Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1882-01-05

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which had been badly knocked about,
went back to Boston to refit, after a bat
tie which was decided in her favor in
about half an hour. The first serious
conflict of the war was immortality tor
the Constitution. Hull honOrably gave
up the command of the ship, under the
influence of feeling that others should
be allowed to distinguish themselves.
The Constitution then went into the
hands of Captain Bainbridge, and sailed
with the Hornet on the 26th of October,
1872. On the 10th of December she cap
tured the British frigste Java. Wht
Bainbridge gave up the command of the
Constitution i'll 1913, she was found to
he in a very decayed condition; and
then began those repairs to which she
has been 80 often subjected. When she
sailed again she was under the command
of Captain Charles Stewart. Before he
came back, after cruise IN the West
Indies. he captured few prizes and the
man-Of-war schooner PictOu, IA. Capt.
Stewart sailed again from Boston in De-
cember, 1914. The luck of the ship did
not desert her. Capt. Stewart, February
20, 1875, captured Ii. b. NJ. ship Cyane,
81, and the slOop-Of-war LeVant. u.
These were famous naval actions in
their day, and are not yet forgotten.
They are the best exploits of the Consti-
tuition, of whom Americans began al
ready to- speak affectienately as "Oid
lronsides." When there was talk of
running Commodore Stewart for the
Presidency, they gave the maine to hin.
Her service during the war may be sum-
med up as follows: In the course of two
years and nine months she had been in
three actions, had been twice dangerous
ly pursued, and had taken live vessels
of war. Sailors boaSted of her, as they
| told how she had never been ashore and
never dismasted. She had been fighting
all her life, with constant success and
with Il minimum of loss. Naval histO-
rians explain her good fortune by the
fact that she had always been well cQul-
manded. Most of her crews, during her
last two cruises, were hardy New Eng
Land men almost as we'll qualified to
tight the ship as her officers.
The Constitution was designed by
Joshua Humphreys, of Philadelphia,and
was constructed at Boston, under the
supervision of Colonel George Clag-
horne, of New Bedford, Mass. The
point at which she was built is now
called Constitution Wharf. She had
very distinguished men to look after
her cOnstruction-Captain Barry, Dale,
Nicholson and Truxton. Old Baui Re-
we're furnished the copper bolts and
spikes. Originally she was built of live
oak and red cedar, the keel. keelsOn
beams and planking of best white oak;
the decks of the best Caarolina pitch
pine, but, under the guns, of oak. There
is hardly an inch of her original wood
in her now. Singularly, she had bad
luck in launching. Two attempts were
made to get her into the water; only the
third was successful Before she sailed
for Tripoli she was recoppered with
copper made in the United States. The
Constitution was at Charlestown, Mass,
in 1884, when Commodore Elliott was in
command of the station. He was warm
admirer of Gen. Jackson and had placed
a figure of that parsonage on the bow of
the ship, greatly to the disgust of the
Whigimajority of Boston. This figure
head an enthusiastic young man named
Samuel P. Dewey sawed off and carried
away in the night. He had the impu-
dence to carry the head to Washington
with the intention of presenting it to
Oou JdChS0ll, DuL dlIcI uc dIAihcu IAclo
he was dissaudsd from doing SO. This
fgurehead is still preserved at AnnapO-
lis. During the War of the Rebellion,
the Constitution was laid up for time;
but afterward. during the same trouble,
she was employed as a practice ship at
Annapolis. She was in the training
squadron for about three years.
Sucn are the main facts in the history
of this famous ship. She has been sedu-
lously cared for, until now, it appears.
she is worth caring for no longer. No
poet will now come to her rescue. and
ask, as better fate for her, that she be
given "to the God of storms, the light
ming and the gale" Naval warfare has
entirely changed since she won her great
battles against wonderful adds; but she
will always be honorably mentioned in
the naval history of the country. as NO.
BILE exemplar of the tactics which gained
great victories, man to man and gun to
gum. Y. Tribune.