Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1892-01-18
WAR VESSELS FOR CHILE.
Monitors to BE Made Rsady-The Baltimore
to Sail Wednesday.


PHILADELPHIA, Jan. ls.-The work of pump
ing out the great dry dock recently built at the
League Island navy yard preparatory to an ex-
animation of the bottom of the monitor Mon
tauk was begun this morning. This will con-
sumo two or three days.
All day Saturday kilograms were passing be-
| tween League Island and Washington, and as q
result today a force of men sufficient TO equip
the vessel for sea in less than three weeks was
put to work. This will require, IN addition TO
| the force of mechanics already employed four
teen machinlsts, boiler makers and copper
smiths. Six months ago the monitors Nahant
and Jason were dry docked and their bottoms
scratched.
Tho orders from the Navy Department re-
quires that the Montauk engines be tried after
she had been thoroughly overhauled. Capt.
Coughlin, the acting commandant at League
Island, says the monitor could be equipped
for sea in a week If necessity required IL.
In an interview he said: The Montauk has
not been out of the water for eighteen years
and is a vessel worth only her engines and guns
aboard. That is TO say she is dismantled as
there was no occasion during a long period
of idleness to have her equipped. She
is preserved well il is possible for
any boat to be. In order TO preserve
the engines II is necessary to separate
many of the parts, and it is almost like build
ing new engine TO put them together. 1t will
take nftcen men three weeks TO do IT. As have
said, in cases of emergency We could put her in
condition in a week. The guns have always
been kept in order. She has two of them aud
they are rifed guns and throw a fifteen-inch
she'll 1t would take one week put twenty-five
or thirty tons Of ammunition in the vessel
The powder is put in bags, each charge ready
for the gun, and the shells are in cases. We
have no order yet to put in ammunition. We
had orders six months ago TO get the Nahant
engines was ordered. The Montauk is l,s75
tons displacement. We could get the Nahant
and Jason ready for service in a week. The
complement of each ship is from l60 10 lS0
officers and men"
Capt. CougLlin was asked whether the de.
partment would be likely to send the monitors
to Chile In case of war. He said it would 10
dangerous to do SO. He regards them as being
admirable as means Of coast and harpor de-
fense, but 1t would entail great expense TO take
them to South America and would also consume
much time.
In the last report Of the chief Of the bureaa
OF ordnance, said Capt Coughlin, 'there WAS
provision made TO disarm the monitors Of
their l5-inch smoothbore guns and substitute
the last pattern and l0-inch projectlls
throwers, hut 1 think if there is going 20 be Q
war the present armament will be employed"
There are fifteen monitors owned by the
United States government Nine are at Rich
mond, lying in the James river. three at League
Island, one at Brooklyn, one az Annapolis
and one at Mare Island.
San Francisco, January 18.-The Cal this
morning states that the cruiser baltimore, nov
at Mare Island navy yard, has received orders
TO leave on Wednesday for the south. She viii
go direct to Acapulco or Calao without q stop2
Nothing can be learned to show that she Will
be joined By the Charleston or the San Fran
cisco, now at San Diego.
Capt Schley and ali the officers of the BAlti-
more. whose cruise has expired, have asked 10
be reassigned TO the ship on the understanding
that trouble will occur with Chile. Nearly Ell
the time-expired sailors Of the cruiser have
also re-enlisted on n similar understanding. IL
is also stated that the Mohican, q wooden ves-
sci, has been ordered to leave in day or tyo
for Panama the Mohican k nov st Mare
Island nearly readyfor SEA-
SPRIseFIELp, Ill, Jan 1e.-Adjl Gen.
Reece was asked last night concerning = rumoe
that be had been called upon 10 report 70 the
War Department at Washington the numbeg
of militia available In Illinois In the event u
war with Chile.
Gen. Reece said that neither he nor the rov.
ernor had any communication on the subject
from the War Department and that there vss
nothing in the story 20 far - the Illinois on
cials were concerned Gov. Fifer also stated
hat there Wa no foundation for The report