St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1884-08-16
RAMBLES in NEW ENGLAND.
Three Days Passed in and About
Boston Among the Bostonese.
What Was Seen and What Was Suggested
BY the Vision.
The Char1estown Navy Yard, the Old New
State House, and n Wall of Sympathy
Especial Correspondence of the Globe.
ssD,v Nh -rnNcIrrDED

which l rent my ebay No. 81 in Boston in
twain, had inspired me with somewhat
military fervor, | next turned my steps to
the United States Navy yard My previous
acquaintance with Mr.. Bunker on Breeds
Hill, had enabled me to locate the navy
yard by aid of Mr.. Bunker's monument,
without repairing to Scollay square and con-
sulting Mr. Winthrop for starting point.
BY the aid of herdic 1--WE are great on herd
les In Boston) | was soon over the river
and at tae gateway of the famous
through the gates there were two senhnes
stationed at the guard house, one of whom
asked me my business. | told him l was an
American citizen on tour of inspection,
and he Immediately surrendered at discre-
ton and extended me the freedom of the
yard. He probably did this from the fact
that he knew mo guilty man could escape"
save by passing out the same gate by which
he entered, and if visitor should essay to fill
his pockets with cannon balls. or shoulder
cannon, or even swallow Milwaukee
schooner" he would be sure of ultimate
detection.
AS looked about me I was profoundly
impressed with the powerfulness of the great
American navy. l was within an
enclosure embracing eighty acres OF
land, with high wall on three sides and
river front ON the fourth. There were pleas
ant officers residences on the rear of the
grounds, there was an ample parade ground,
| there were quarters for the men, there was
medical dispensary, long buildings for wood
and iron work, and a spacious dry dock
341 feet long by so wide, which was built
over fifty years ago at a cost OF nearly three
quarters of million dollars. 1t was liter
ally navy yard without a navy. 1t looked
for all the world as though it was the site
Goldsmith had just visited when he was
moved to write his Deserted Village"
There were few uniformed loungers in
front of what looked like long, low hotel
in the rear. of the parade grounds,
but which, in warlike terms, L
suppose | should term barracks. There was
little squad of twelve or fifteen soldiers be-
ing put through the motions by a drill ser
geant. They were soldiers, not sailors, and
l suppose the navy yard is used by soldiers
instead of midshipmen, because our navy
| fights ON land instead of on water. Jolly
Jack Tars these land lubbers make The
workshops were all closed and deserted.
| The dry dock had two or three men at the
bottom scraping moss off from the stones, in
order to keep their memories and fingers
green, relative to the navy that we haven't
| got and are not likely to get
/ l only saw one real laborious person on
the grounds In fact might say that be-
sides few other visitors there was but one
solitary individual outside of the dry dock, to
be found in the fifty acres of space immed-
lately fronting on the river. He was
man of perhaps sixty years
of age and was very industriously engaged
in
Painting cannon balls red.
This was warlike indeed There were rows
Of cannon of various sizes, perhaps two or
three hundred all told, lying upon timbers in
the yard and several thousand cannon balls
piled up in pyramids adjacent to the cannon.
The government evidently desires to have
something CORY about the affair and hence
have employed this old gentleman to paint
the balls red. 1t was a happy thought. If
they should ever be used, our opponents
would think we had so many fighting men
that we made tanks Of blood out of the slain
and dipped the cannon balls in the CHASTITY
fluid that they might the more certainly
| mingle with the blood of our enemies
and illustrate the maxim that
| ssvvhpcn chnIdnth Tnanis blood nv
man shall his blood be shed.'' 1t would
impress an enemy with the idea that we had
lots of fighting material to spare, when we
could afford to boil our wounded up into
blood to tone up the big bullets.
1t occurred to me besides that Secretary
Chandler might have ordered this red paint
decoration after his correspondence with
Vice President Hendricks, in order to have
something on hand that looked savage, even
| if it was very tame. But these are mere
volunteer reflections, evolved from the
depths of my inner consciousness upon be-
holding the old duffer engaged in his bel
! ligerent task. asked him if he belonged to
the navy, but he said mo-" which relieved
me some, as l did not know but he was a
pirate who sailed with Capt, Kidd in the
| long ago.
.'What are you painting those balls red
| for ventured to conumdrumize.
81 Dunno was the response.
AS | could see no trace of base ball artist
| in his countenance l concluded that he was
! neither pitcher or catcher, and probably his
answer covered the entire case. I accord
ingly left him to his solitude and red paint.
THE WABASH.
Out in the Charles river, about three hun
dred feet from the shore sea wall lay the man
of-yar Wabash at anchor. A wire rope stretches
| from the vessel to the shore and a canopy
covered barge is propelled along the wire
rope from the shore to the boat, two sailors
running the wheel with crank. A naval
officer of minor grade accompanies the
barge back and forth to guard against sur
prises or the importation or anything contra
band of war. The barge lay at the side of
the vessel when l reached the
shore point of connection and
the officer, apparently divining
| that something was wanted, had the crank
setin motion and came over go get me. II
was the work of but a minute or two to reach
the ship, and entering at port, or some
other hole in the side, 1 assembled long
fight of stairs. At the top encountered a
guard in naval uniform, who inquired my
business.
told him wanted to look the thing over
to see how we conduct bloodshed on the sea.
He promptly escorted me TO sort of glass
case apartment about the center of the ship,
and notified the officer in charge that Wis
itor desired to inspect the ship The officer
was busy writing but he eourteously desisted
and stepping out on deck and planting him.
calf souarelv on his pins shouted