The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1871-07-26

North German Confederation and now become
the imperial navy, owes Its Initiation to Prince
Adalbert, who is now the admiral command
ing 1t. In the early days 1t was officered part
" by officers Of other nattonalitles, and Dy
suitable men taken from the merchant navy.
A naval school for training young officers was,
| however, very soon Instituted, and for long
time none have been admitted into the navy
except through its portals. The following are
the tests applied to a young officer to insure
his efficiency: The entry OF q cadet Is admis-
sable between the ages of l6 and II; the appll-
cant must come with q certificate that he has
passed gymnasium examination In the first
animation In arithmetic, geography, trigo.
| nometry, stereometry, spherical trigonome-
try, physics; (comprehendlng optics, acoustics,
| heas, electricity, magnetism, electro mage
tism and tnduction,) geography, physical and
politically French and English languages,
drawing; and when not educated In gymna-
SUM, history and Latin in addition.
year in the cadetship, when he goes up
| for his examination for the rank of lnidshlp-
man. The lad then goes afloat ON service for
two or three years as midshpman, and then
enters the Naval School at Ksel. where ne
| studies for q year or year and nall, at tne
| end of which time he presents himself for mis-
examination TO pass from mtdshipman to lieu
tenant. This examination covers the same
ground as the former, butis much more testing.
He is probed to the bottom in navigation and
seamanship, including tactics. Having shown
himself to be an Admirable Crichton, he Is
thea at liberty to wait for his vacancy as sub.
lieutenant. When midshipman, he enjoys the
dailypay of forty cents on shore, afloat htGy
or sixty y-tive cents extra as table money. he
must serve two years at least as sub .lieuten-
ant before promotion to lieutenant but the
average Is from three to five years service
prior to the occurrence OF vacancy. After
an average service of about six years as lieu.
tenant, he becomes aptain-lleutenant. AS
captaln.lleutenant the term of service may
| average about six years, the next grade being
commander; the higher ranks are captain and
admiral, the attainment to which is wholly
dependent on the occurrence Of vacancies.
Promotion Is, without exception, by seni0ri-
ty; 1t being assumed, and surely not without
cause, that efficiency is secured In all BY the
rigorous examinations which have to be un-
dergone. The naval service is,' with the ex-
eeption of the officers OF the merchant service
taken into 1t at the beginning, and SILL re.
naming wholly an arlstocratic one. It Is the
fashion to Join the naval service, and 1t is ut
once compulsory and the fashion. to pass good
examinations in that service. It Is an achieve
ment, the secret Of which. the Germans seem
alone Of European nations to nave mastered,
how to make II the fashion with young noble
men to work, as he who Worketh that he may
live. Every ship in the German service, even
the smallest glnboat, Is provided with detail
ed drawings and sections OF every foreign
war ship. Its weak points are specifically stat
ed, and details given as to the-spots TO be aim
ed at with the most likelihood of disabling the
machinery "MY word," TO quote the natve
remark of an officer with whom happened to
have conversation on this topic--"My word,
know the ships ofthe British fleet better than
their own Young officers Ard, saw enough
to make me certain that this was no empty
| boast. Every ship possesses accurate and DE-
| tailed charts of the naval. ports OF the world;
and the examination 10 which officers are SUBJ
ect on this, as we'll as on other topics. insures
their acquaintance with them, 80 that pilots,
the want of which was one OF the piteous
complaints OF the French naval officers on the
farcfcal northern cruise OF their fleet, are capa-
BILE, In emergency, of being dispensed with.
.tL'OrienS Is o very difficult port to make;
would not like to try that Without pilot.
Plymouth there Is not a lieutenant In the
German navy who could not take trip Into
Plymouth In the night time" This was what
| happened to have talk on maritime affairs III
q Berlin restaurant, and his testimony Is con-
| firmed from other sources. II seems plalD
| Germany does not want for naval officers, hel
| lack Is Of feet and Of o seaboard. The solu
| ton of the fleet problem Is simple, III costly
| the consideration of the other matter Involves
questions into which do not feel called upon
| to enter.
One word about the seamen. They are drawn
| from the seatarlng population In the same
manner as the army is from the inland popu.
lation,. the term Of service being for three
years. There are four classes. The first class
from which the petty officers are found, comes
from naval school, the pupils of which enter
as boys, and are taught seamanship IN youth
i nf nf q
after which they are provided tor In various
capacities in the civil service of The Grown In
the same way as long service non-commlssion
| ed officers OF the ermy. The pay OF the nrst
class seaman is about 30 cents per day. In ad
dltion to food and clothing. It does not seem
to be the custom to retain, while shlps are mol
| In commission, the services Of any save these
first.class men. At WilhemshaVen there are
only about 200 sailors, who live In barracks
on Shore, and are all first-class men, In every
sense of the word. Some difficulty might be
experienced in getting together efficient crews
for O fleet at short warning. 1t Is not sufficient
to have gApd seamen such as the merchant
services would furnish; 1t would seem to nom
professional man that some experience 10
the handling Of great guns would be
| advantageous. 1t Is not easy to see now
| they can be obtained with C scratch crew; nor
Is 1t easy to see how, If indiscrimtnate and ln-
conditional discharges are given when ship
| is paid off, anything but scratch crew can be
got together on short notice, taking into con-
sderalion the long absences from home sof so
many seamen. Not the least interesting ques'
ton affecting naval matters which the late
war brought up was that OF torpedoes. The
opinion Of those whose experience of them
was largest Is not favorable to the value oil
fixed torpedoes. 1t is impossible to be certain
that they remain stationary. "You never
know where they are" was the pity remark
made to me concerning those at the mouth Of
the Jade. Often they go adrift and get In q
tangle In single night, and they block the
road for friends as well as foes. The best
means for The application OF torpedoes is judg-
ed to be by meuns of boats constructed spe-
ciaIy as torpedo-boats, which in single night
can lay down belt of torpedoes In fleets
pathway, or ring Of them round fleet, in
suring the minimum OF possibility of getting
adrift. But my informant's sententious sum.
mary was, "Torpedoes will never supersede
lorts, ships and big cannon, although they
may help at pinch"
| WASHINGTON NEWS Ind GOSSIP.
The Ku-Klux Committee and the Bis
sissippi Outrages.