Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1892-04-25
OLD IR0NS1DES.
history or ONE OF THE OLD SHIPS
IN THE AMERICAN NAVY.

Di.mantlrd hi d Nodcru Navy lard, .hc
l. tho utJcct OF Profound Noneailon
gu IN. rart uf rntriotic People OF To-
da,, who Ar' Proud ~ non
Not many people may know that tho
old fril.ato Constitution. 90 renowned in
our annals. &, sll included among tbe
vessels of the navy. She Is diunanti'd.
40 might be expected at her age, anu Is
kept IN that condition at Portsmouth,
y. II. She isa craft Of 1900 tons dis.
placement, and now carries no battery
in place Of the iorty-iour guns Of the
days Of her gloy.
II WIS the Constitution that, after tho
inau1dcious opening on land u our war
with Great Britain. oighty Year, ago.
led oil a series of splendid victories on
the sea- The honor OF the first capture
u a British war vessel undoubtedly be-.
longs 10 the Essex, Captain David Por.
ter, whose defeat Of tho Alert uccurr,d
six days before the Constitution do
stroycd the Gucriisrc.
But the Es.ox carried ihirty.two g2.
FOUNDER, aud tho Alert only twenty Is.
p1undcr. ~ that vury soon after open
Ing fire tho CROW Of tho little British
craft which. having captured one OF cur
transports had made up TO tho Essex,
taking her 20 be merchantmen. were
compelled to quit their guns and within
eight minutes 10 strike th,rr fag. This
conquest. though gratifying. was in
eyitahle, whereas that II the Constitu.
zion was game Over crdit nearer her
own size aud strength.
But while yielding the laurels u prior.
ity 10 tho gallant EsscA on this score.
the Constitution. under Captain Isaac
Hull. eau claim uhom again Tor succ, a
in t'ial of seamanship between herself
and a British squadron. Till then AZ
fairs were looking gloomy for us at sea
a. wei a. on land. The British ffigate
Belvidore. while conveying u ficot Ut
merchantmen, hal escaped from
whole squadron ot our waships, where
rs our Nautilus had struck to nm
.Englifh squadron, bging the first war
ship captured on either side. Unlcr
these untoward circumstances the Con
stituuon. returning from Europe. fell Ia
with British squadron led by the
Africa, q 6i.gun ship.
During four days aho was chased BY
this squadron. Through calm and
through .broezo the ilight and pursuit
went On. AZ one timo sho had boats out
towing her; nj another her crow wcro
hauling upon kcdgo anchor that had
been carried out and dropped long dis
lance ahead. On the fourth DAY tho
longed FOR wind came. and with every
sail set the Constitution drew away from
her puSuors, tho scene when five frig-
htes were standing On tho same tack and
the Constitution was showing her heels
10 her cncmics being often rpcounted
eighty years ago, some Of tho historians
describe this as the first Of our triumpls
on the sea In that war
But in our time, Of course, tho fame
OF the Constitution Is more Familiarity
associated with her capture Of the Gucr-
riore. It was on Aug. 10, 1872, that the
two vessels met, both eager for n fight.
The scene was on the coast Of Massnchu-
sotts. The British craft, commanded
by the gallant nNcrcs, was first % open
hrn, but Hull maueuycred his vessel into
the right position before lac replied. The
encmy's mizzcnmast soon went by the
board, followed by her mainmnst. When
she struck sho was, in fact. 30 complete.
~ used mp that she could not he taken
into port and had to be blown mp.
The Constitution was superior in ton
mage and complement, carried moro
guns aud throw a much heavier weight
Of metal In her broadsidcs. still the yes.
sells were near enough matched Tor the
victory 10 produce tremendous impress.
sion on both sides Of tho ocean. Alison
describes tho "shock of this unwoutcd
naval disaster" In England. where the
belief that Britannia ruled the waves
was so profound that the American navy
had seemed to bo mero mouthful Tor
her.
That same year the Constitution, un-
der Bainbridgc, gained another great
victory over the Java. OF the coast Of
Brazils The Java, like her predecessor,
was ;is'gun ship, aud in tho battle sho
lost foremost aud mizzcumast, bcJidos a
lNlA w wv Jaw NliilNt NllAl't 70 yum IANlH
the parallel, liko the Guofricre, she was
~ wrecked In the fight that she had 10
be blown up, II was a great exhibition
OF good seamanship and superior gun.
merry on the part OF the American vessel,
Tor, Us Cooper SAYS, "thc Java had been
literally picked TO pieces by shot, spar
following spar until sho had not one
left" Her loss in killed aud wounded
was very heavy.
Finally, in 1915, under command OF
Commodore Stewart, the famous old ship
made double capture ot the British
frigate Cyane and sloop Lovant.
Old lronslcs, as sho had come TO 10
called during the war, was launched ut
Boston Ia 1891; aud VINO knows Int
when the hundrcdth anniversary OF that
event comes around she may agaiu DO
put into commits sion, 40 as 10 receive cen
tenuial New York sun.