Worcester daily spy. [volume] (Worcester [Mass.]) 1850-1888, 1871-12-06

been made Under the act oil req. IA, 1871, grant
ing pensions to the soldiers Of the war of 1912
and their widows The aggregate of invalid
! navy pensioners now on the rolls is 1871, and OF
| widows, orphans and dependent relatives 1873.
The bureau of education has been busy dur
ing the year in obtaining and supplying inlor.
| nation, in the distribution of documents and
In the collection of facts and statistics.
Threetourths OF the statistical tables of the
| census have been sent TO press and about 1000
pages are already in type. The work upon the
| three quartO volumes will he completed during
the winter. The report recommends the pub-
cation Of the most important results of the cen-
sns in an octave form convenient orpopular use.
The Northern Pacific railroad s completed for
| q distance of 1882 miles. The work is being
| vigorously prosecuted the contractors binding
| themselves to have the road completed to the
Missouri by the LIST of July ncxt Of the Cali
| fornia and Oregon railroad 77.6 miles were nc
| cepted January 8. Seventy-five miles of the
Atlantic and Pacific railroad have been accepted.
Annual Report Of tbc Secretary OF the
Navy.
The navy of the United States consists of 179
ships of all classes and in all conditions, that
carry 1890 gus, exclusive of howitzers and
| small carrOnades, The Saginaw has been lost
since the last report, and the tug Primrose has
| been sold. OF these 179 ships, 30 are sailing
| ships, and the remainder Side-wheel steamers or
| sailing vessels, with auxiliary screws, 30 of them
| armed with COL guns are in service, attached TO
the various fleets and stations as regular cruis-
ers, dispatch boats, hospital, store, receiving and
| practice ships; these, with the tugs and small
vessels in use at various navy yards and sta
| lions, make the force In commission for all the
| purposes of naval service.
| OF the remainder, are nearly ready for sea,
| and viii join the various squadrons as soon as
their crews can be enlisted and organized; so are
| monitors, only one OF which is now In commits
| sion, the balance being laid up at the various
| stations, but principally at League Island where,
| in the fresh water of the Delaware, their iron
| bottoms deteriorate with far less rapidlty than
| in the salt water of the other stations; II are
| under repair at the various yards; 10 are on the
| stocks, never having been completed and launch
ed; and the balance of those whose names are
on the list are laid up in ordinary.
OF these a very large proportion are unfit for
use and cannot he repaired with advantage. In
this connection the secretary Says:-"Unless
something is done in this direction our cruising
navy, now by no means powerful, indeed scarce
ly respectable for n nation of our rank and re-
sponslbilites, will soon almost wholly pass out
of existence as an arm of our national power.
He then shows the necessity which exists for
check to the decline of our naval power No
change has been made in the arrangements of
the naval force since the last report OF any mo-
ment. The unwieldy and expensive iron-clads
have been substituted on the active cruising Sta
tionS by small and active cruisers, by which
means large extent of cruising ground is &C.
cupicd and greater efficiency attained without
greater expense
The North Atlantic squadron, Admiral Lee COM
handing, consists otthe Severn, the SW atara, the
Nantasket, the Npsic, the Kansas the Pawnee,
the Terror, with the Worcester and Canandaigua
Just fitted for the station, and the Shawmut-in
all ten ships, mounting 10 guns, all active
cruisers except the Terror, which is an iron-clad
of the Monitor pattern.
The South Atlantic squadron, Rear Admiral
Lamar commanding, consists OF the Lancaster,
| alag ship, the TicOuderoga and the Wasp, with
the Wyoming already fitted for the station-4
| ships, mounting 40 guns.
| The feet on the Pacific station, Rear Admiral
John A. Wiuslow, consists of the California,
| the Pensacola, the Naragansett, the Saranac,
the MohicaD, the Resaca, the Ossipee, the On
ward and the st. Mary's-in all ships, mount
| ing 80 guns, and divided into two squadrons,
| viz: The North Pacific and the South Pacific,
| commanded respectively by Commodore Roger
| N. Stembel and Commodore David McDougal.
The European station is now commanded by
| Rear Admiral Charles S. Boggs, who relieved
| Rear Admiral Gibson on the 2Sth day of JAN
uary last. The ships belonging TO this fleet are
the Brooklyn, the Plymouth, the Guerrero, the
| Wachusett, the Shenandoah, the Juniata, and
the Wabash, with the Congress about to sail
| in all ships, with 139 guns.
On the Asiatic station, of which Rear Admiral
| John Rodgers is still the commandant, we have
| the Colorado, the Benicia, the Alaska, the
| Ashuelot, the MOnOcacy, the Idaho, and the
| PaloS with the Saco, now on her way through
tht CuCA Nttlluli anu ltle lIOuNOlo, OluGIS
| to join the squadron-ln all nine ships, mount
| img nnety-Seyen guns.
or these ships on the various stations forty
| have been more or less refitted and repaired at
| home or abroad since the last report, and four
| Others, all of the smaller class now at the
various navy yards, will be ready for sea in
| periods varying from twenty to sixty days.
Daring the year the navy has also supplied
| sixteen officers and 220 men orduty in the coast
survey service; has completed the survey of the
| Ddrlen and Iehuantepec routes, has made eX-
| tensive surveys and sOundings for telegraph
j cables, and, under the direction of congress- fit
| ted out aud dispatched three store ships loaded
! with provisions, by the charitable people of our
| country, for the sufferers from the European
war, and has. under like direction and under
your order, sent ont vessel, completely fitted,
| equipped and supplied to explore the Arctic
| ocean toward the north pole"
The remainder of the report is taken up with
| an account Of the work of deepening the harbor
! OF Midway islands, rehearsal of the paricu-
| lars of the wreck of the Saginaw, the Tehuan-
| tepec and Darien canal expeditions, the trans
| portation OF supplies to France and Germany,
| and the expedition to the north pole under Prof
| Hail. The story of the COrean expedition is
told, but no new facts are stated.
The reports Of the bureaus, the naval obserya-
| tory, the photographic office and the marine
corps-are praised for their efficiency and the
! progress they have made.
An enlargement of the most important navy
| yards is again recommended.
With the resources of Mare island on the Pa
| eltic and League island on the Atlantic Shore
| fully developed on well considered plan, the
| country would receive a great accession of
strength, and find new bulwarks against foreign
| aggression.
With regard TO iron shipbuilding yards, the
secretary hopes hereafter to be able 10 present
| some system to be matured under the delibera-
| tlons Of congress.
NAVAL PENSION FUND.
The pension roll on the 1st of November,
| 1871, was rs follows:
1,430 invalids, annually receiving $780, 654 25
| l,I03 widows and children, annually re-
celVlng'.' 260644 90
| 3,l33 persons, receiving total Of 1891, 29s %
The whole expenditure of the department and
| the service since the date of the last report is
Sl9,265,24O %, including the payment CT invalid
| pensions and adiudicated prize money, and the
| appropriations of congress for the payment of
| bounties and claims of various kinds to the first
| of the present MONTH
| The appropriations for the current fiscal year
| amount in the whole to S20,964,717 %, and the
expenditures from these appropriations are con-
| sderably within the proportion applicable 10 the
| period which has elapsed since its commence
| ment.
GENERAL EXPENSES.
| The estimates for the general expenses of the
| service for the year ending June 80, 1878,
amount to 1926. 507 o. being 81, zoe, 900 less
| than the estimates for the current year, and
more than half million less than the appro-
| priation made by congress for that period.
The secretary next touches on the proposed
| reduction in the personnel of the navy. Not
outstanding the fact that the number of officers
on the active list in the eight highest grades is
| less by iorty-seven than before the war, he is of
opinion that there are some grades in our navy
| now established by law which may be safely and
| properly reduced or dispensed with in time of
| peace. He therefore suggests that the grades of
| admiral and vice admiral be allowed to lapse
| with the lives of those who now hold them.
| The grade of commodore also, he believes,
may be dispensed with at this time, and sug-
| gests that no more promotions be made to this
| grade after date to be fixed by law, and that,
after this grade shall have apsed by the death,
| retirement, or promotion of the present in
| cumbents, promotions be made to the grade Of
rear admiral, by selections as vacancies occur,
from the list of captains. He also suggests
| that the term OF cadetship for midshipmen be
increase by law from four years to six two of
| which, at least Shall be spent at sea- By this
| means the number of officers annually entering
| the naval service will be reduced by one-third
| We may add to these reductions by dropping
the mates now employed on temporary duty,
except those who have peculiar claims by reason
OF war service or special fitness. When these