Arizona silver belt., 1892-06-12
OLD IRONSIDES.
HISTORY OF ONE OF THE OLD SHIPS
 IN THE AMERICAN NAVY,

iN f1E AMGhiVAN NAVY, Dismsntlod In a Modern Navy Yard, she
 Is the Object of Profound Veneratlon
 on tine Part of Patriotic People of To-
 day, Who Are Proud of Her.
 Not many people may know that the old frigate Constitution, so renowned iH Sur annals, is still included among tho vessels of the navy. She is dismantled, as might be expected at her age, and is kept in that condition at Portsmouth, N H. She is u craft of 2.200 tons dis placement, and now carries no battery in place of the forty-four guns of the days of her glory,
 It was the Constitution that, after the mauspicious opening on land of our war with Great Britain, eighty years ago, led oil Il series of splendid victories on the sea. The honor of the first capture of British war vessel undoubtedly be- longs to the Essex, Captain David Por- ter whose defeat of the Alert occurred six days before the Constitution de- stroyed the Ctueriiere
 But the Essex carried thirty-two 32. pounders and the Alert only twenty l8- pounders, so that very soon after open- ing fire the crew of the little British craft. which, having captured one of our transports had made up to the Essex, taking her to be a merchantmen, were compelled to quit their guns and within eight minutes to strike their flag This conquest, though gratifying was in evitable, whereas that of the Constitur ton was gained over a craft nearer her own size and strength.
 But while yielding the laureis of prior ity to the gallant Essex on this score, the Consultation, under Captain Isaac Huh. can claim them again for success in a trial of seamanship between herself and British squadron. Till then af- fairs were looking gloomy for us at sea as well as on land The British frigato Belvidere, while conveying fleet of merchantmen. had escaped from a whole squadron Oi our warships, where. as our Nautilus had atrucR to an English squadron being the first war ship captured on either side. Cuder these ntoward circumstances the Con Stitution, returning from Europe, fell in with a British squadron led by the Africa, 64-sun ship.
 During four days she was chased by this squadron. Through calm aud through breeze the flight and pursuit went on. At one time she had boats Oal towing her; at another her crew were hauling upon kedge anchor that had been carried out and dropped long dis tauce ahead On the fourth day the l0nged for wind came. and with every sail set the Constitution drew away from her pursuerS, the scene when five frig ates were standing on the same tack and the Constitution was showing her tpcis 10 her enemies being oftet recuuntrd eighty years ago. Some of the hist0r' lns describe this as the first of our triumphs on the sea in that war.
 But in our time, of course the fame of the Constitution is more famiharly associated with her capture of the Guer, riere, IL was on Aug. l9, lSl2, that the two vessels met, both eager for 8 fight The scene was off tbe coast of Massachu- setts, The British craft. commanded by the gallant Dacres, was first to open fire, but Hull maneuvered his vessel into the right position before he replied The eneuy's mizzeumast soon went by the board. followed by her Inaiumast When she struck she was in fact, so complete ly used up that she could uot be taken into port and had To be blown up. The Constitution was superior in ton mage and complement. carried more guns and threw much heavier weight of metal in her broadsides; still the ves- sels were near enough matched for the victory to produce a tremendous impres- sion on both sides of the ocean Alison describes the shock of this uuwonted naval disaster in England. where the belief that Britannia ruled the waves was so profound that the American navy had seemed to Do mere mouthfnl for her
 That same year the Constitution, un, der Bainbridge, gained another great victory over the Java. olf the coast of Brazil. The Java, like her predecessor, was a 3s-gm ship. and in the battle she lest foremGst and inizzenmast, besides a part of her bowsprit while, to complete the parallel, like the Guerriere, she was SO wrecked in the fight that she had to be blown up. It was a great exhibition of good seananship and superior gun nery on the part of the American vessel; for, as Cooper says, the Java had been literally picked to pieces by shot, spar following spar until she had not one left Her loss in killed and wounded was very heavy.
 Finally in 13l5, under coinmand Of Commodore Stewart, the famous old snip made a double capture of the British frigate Cyane and sloop Levant.
 Old lronsides, as she had come to be called during the war was launched at Boston in l797; and who knows but when the hundredth anniversary of that event comes around she may again be put into commission, so as to receive cen tennial bonorsy-New York Sun.