The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1878-09-24

Iroquois, Narragansett, Kansas, Saco,
Nyack, Shawmut and Yantic Of the third
class. These are the decrepit steam vessels
of tho navy.
Next we come to the invalids, OF which we
always have a large number undergoing the
most expensive sort Of treatment in the
way of repairs. The ships which came
home from sea to be tinkcrcd up after n
shorter or longer and always an easy SER
vice, are 10 in numbcr-the Richmond.
Tcondcroga, Canandaigua, and Shenan-
doah Of the second rates. and the Quinne-
baug. Galena. Kearsargc. Wachusctt, Mohi-
can. aud Nipsic of the third rates Then
follow tho old hulks. which are fit for
nothing except to lie in hnrbor n receiving
and store ships or to rot in ordinary. or to
do a little duty as training ships There are
IL OF these, and they include tho Colorado
Franklin. Minnesota, Niagara. and Wabash
all of the first rates. IN fact; tho Antietam,
Susquchanna, Congress, and Omaha Of the
second rates; tho Ossipcc of the third rates
and the Ftoic OF the fourth rates.
THUS we find that Of tho 81 ordinary
steam vessels VI the navy, Al cannot
now he put 10 use at sea. even to per-
form The few duties required Of man-of-
war. OF the remaining 26, one-the Wy
oming-has just gone among the in
valids, and could only get home from Havre
by the aid Of a tug. Another the paddle
wheel Michigan. is OF little use at Eric, Pa
and is Il poor old craft; another, the Eli
terprise. was recently twice disabled In the
Amazon; and still another. tho Tallapoosa
the yacht OF the Ancient Mariner has a
way of breaking down on hor short trips
along the coast. There remain % ships
OF more or less value, though not one
of them compares favorably with the best
vessels OF their class in European navics
not one Is fast, and not one is armed with
guns capable of coping with those which are
ailoat by the hundred in foreign navies, even
nj the second rate. For fighting purposes,
therefore, they are Of little or no use. There
are score of ships in the British navy
any one OF which could blow the whole lot
OF them sky high.
OF the % wooden sailing vessels II is
hardly worth while TO speak. They are
ships Of the past good for nothing except to
look at, to train boys on. to hold stores, or
to All the docks at The navy yards Clean
out the whole OF them aud we should lose
nothing and gain the small sum they would
fetch. You might as we'll try to oppose the
old fiint-locks to the modern breech-load-
ers as TO array either these Anticipated craft
or even our somewhat swifter steam vessels
against the splendid ships which Queen
VICTORIA reviewed tho other day in the
British Channel. In fine. the 81 steam YES
sells and p wooden sailing ships are Of
about as much use in war as so many. East
River ferryboats, and in time OF peace, even
II they can so TO sea at all. they serve only
to carry idle officers from port TO port.
Finally, we come TO the "a lronclads. No
one pretends that these are worth more than
their weight as old iron. II they were COW
cred with sheet iron. they would have about
as effective protection against modern shells
as they now have with the laminated armor
which plates their sides and turrets More
over, their armament OF smooth-bore guns
is behind the age, and would prevent their
doing any damage to the foreign ironclads.
with their thick, solid armor and tremcn-
dous rifles. OF the monitors enumerated.
three are simply monuments Of our folly
and prodigality. They are the Colossus, on
the stocks at New York; the Oregon on the
stocks at Boston. and the Massachusetts. in
the same condition at Portsmouth. None Of
them will ever be completed and the mil
lions so far spent on them have been thrown
away. The two torpedo boats, the Intrepid
and Alarm, are costly failures. The Is tugs
are hardly to be counted at all. They are
wheezy little craft, which, when they arc
able to move about at all, hustle around the
harbors doing odd jobs.
This is all of the navy over which the ven
cradle THOMPSON presides. 1t has cost us
more than enough to build a navy which
would rank, vessel for vessel. with the best
in the world, and yet we find only about n
score Of ships Of any account at all, and
none which are fit 10 20 into battle, while
the life of the best OF them must be short
Let the country remember that SEcoR
robson spent fifty millions Of dollars on
the repairs alone Of this wretched fleet,