The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1869-08-17
THE GERMAN NAVE.
National lFlag-NationalN Navy-German
Modern Naval Hfstory-A Now Port
How 1t was Greated-Whatft 1t Is.
A Berlin letter says:

A Berlin letter says:
IF We are a nation we must have national
flag. But what is the use OF having nt tlonal
fac unless YOU can show 1t to your neighbors
in pa1 ticular, aud to oil the world in generaR
Now, your next peighbors can see it across the
frontier, and along the line OF river boundary.
But this will not answer for transatlantic and
otherwise transoceanic peoples whom you wish
10 impress with an idea OF your Importance.
True, YOU n, eht send them your flag by some
foreign letter bag, ask them to take an admiring
look. impress it upon their relinds and their
memories, and send it back by return mail.
But this, fol- great nation, would be dec ded-
ly mira dig. How do other great nations man
age thus little matter? We all know very well.
They build ships, frigates, steamers and IRON
clads. mount them with men and cannon, and
sand them to cir umnavigato the globe with
their flag fiying over them. There's the flag,
here arc the men to defend its honor and up
Mold its glory. Thus do the United States,
England and France, and not only all the civil
lied nations, but tho sayages OF BehrIng
Straits, Patagonia and Ocsanica know and re-
spect these emolems ef power ana clvln2atlon:
In some such iraln OF recollection as this did
our German friends indulge about A. D. 1848,
and forthwith laid the foundation OF navy
and the keels of several men-of-War. But,
when the excitement had subaded, and con-
stitutiopal freedom had been got well In hand
by kingy rulers, the national navy was broken
up and It's vessels s1ld at auction. This was
In 1852. Then Prussia Immediately began o
navy OR her own account, which, growing little
hy little. was something worth while handing
over to the New German Confederation when it
came into existence, tor the commencement OF
national navy.
By dint of extraordinary industry and econ
omy this navy now numbers, OF sailing ves-
sells, three frigates, three brles thirty.two gun
sloops, and some smaller craft, the Wnolc
mounting five hundred heavy rlhed guns. OF
screw vessels three culrassed frigates, two cui-
rassed batteries, ten colveltes and thirty-six
eunpoats. all heavily armed with Armstrong
or Prussian arpor. The fleet numbers Blk
thousand men, OF whom five thousand are sail
ors. This torce can be greatly increased.
North Germany has q seatarlng population OF
seventy-elght thousand. Still, many things
were wanting. Ii q Germau man-ot-war had
TO be put in dry dock, it was necessary to send
her to England or Sweden. Then, too, there
was ps military port on the Baltic. This de-
ficiepcy was thought Of as fur back as 1854.
when Prussia purchased for five hund ed thou
sand thalers O strip of land on the western
shores Of the Jade Bay, in the Grand Duchy OF
Oldeuburg.
Though dsep and sheltered from winds, the
bay ID yet too large and little TOO VIDE at It's
entrance-three miles-to make a suitable har-
bor. What, therefore, nature had not supplied,
had to be dcne by the hand OF man. Immense
excavations were undertaken, proceeding from
the shore considerable distance inland. and
branching cut in different directions. The work
was of the most difficult kind. 1t is low, un-
Inhabited coast, liable to be inundated by the
spring tides The soil, consisting of loose, SHIFT
ing sand, fell in wherever touched by the spade.
There was no driukabls water to be had for miles
and malaria prevailed to such an extent that
sometimes one-fourth uf the workmen we're laid
up with it. The first thing to be done WIS to
raise dams to protect the site of the future har-
Dor from the encroachments OF the sea. Then
fresh water had to be obtained by boring arte-
sian wells nine hundred feet deep. At length