The National tribune., 1882-09-09

(retired, with the rank of commodore), United
States Navy, was drowned on the 31st ult. at
Smiths Creek, in the Potomac, by capsizins
while crossing in sail-boat from his home,
near st. Inigoes, to Point Lookout Va.
He was born in North Carolina, where his
father was an extensive planter, on May 80,
ISIS. His father died while he was quite
young, and he then removed to Maryland,
where he was educated at Emmittsburg, and
afterward selected the profession of steam
engineering, which was then in its infancy.
lie was an accomplished civil engineer, and
was connected professionally with the construc-
lion of the Baltimore and Ohio Railway. He
Afterward removed to New York, and was en-
ployed in the construction of the engines of the
first steam-vessel in the United States Navy.
When the engineer corps of the navy was or
ganized the appointments were made by COM
petitive examination, and Commodore Wood
was appointed March Is, 1S45 to the full rank
of chief engineer, only one other being ap-
pointed to that rank directly from civil life.
He served at the Pensacola navy-yard from
1S45 to 1647; was on duty on the steam frigate
Saranac from 1849 to 1853; and from 1854 to
1857 was engaged in building the engines of the
swhen the rebellion broke out he was en- the
Lancaster, in the Pacific fleet He built the
machinery of the NINETY day gunboat" at
Philadelphia, and in 1863 was employed in tor
.pedo experiments with launches at New York.
He was at Boston in 1864, and again on special
duty at New York in 1865. In 1866 and
IS67 he was at the Naval Academy engaged in
establishing the department of steam. engineer
ing. In 1868, 1869, and 1870 he was at the New
York navy-yard, and in 1871 was made Engi-
neer-in-Chief of the Navy in charge of the Bu-
reau of Steam Engineering, where he remained
until February 26 1877. He was placed on the
retired list May so, 1880, having reached the
Hge of sixty-two years Mrs. Wood, who is in
very poor health, is near Hagerstown, Mary
land, with her youngest son. His funeral took
place with military honors in this city, on
Tuesday.
The largest mortgage ever executed in
Pennsylvania has been filed in the recorders
office at Philadelphia. 1t is for $160,000,000,
and is made by the Philadelphia and Reading
Railroad Company and Philadelphia and
Reading Coal and Iron Company to the Penn
sylvania Company for assurances on lives and
granting annuities as trustee to secure the new
five per cent. consolidated mortgage bonds
which Mr.. Gowen is now trying to place in
Europe. The document fills nearly three
hundred pages of printed matter, (quarto size,)
end the mortgage covers all the lines, real
estate and lease-holders' property of the rail |
road company included in the income mort !
gage of December 1, 1876, as well as the lease |
bold estates of the North Pennsylvania and |
Bound Brook lines and the lands of the Phila- |
delphia and Reading Coal and Iron Company, |
and as the lines run and the lands lie in 80 |
many different localities, it will have to be |
recorded in twenty-three counties of Penn |
svlvania, New York, and Virginia-that in |
New York being Putnam county, where the
company has a tract Of iron-ore land. The
date of execution of the mortgage is August |
26, 1882.
COLONEL Bodine, the captain of the Ameri- |
can rifle team, has Selected the following to |
compete with the British team: Messrs. Dolan, |
Smith, Bluman, Ogden, Kinds, Paulding, How
ard, Shakespear MeNivin, and Alder. The |
other two are yet to be chosen. The British |
team arrived at New York on Sunday. Sir |
Henry Halford is captain of the team, and the |
other members are as follows: Colonel w. II. |
Walroud, member of Parliament from Devon
shire; Major A. P. Humphrey, private Henry |
Smith, private G. Bolter of the second Cheshire |
rifles, and Corporal VIM. Caldwell The last
named was for three months member Of COM |
pany T, Twelfth regiment, New York, of which |
company A. b. Van Huesen of the American |
team, is also member, and served during the |
late'rebellion as captain in the Fifty-frst vol |
unteers for three years Sergeant John w. |
Dods, Captain P. T. Godsal, Private J. Goodear, |
Lieutenant John Heap, Private Robt. McYittie, |
Captain II. Mollish, (aged 25, the youngest of |
the teani,) Sergeant p Oliver, Corporal c. J. |
Pany, Major George Pearce, and Corporal II. |
Bates.
The Kenawee, Ills, bank robbery has been |
fully explained by the confession of ]. J. Pratt,
The assistant cashier, and Z. n. Welch, his ac-
complice. 1t appears that with the connivance
of Dr. B. S. Scott, now a resident of st. Louis, |
they fixed up the scheme of robbery, and a |
correspondence with Scott resulted in an un-
derstanding that he was, according to Pratt's
statement, to "share equally with us if he took
part; if not, we were to give Scott $1,000. l
was TO have $4,000. Welch was to give the
man who helped him $4,000. Scott had full
knowledge of the robbery up to two or three
days of its taking place. had seen Welch
only five times before the robbery l saw him
about two weeks before the robbery, and fur
nished him money, as he needed it. The Sat
urday night before the robbery took $4,000 in
gold, which was to be my share, and buried it
at midnight in my yard. Welch and his COM
paniOn, man hired to take the place of Scott
got the rest of the money, amounting to about
$4,000"
BY direction of the President the military
department of West Point was discontinued
September LIST, 1882, from which date tBe
United States Military Academy is under
the supervision and charge of the Gon,r.I
OF the Army. Colonel Wesley Merritt Fifth
cavalry, has assumed the duties of .nnorin-
tendent of the Military Academy. reIi.vin,
Brigadier-GeneralO o. o. Howard. who will nro1
ceed TO Omaha to relieve Brigadier.G.narol
George Crook of the command of the Den,rt
ment of the Platte. General Crook, upon being
relieved, will proceed to the headquarters Of
the Department of Arizona and relieve Colonel
o. B. Wilcox, Twelfth infantry, of the com
mand of the Department of Arizona. Imme-
diately upon Colonel Wilcox being relieved, the
Twelfth infantry will be transferred from the
Department Of Arizona TO Fort Madison, Sack