New-York tribune., 1886-11-07
AT THE WARD-ROOM TABLE
FLv.sAM AND JETsAM OF NAVAL LIFE.
STORIES TOLD IN THE MESS WHEN COFFEE AND
CIGARS COME ON

|
night had come and the work Of the day was over
| From the spardecls came the sound OF an accor
dion and the voices of men, talking or singing
These sounds foated down through the open
matches and died away when they met q lclS
curtains that screened the wardroom country
| from the ward-room proper, where the Offices In
undrcss uniform sat around the table indulgin2
! m their usual afterdinncr chat. They were talk
| ing Of naval battles and one said:
"Ihe splcpdors of Mobile BAY do not wane
even in that fierce light which streams from Sal
| amis and Trafalgar"
(Which reminds me-" said another "of how
Admiral Jouett. then captain OF the Mciac0met,
took his ship into that storm Of shot and shell,
ashed ALONGSIDE Fauaguts ha.ship. the Hart
ford ing n Rebel ram trying TO escapc
| Fighting Jim as the sailors loved 10 call him.
cut loose from the Hartford and dashed ai,er her.
he ram ran in over shoa spot in the bay.
| The Mctac0nct which drew more water than the
| lam. put after he at full speed with a man in
! the chains caliny out the sOunlnes. soon
nc called out exactly the water which the Meta
comet drew. At this .JOIett tunrl To his eNcclI-
| tive and said: Call that man in out OF the
chains. Mr. SrcTy He makes me- nervous
".he Mctac met rushed on over tho shoals.
dragging the bottom but getting over safely. cap
iurci the ram an. brought her back under the
guns OF the Hartford"
A MODEL GRANDMOTHER.
Conversation then turned on the China station,
TO which one OF the Officers hal just been ordered.
"lhc last time | was on the China Station"
said IN officer, zone OF the characters out there
Captain - Here is copy Of an Official
letter which he wrote to the Secretary OF the
Navy and which, | suppose is now solcmnly
filed away in the archives of the Navy Depart
ment at Washington -
Hon GEORGE NJ ROBSON. Secretary NJ NE NGru
Sr: | am given to understand that my fair cOun-
trywOmen in these seas consider that am wanting
IN 9 Sres ana Sat am rnu%b and bcarh
n fact "li,tlc better than the wicked" have TOO
The sentence humble my,clf before them. and
promise. bv Gods blessing and with lt'c helm from
The gcnter sex. to become in time all that they can
In or'cr to enable me to fulfil this VOW, request.
in accOr a0Cc with the admirable custom growing so
much in fashion in the Navy, that my family be per
mited 10 be with aboard this ship; also my grand
mother. Not that have the honor to possess such
venerable rr'a' on. but my wife has one wnnn sDe
VII lend mo with great pleasure, vfw W II bring NJ
that Indefinite rerioi known as the olden time and
to I E VII Ia, o h ShseP ne correction 10 al hs
ma ural flow OF clopnence charming in her SEX and
as deaf as Tost. Verv rcsrectfuly your obedient
servant - - CAPTAIN U.
THE sECRETARY's ORDER WAS INDICATED.
"1he question Of wives" said a young officer,
"and their being with their h,lsban Is. when their
husbands haprcn to be naval officers is one that
never trouble me rers onally, for the captain
saws Of his Grandmother. have not the honor
to possess such a relative But knew Of very
sad case of cassmate of mine When the
order forbiudng wives Of officers to follow their
husbands was fist issued, my friend had just
married a lovely young lady, to whom he was
levOtedy attached, she to him.
Before this order when an officer was at
tached to a FOREIGN station you know, wives
of officers would live at some city where their
husbands could occasionally get n few days leave
and see them. When this order prohibiting this
came out, the officer whom have mentioned was
ordered to foIei n station. Ills wife wrote a
letter to the Secretary Of the Navy. saying that
She would follow her husband an ! closing with
the solemn words: Whom God hath joined To-
gether, lct no man put rer'
"Shc kept her word an followed her husband.
As soon as she got To one pace he would be or
| lei Ell TO another. am finally, WON out with the
hardshiis OF travel IN south America and the
mol elesoness OF her position. she came back To the
States To die lovely ana beautiful woman
was klilcd mans heart was broken; but The
majesty Of oruer from the Secretary was Nln
uicated."
HERO nor KNOWN TO FAME
That order is stin in force said another
lieutenant, and of course, we cannot critcise
it. But how much goes on in the Navy of which
the OUTSIDE world knows nothing. Take the ex-
ample of poor Judd. When prestan became ugly
at Colon last year and seized the steamship Co
lon Captain Kane. then of the Galcna, sent Judd
ashore to demand an explanation. Prcstan
promptly seized Judd the american Consul,
Wu- ut, am NJ. COnnDs, the local agent OF the
lacihc Mail Steamship Company, ana placed them
III the Ca.aDoOse.
81 ihen he sent word to Captain Kane that at
the INST gun the Galena fired or the INST marine
or sailor Sic landed he would execute the prison
CTS They kept in the calabOOsc all night.
cAbectng to be Shot IN the morning. In the
moln.n. plcstan came 10 them ana told Judd
that ii he would SIN an agreement that the arms
on board the Colon would be delivered up he
would iet item all 90.
Judd ala so ana PIcstan released his prison
ers. Judd returned On board the ia ena AM told
what he had done But meantime Captain Kane
had dri, en- the Dagos OIL the Coon and t9wed
her out INTO the stream. " hen Captain Name
learneI what Judd haI done he SAID the arms
should not be deli, ,erc1 10 Prstan. Now Jud',
had nchasei his life by sign n the agreement
that they would be, so he Immediately returned
ashore and told Presan that he could not Keep
"Iiesian promptly put him in the calaboose
again, and the next mornns took him out To
Monley Hill to be shot bcfore Judd's grave was
dug however, Coonc Unoa came dashing up
with the Cove nment troops, ana IN ihe h7ht Judd
escaped and went on board the Galena
1t was then that Captain Kane landed his
men, and JUDI went with them eager lor re-
>enle That day the horrible massacre AMI the
burning Of Colon took place. and ali day
.u.u fought bra, ely. But for two nights and
three days his mind had be n un ier the most ter
lib.e strain his reason gave way
"He is nDw as you ali kn,w a hopeless maniac,
but | think his voluntarily putuns himself III
tic power OF Ircsan when he found he could
not keep the romse TO him by which he had
purchased his life is one OF the most chi alric
thin 5 of the c injury. When he went back hc
went to almost certain death ami he knew II
But he went ca mly AMI deliberately, rather than
break his word. Now how many people who read
of the bmnins OF Colon knew this story OF Judd ??
song OF THE OLD NAVY.
"Ah. well" said the dreamy lieutenant "lct
us have no more sad stories Our Iart is to do
our duty rs officers and gentlemen. and as to the
fame Of what we DO, why that IS matter OF
kismct Now ! will coniide 10 you all a secret.
as soon as | light my cisar. There, that Is "A
cigar that | like--a genuine Manila.
"sady smoAing my Manila.
\sI0ns come amd 20,
OF that Ia N a villa,
Who once loved me So"
as that the secret" interrupted the PaymaS-