Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1890-09-20

"On the Sd day of August, 1904, Capt. Stephen
Decatur. IN command Of an American gun
boat off Tripoli. boarded and captured in sue
session two Tripolitan gun boats armed with
This and the adjacent gun" One of these
trophies of the yalor and skill OF the famed
Decatur is named 'COrZo," meaning a roe or
Iallow dear. thus signi:ying fee;ness. and the
other was dubbed ''Cameiio. the camel. also
meaning something in the line of swiftness
There seemed TO be a custom among the
5paniards. and. indeed. other European gun
makers OF the last century. of giving each of
these engines of war a name. sometimes peace
sul sometimes belligerent. often significant of
ZONE quality. For instance, one OF the other
trophies stored down in the graveyard
oe!Ow the commandants Office is named
'Generoso." The generous one, while another
. called Ell GalGo. the greyhound. and one
other rejoices in the pleasant title of Eel
Iosigo," which has a meaning derived from
The poisonous product OF a certain tree OF the
tropics, thus signifying death. a rather queer
soncelt for a loud-mou;h destroyer destined to
kill without recourse TO the methods of secrecy
implied by the word poison.
OLD SPANISH TROPHIES.
The prstties. specimens OF the gunmaker's
srt are to be found among the old Spanish
trophies which a rule, are relics o. the
sariier wars In which this country was in tho
habit o. lndulgilg as means Of kind.ing and
developing the national courage and pluck
some OF them-the guns-are works of art with
their elaborate designs and their wide-mouthe ID
muzzle, trimmed with wreaths and flowers
and Inscriptions. Nowadays the manufacturer
SUITS into the install OF his cannon only to Iden-
hfy II from the hundreds of others Of exactly
Me same sort and 10 show when and whers it
was made. matters valuable when the guns
burst When shot was put into the gun from
The muZZle and the piece was fired from a vent
hole on the application of match there WAS
plenty o. room at the breech for decoration
and some OF the designs are very ornate. IL
was a day Of handles on the sides OF the guns
Just above the trunnions, and i'll the making of
these the workmen had a clear field. Dolp6ins
in u hall Curved condition were favorite in
spirations for them, and many a man mus; have
made his reputation from the oddly Of the
form of his gun handles.
GRIM sENrISE1s.
Just IN front OF the Office building stand eight
o. ten great guns OF this type. grim relics of
the last century, clean and bright, as if they
had just come from the foundry. their sleek
sides oiled and protected from rust, their bases
painted and well attended. The best of care
Is bestowed on them, for they are the flower of
the tiock. il such gentle similic is permissible
IN abiding TO such violent topic. The accom-
panylnG cut shows them they stand In a row,
the one that is fully visible being tho smallest.
There Is another sort of Spanish gun around
behind the building-a short. stout affair. re-
semoling modern mortar more than anything
eise- IL Is howitZer-one OF those little fell
lows with a large voice and short breath The
Initial cut is made from q photograph OF il
his one - very handsomely finished and re-
tains deep bronze tone tina, is very rich aud
that SHOWS that they used costlier metal in the
days OF yore whom they were making guns than
they did during the war