New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1890-12-25
NEWS FOR THE NAVY
HISTORY OF LUCKY AND UNLUCkf VESSELS
WHY NAVAL MEN OBJECTED TO HE
CHANGE IL THE SYSTEM PROPOSED

tox, for many a sermon ia the ''p"'> NV
,o,m If the vessel, Of the Navy ana ai''on va"
at The naval stations. ever since 'hc h''' "
ye..el Of the new Navy was laid There was uI,'p-
49,, a.,,, many ~ the officers Of the Navy when
A., od If tLe now steel cruisers was Ilaiheu the
p,on rrrue thc rcoplc Of pOrkandbcahopoH' were
rratincd beyond measure when " the hup W VI. "''
verse was honored. Navy officers lhc"''.S P'"
against naming any OF the new Nc',cI' O"'
only because the vessels bearing tat h'"'o ''"''"
had been unluclV. The first bo>iol WIS '"''' ''
un frirate bult at Boston, in 1916. SNe captured
r"" ,ni,o. ,har ,he great Nelson BIT she was cap
rod q, Charlie ,tor when that city suctumhed 10 Tie
p,i,i.h Roston No was d small thiceeuh "ihr'
which formed mart of the 1ota under General
Arnold at Lake Champlan. ana was sun" :" "''"c
there Boston 40 , was built when wal win FRANCE
was expected she was an eNcepil'h'lS H''o Nc''ci
and terminated ncr e, i>cuCc III l-ti. at washington
where she wa, burned to prevent hcr iaiilhS "" the
hand, OF the enemy Boston No was bnIIt ht
Ro,ton in 1s2j. and was lost in the west lhu'c'' III
l. Is, during heavy hurricane at hGh'.
since the present Boston built and put into
commi~-ion she has rad a series oil ml>hap'' "Hc
her sister ship the Atlanta. has HAD no spc'aIN
cvcntGl incidents in her career This may he mere
coincidence. but it is fact just the same. Ana
vet. willie the Boston has NOT met with any disastrous
il,u the mi,orlucs she has met with give strength
to that nautical notion. or supciSiton' or whatever
il may be- termed that she Ought not 10 nave Occh
named after other vessels that have met Win ms
t,rtnnc Iua,much a, there has been no marked n
special record Of disaster made il the newspapers
against thi, ship the question may be asked:
What ma, occurred 10 excite or strengthen thi-
nautical notion that a record continue, with a name ~
non the return Of the Boston from the West Indies
a little moro than year ago shc br"us" NcIIo"
fever into the port Of Ncw-lOrI with her ana one of
her officers died from that disease that she ran ashore
in Narragansott Bay. and suffered slight injuries mat
She afterward met with serious accident To her steer
ing gear: and now she is al the New ork Navy Yard
detained from going with the other vessels of her
squadron to the West lndic,. having broken SHAFT
replaccd There were really four B0stons IN
the United states Navy before the present one. ON
the other hand the Atlanta is the first vessel OF mat
name ever built for the Navy. although she Is the
second ever borne on the Navy Register. The first
one was the Confederate Atlanta built at >a'an-
nah and captured by the Federal forces ana hdde
70 the Jane, River hotilla.
The Dolphin. another Of the four original steel
cruisers Of the new Navy. built during the admins
tration Of secretary Chandler. which recently mad" 80
successful a cruise around the world, i the i"hr'h
vessel If that name borne Oh tl' Navy Register The
first Dolphin va, the third American war vessel l"
carry the National colors IN European wat'rN ana was
purchased from France She va, a gun vessel and
was commanded by Lieutenant Nicholson her intended
service being that Of a Dispatch vessel she was after
ward seized by the French Government, t" appcNc the
british Ambassador IL France. The second Dolphin
va, built at Philadelphia IN l72l. was t"cl'e KUN
vessel and was sold out Of the service While dong
duty in the Pacific The third Dolphin was a ten gun
brig. launched IN 1886 aud DESTROYED In l7"l 10
prevent her capture by the Coufedciate>
When il was proposed to name the new cruiser bnll'
on the Pacific coast and recently ordered I" be hAs
hin ~ che Asiatic SQUADRON the san Francisco re
monstraucc came from. California on IA" ground that u
wa, an unIucky name for scl going snip. but inc
Navy Department would not lend Itself To pr"ping up
,upcr.tit.oi, thcorc-. y san FIahc'F" j. an 'n
tircly new name IN the naval nomenclature j. "'"
,ut 10 see how the name could De CONSIDERED one 81"
lIIuck. simply because Pa'ihc MAI '''A">"p ~
.o,n sailing ship bearing that nam" had been lost.
several If the new steel vessels already named recall
Disaster. that have bcfacn their pfcdcccs'o ' Inc
Navy has had four Philadcphia,. Tn" pioneer III tho
service wa, built 30 the Quaker Ciy 10 l'"" ana CIT
rcd thirty six guns. In l-uJ. under ''Hi''a"" Va.
CAPTAIN Bainbrdec. while chasing suspicious Ne''''
of Trpo she struck reef and her Officers ana or"
surrendered - the ,HrDaritn'. Tsp Suh t"P"'.
Decatur rcapiurcd the Vessel after n" hd leon h"'H
a., the ,g.fI,u. and then let fire 10 her. The second
vessel Of I'M, name va, attached !" inc Lane n"''
plan nOtIlt uuuci General NH"u; anu va ,, en-"
pnn Wa purchased at tie beginning "i "a, W. ~
and Wa ,uDk b} tDrpcdOr,. ~" "a "v
ncf tnr nam. Of Iminbildec- thirty ia gun ir+at'
The present altmolc is the ihid "i una, i'n, 81,
| he
,.'.,r .,up -lnnp If war bIllt boz l13-. III" Wa -
hUrr.d nttcl out that no comm lion or paper -ithc
! la the President Wis Ou board Nh'' - I'm ''',,
| - canaan Phillips of cuba, she Wa met los nl'
! IN .,iuairon the commander # "nicn too" on MY
,,c, FOR pcrIniitue TN, captain philips va, d.
! ,1oiabl, dismissed from the NaN5. ING - ~"
,od IN l-0i, beoan.c Of ftla, "'" ~ side wheel
| The second baltimore Va, aud used
vc,-cl purchased III 81, So ,'; an" T,,v N,rl
She VA -old aftcrwaid. The present hau""c - Nv"
! ia European Wat"r-. a.. . Ga. N.r,,ll
The i-t Yorktown va, vessel bhlt a. w. 10
| navy Yard IN 1-3J. SIR "a, Ni''H'1 "i' u" "a
! Nty1 one OF the Cape de Ncric Islands lh -'U
Tier were also two pNaircI, iamso nance. ~ 1rl,,.
which, after doing good deal 81 dt'Aec " n'''',
n,i'.,rr were thomselyc, captured. The IIc'eul
! yorktown is third clas- cruiser bu Oh 'i' pin,,
the british guuboat serpent, recently oS' Oh "' 'p''
rc Concord. sister ship 10 the Yorktown al,o haG
a predecessor. She wa, Al eighteen gun Gel AZ.
W;ir bnlt at Portsmouth. y. H., in l7@7 She MAG
several crui-c. and wa, hnally' III -" 1891 ~ -
| thr Mozambique Channel. Commander hoerim futse,
IIupt and A seaman were the only person. lost. ~"
ilu INV, %r,uvin, new name In the Nayy ii, many have
| .unpo.cd The first one "a, bomb Dig ana wa
Jr,royrd by fire al New York IN l-2". Ano'heI bond
brig named the Nc~uvu, WA SOLD ON u tc 'eTN'c A.
| VoTG,lk IN lolG. The navy once hah a one suI
I.r Petrol which wa, a1crward condemned and
oId and in the civil WAY there VA small sac "hcr
'' 1hc Sew York. the name of the new 500 TOT
cruiser building by the Cramps is NJ new name II
the Navy. The hrst one Wa 'a I carp, a"a WI"
frrt ard va, one Of the vessel burned al the Nor
iolk Navy Yard when 1t was abandoned by the Fedora
\, 10 the selection Of names for The V,,''' "I th
new navy and the statute when pr'Nhr 10" ,hcl
shall lr selected. the regulation hae not AWAY De-
carried ont because of the confusion OF i"nhhg" a'
d, placement The bill pending ~ Congrs' hlopo.'
ln r.auItc I'M. matter. II r.quir'- that FIST rat
shall De named after stale, ~econd iAc' arc
the cites. third rates after events ana name
| In naval history. fourth rates after lakes ah'
rlvcr-, and special V",,ci- like the Ne'"E III
and Cushing, after suitable special h'in'' IN
| iill also propose, 10 abolish the confusing dI-uhc "l
between ironclid- and other vc--"' givIns tlem 'E
according to their d~pac"mcnt f"i ~ lance, ms
rae, Will be of 5000 ton. and over second I'iIr-
those between 5000 and 1000 tons. thd rates ih"~
between 900 and 5000 ton. and fourth rates lho-
under 900 tons. Notwithstanding the new bll IA
not passed secretary Tracy la- named ~r'cfal Of th
rev ship, thu, with the provisions Of th
| bill. Inc three bait snip, have been NAMED
Indiana, Ma--achu~et, aud oregon and cruiser, No,
and have been named the Cincinnati ana Raleigh
respectively. tn. Maine and Texas. the ",6i- TO
aud $500 ton vessels, respectively would retain thei
present names under the ncW. hill. the chicago
Charleston. IAN Francisco, Philadelphia, Boston
\ lanta, Newark and ON, Will be -.rond rates, Ia
stead Of partly nr, ana partly -ccond rates.
the Puritan. MlantOuOmah. MOnadnOck Amphltrlte an
sI..xt rtlfs.r-