The weekly messenger. [volume] (St. Martinsville [i.e. St. Martinville] La.) 1886-1948, 1890-01-18
NAMING THE SHIPS.
How Titles Repeat Themselves
in the Navy.
The Naval Department I'm.
moved by Superstition.

New York Sun, has brought to the
navy department a curious remons-
franco against formally fastening upon
her the name of San Francisco, on the
ground that it is unlucky for sea.
| going ship. What is most singular is
that this suggestion comes from the
Pacific coast, which as a whole is tax
ing pride in the honor proposed for
its chief city; and all the more because
the first vessel built by the Union Iron
works for the government received the
name of an Atlantic sea. board city.
Even were the notion more widely
shared, the Navy Department would
hardly lend itself to propping up SUPER
stitious theories especially to the detri.
ment of city. 1t would quickly get
into hot water on the subject, and on
every occasion of wrecks, either in its
own service or in the merchant marine.
might be forced to go through process
OF rechristening, like the remaining
OF streets In Paris after revolution.
Besides, San Francisco is really a wholly
new name in our naval nomenclature.
50 also are Chicago, Charleston, and
Newark. Atlanta would be, had not a
Confederate ram of that name been
captured during the civil war and added
to the Government forces. The armored
vessels Maine and Texas also have names
new to the navy, as have several of the
double ferret monitors. Yet it is safe
to say that should the list of the mer-
chant marine be ransacked, more than
one OF these names new to our Govern
ment vessels would be found attached
to vessels that have met disaster.
Other names in our new steel fleet
reproduce those of vessels that have
met with ill fortune. For example,
the first Philadelphia was sunk in battle
With the British on Lake Cham plain.
and the second was wre ckei off Tripoli
and her officers and crew taken prison.
ers, while she was. recaptured by Deca-
tur only to be burned. Yet who does
not feel satisfied In giving to the fiue
new cruiser launched the other day the
name Of Bainbridge's gallant 36-gun
frigatca Two other Philadelphia seem
TO have ended their careers more quietly.
There have been several Baltimores in
our service, ono of which, after cap
turing an English brig during the war
Of 1872, was herself captured by the
enemy. The others have no hard luck
accorded against them. We had one
Vesuvius, bomb vessel, which ran
shore and lost her guns the first year
Of her purchase, while another, also a
bomb vessel, had better fortune. Our
arst Yorktown was wrecked in the Cane
Dc Verde Islands, although eventually
ncovered, while two prlvateers of the
ame name, after doing a great deal of
iamage to British commerce, were them
elves captured. Sixty years ago our
aVy had Concord, which was lost on
10 east coast of Africa. Dolphins by
|ae dozen have been in our service.
|aking together state privateers and the
regular navy. Several of them were
|apturcd, but many more had good
|orune. There have been five Bostons
+ the regular navy, one of which was
punk in battle. while a second was cap
Fred BY the British at the surrender of
Eaarleston, snd third was burned at
Washington in 1914. so that she might
POI fall into the hands of the British
'hen they entered the city. The fourth
Poston was wrecked AMI lost in the
Vest Indies.
hs clear from these examples. con-
med to the comparatively few names ,
|a chosen for our new navy, that it q
|''uld not be easy to choose appropriate {
F'mes guaranteed to have been wholly
|aconne ctcd at any time and in any
pace with i'll fortune. The case would :
|Spear stronger on taking up in the =
|Ane way names OF vessels in tho old 7
OGDEN navy. many of which have been
fapiicated on several vessels. or
purse, the Navy Denartment miUht