A large number of the new buildings
are of concrete construction. In tact,
thoie are now more concrete buildings
in Baltimore than in any other city in
the country. Builders say that this
has been found to be one of the best
methods of construction, being solid its
well as fireproof. Probably the largest
building constructed of concrete In Baltimo
is the new home of the Baltimore
News. This building occupies a largo
lot on the southeast corner of Fayette
and Calvert streets, and has just been
completed. One warehouse is now being
erected which Is entirely of concrete,
the ouside walls being dressed in
a manner closely resembling limestone.
In rebuilding the city the general
tendency has been to erect buildings ol
medium height rather than skyscrapers.
Desnite the fact that tho fire demon
strated that wooden pavements will
burn, Baltimore has paved some of tier
streets with wooden blocks since me
fire. The wooden blocks have been
used principally on the streets in tne
vicinity of the court house, it having
been found that they deaden tho sound
of passing curs and wagons, which before
the fire was a source of great annoyance.
Most of the streets in the
burned district have been paved with
Belgian blocks, however.
Durability of Tantalum.
Although the existence of tantalum,
the new material employed for incandescent
lamp filaments, has been
known for a hundred years, It is only
very recently that the metal has been
prepared in a pure state. This is effected
with tho aid of the electric furnace.
Tantalum combines extreme ductility
with extraordinary hardness. When
red hot it is easily rolled into sheets or
drawn into wire, but upon being heated
a second time and then hammered it
becomes so hard that it has been found
impossible, with a diamond drill, to
| bore a hole through a sheet only one
millimeter thick. Such a drill, working
day and night for three days, at
5,000 revolutions per minute, made a
depreslspn only a quarter of a millimeter
deep, and the diamond point was
badly worn.?Youth's Companion.
Leather Railway Tieo.
Leather is being used on the Russinn
government railroads. All sorts of
material liavo been used for this purpose,
but chiefly tarred wood ami iron.
No tie has given perfect satisfaction;
the wood decays and the iron changes
nnder the influence of temperature. It
is expected that lmther ties will not be
perceptibly affected by either air or
heat, nor will they split when nails are
driven into them. If leather ties prove
more durable than wooden ones, they
may in the long run be even less expensive.
According to a French international
> almanac the czar draws annually from
the Russian exchequer $40,000,000.
> .
PHONE ON STEAMSHIPS.
Lookout Will Convey Warning Over
Wire Instead of Shouting.
When the lookout In the crow's nest
f the ocean liner of the future sights
an object, in lieu of shouting ho will
pen a copper telephone box, and say
to the skipper through a transmitter:
"There's a steamer's smoke ahead, sir. !
Two miles off the port bow. Four
aiiles away.'
James H. Hill's new steamship Dakota,
the largest vessel ever built in
America, and a replica of the Minnesota,
now engaged in trans-Pacific
commerce, is equipped with two distinct
systems of telephones, connected
with which are the newest wrinkles :
in both general and marine telephony. ,
Telephoning at sea has never been a j
success on account of vibration of the
vessel, noise of machinery, the roar of
the wind, and the admission of moisture
to the parts.
On board the Dakota one system is
an exchange, with instruments in all
the staterooms, women's saloon,
smoko room, Stewart's department
and executive officers' cabins.
The telephone girl will bo in the
stern. At command of her deft hand
will be 150 stations. If a passenger
wishes a steward he pushes a button.
On the switchboard drops a target,
disclosing the cabin number. When
"Central" inserts the plug she looks
for a red lamp. If the red light does
not glow she knows that only a steward
is wanted.
If a passenger desires to talk the
receiver is raised from the hook, the
tiny electric lamp associated with
tlie plug reddens and the girl knows
that conversation is called for. Any
lumber of passengers can talk togetner,
conducting from as many different
parts of tiie ship a general conversation.
When the Dakota reaches her
pier a line is run aboard, enabling passengers
and crew to call up their
friends ashore, or vieo versa.
The second system is the "intercommunicating."
The officers using this
do their own switching. It will largely
supplant the gong and jingle systems
and the marine telegraph. It. extends
between the navigating and engine-room
stations.
The stations are the bridge, the after
bridge, crow's nest, port and starboard
engine spaces, wheel-house,
chief engineer's room, chief electrician's
room, central electric lighting
station and the dynamo shelf.
The six exposed stations have waterproof
instruments. The holding case
is of copper. The talking and listen
ing part are connected, says the
American Syren and Shipping, so that
all the officer, or sailor has to do is
to put the receiver to his ear.
To pass a hook up and down would
admit dampness or water.
Over the earpiece is placed a rubber
cushion to shut out the throb of fluengines.
In signals requiring the
shutting of water-tight doors, engine
control, communications from lookouts
and delivery and receipt of messages,
the intercommunicating telephone
is expected to be of superior
utility.
A mechanical arrangement of the
parts is designed to do away with
mo oojecnonauie reature ot violation,
which on ships has been the great
bugbear in marine telephoning.?New
York Mail.
Raw Opium From the Poppy.
The preparation of "raw" opium In
North India is, according to the Tropical
Agriculturalist, carried out as follows:
In February, as a rule, the juice
Is gathered, the poppy plant being
then in full flower and of a height of
three oij fqpr feet, each stem having
from two to live capsules of the size
of a duck's egg. Before the capsules
are pierced the fallen petals of the
flowers are carefully gathered and
sorted according to condition, in three
grades, and then are heated over a
slow fire and formed into thin cakes,
to be used for the covering of the
drug when collected,
j T,he piercing of the pods requires
great skill, and upon it largely depends
the yield. The opium farmer
and his assistants each carry a small
lancelike tool, which has three or four
short, sharp prongs, and with this a
half dozen perpendicular cuts aro \
made, In each capsule or seed pod of !
the poppy. The Juice begins to flow .
at once, but quickly congeals. The
day after the thickened juice is carefully
gathered, being scraped off with
a small Iron trowel, and the mass ,
thus gathered Is put Into an earth' i
vessel and kept carefully stirred for j
a month of more, great care being
taken to havo It well aired, but not ,
exposed to tho sun.
The material is now examined by
export testers, who determine its
grade or quality, and then the whole
is put into a large box, where it is
worked very much in the same fash- j
ion as baker's dough, to give it the required
consistency. Tho opium is ,
now made into balls for export. Tho
natives wade about In the largo vats
containing the paste like drug and
band it out to hundreds of ball makers
sitting around the room. Every man
has a spherical brass cup, lined with
poppy flower petals, before him. Into
this is pressed the regulation quantity
of opium. From this brass cup
when properly pressed, the opium ball
Is transferred to another man, who
gives it a coating of clay. Tills gives
the drug, when ready for shipment,
tho nppearanco of a fair sized cannon
ball.
When well prepared In this manner,
opium will keep Its properties for
fifteen years or more. Before it can
bo used, the opium balls have to bo
broken up and further treatod.
Tho religious revival In-Carnarvon,
"Wales, has resulted In Its prohibiting
tho landing of Sunday excursionists
from Liverpool upon Its plors.
DISCONTENT! OUR NAVY
Jack Tars'Reasons For so Many
Desertions From Warships.
EXCESSIVE PUNISHMENTS
Declare They Get Poor Food, Misfit
Uniforms and Not Enough Shore
Leave?Demands Exacted In Past
Two Years Have Been Unusually
Severe on the Jackies.
Statistics show that desertions from,
battleships in the last few years have
been occurring at a surprising rate. In
almost every port warships touchy blue
jackets are unlawfully quitting the
service. Within the last two years the
crews of at least two American warships
have been reported in a mutinous
state. Bluejackets who do not desert
or mutiny grumble openly whenever
they get a chance on land to air
their grievances. Dissatisfied sailors
appear to be in the rule instead of tho
exception, says the New York Tribune.
To quote one bluejacket: "In the
American navy there are good ships
and bad ships. The former are known
in tho navy as 'homes' and tljg^tter
as 'madhouses.' The terms,?x^^juk> 4
explain themselves. I myself, I ant
glad to say, am serving on a 'home,'
where the officers are kind, tho 'grub' ^
good, and we get more shoro leave
than on the other ships."
"Grub" is undoubtedly the particular
subject about which the sailoa? are
most bitter. The revolting pictures
they paint as to the grade of food served
aboard would at first blush seem to bo
drawn ireely from the imagination, but
a score of sailors of different ships,
separately Interviewed, told the same
story, and among these was a cook's
assistant of a first class battleship.
Next to the question of "grub," there
would seem to bo uo grievance which
is causing more general discontent,
throughout the navy than the matter
of uniforms. The men interviewed
were bitter over the present system of
distributing uniforms to the enlisted
men. They complain that they arecompelled
to wear uniforms that do not
fit them, under the present system; and
here tne paymaster is the officer who is
blamed.
They are compelled, they allege, topay
for tailoring alterations 'dit of
their owii small wages (from $12 to $120
a month), and, to "rub it in," they are
oftentimes punished by their captains
for untidiness, and. no excuses ore listened
to.
"The uniforms, too, are made of poor
material. We wear the suits as well as
we can. Then comes tire captain along
and oraers an inspection, J/nat uniform
doesn't fit you,' says he. 'Have it
altered, or I'll punish you severely.'
That means spending half your month's
pay, perhaps, to have the Uniform
practically made over again. Then,
when the uniforms aro washed they
shrink, because of the poor quality of
the stuff of which they are made. That
means buying a new uniform, and it
costs us $7 a suit.
"The sailors complain that whilo the
navy bltio book declares that for certain
offenses men shall be punished
either by confinement in a brig In
double irons, by denial of shore leave
or by fining, captains often sentence offenders
to all three of these punish-ments.
/
"There Isn't a navy in the world
where the sailors are punished for
small offenses the way they are in the
American navy. I have mixed with
sailors of all nations, and I know what
I'm talking about. The average American
sailor Is more Intelligent than the
fai'ors of other nations. We can see
the injustice of the thing more readily
than foreign sailors can, and yet we
are punished more severely of all.
When you punish an American sailor*
unjusuy or wun too groat severity,
you make a surly brute of him instead
of man."
That sailors do not get. enough shore
leave is another assertion strongly advanced
by Jack and given as a >\use
for so many desertions. The tailors
declare that the men are deprived of
the right to go ashore w't^out any appuient
cause or reason. O.'.e sailor d?claved
that during a cruise of five
months, in which his sh?.> had touched
r-o.t twice, not a man aboard had been
allowed to go ashore tor more than
two nays in nil that tlras
That "grog" is denied while afloat 1?
another grievance against the service
cited by Jack. Tie com tlains bitterly
that 'n other navies the men are allowed
a bottle of beer each day, and
that as a consequence they do not get
so drunk when they go ashore. He declares
that many temperate sailors
would be more satisfied with the service
if they could have a little liquor
each day, as used to be the c?-^|u the
navy beforo "grog" was abo* ^bd.
A severe arraignment of their junior
officers is made by the sailors of manyships.
According to the statement of
these blueiackets. snohherv is mm.
pant among these officers, and there is
more class hatred aboard a battleship
than ashore. The men describe the
Junior officers as being in many cases<
bullying, overbearing and haughty and
evincing ill concealed hatred for the
enlisted men, and declare that in no
navy in the world is there such lack of
sympfthy between officers and men tm
in many warships of the United States*
navy. ^
Shirt Pointed Out Dead Body.
Verifying an old superstition, momers
of a searching party in quest of the
body of a drownod boy threw upon
tho waters of the lake the shirt of th?
missing lad, and found the article effective,
where grappling iron frilled.
The Rhlrt sank imediately, and in lea?
than an hour the body rose to the surface,
within two foot of the plac#>
whe/e the garment had gone down.