The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1892-01-08
HE MODERN WAR SHE.
Great Responsibility of the One Who Con
trolls 1t in Action.


Gore are the days of the dandy"
sailing frigate, of the great three
declaers with line over line of frowning
ports, tier on tier of blacl-mouthed
cannon, the tall tapering masts and
heavenward-soarin pile on Pile OF
snow-white canvas; gone are the days
of cutlass and boarding-pike, of the
close fighting, hand to hand, yard-arm
TO yard harm, gun muzzle to gun muzzle.
of the rush of boarders from sinking
hull to enemy's deck; gone are the days
of glorious Old Ironsides, of the Bon
homme Richard, the Victory and the
saucy Arethusa. One modern cruiser
could destroy whole fleet of the old
wooden walls"
And what strange monsters are these
that have replaced them! What grim
shapes these iron floating fortress of
modern times, these things that glide
almost noiselessly over the waves, pour
ing out volumes of black smoke from
their great chinneys, churning wake
Of streaky milky-white with the huge
blades of their powerful propellers, and
cIeaving the dark waters with their
sharp massive rams moving with the
speed almost of railway train ire
sistibly onward against wind and tide,
monsters of the sea such as the widest
fancy of mythology never imagined!
With the change in ships has come
change in the life Of the crews that man
them, that sail them, that fight them
Jack has much more to learn now than
had his sturdy ancestors. The delicate
and complicated machinery of the
modern war ship, the improved oro'
nance, the deadly torpedoes, the fright
full power of new explosives, and the
use and manipulation of all these
means of defense and ofense, call for
an amount of preparation and training
on the part of officers and men the
lack Of which in time of war all the
patriotism, courage and wealth IN the
country could not make up for. 1t IS
for the study of the new conditions OF
naval warfare, and the familia<izing,
particularly of officers, with the novel
ties and improvements on the modern
ships, that the squadron of evolution
was formed and under the wise, pains
taking, and able management OF its
commander, Admiral Walker, excellent
service is being rendered to the navy
and to the country. The tremendous
range and power of both great guns
and the so-called "rapid-fre" ordnance
would sweep the deck of any vessel Of
every living thing, and even the thick
steel sides of a battle ship are none too
strong 70 resist the hail of projectilei
that would be hurled against them in
battle.
The responsibility of the ships cap
tain is greater now than ever. On his
Judgment and experience depend the
safety of his craft and the lives of the
crew, and one mistaken move on his
part may cause the destruction of the
vessel and give the victory to the enc
my. His post is one of great danger;
although protected by the heavy walls
of the conning-tower, from whence he
directs the course of the combat, it is
exposed, from its very position forward
on the deck, to the enemy's fire, and
calm and determined indeed must be
the courage of the man who in such a
coolly watch the fire and commune
cate his commands to his subordi-
mates at the guns or in the bowels
of the ship. A touch of the but
ton of one of the row of electric bells
gives the order to fire gun or torpedo,
or peform some maneuver or evolution,
ready hands at the annunciators tele-
graph his orders to the engine-room,
while with word or gesture he directs
the course of the ship, and the steam
steering-wheel revolves to port or star
board in the hands of the well-trained
quartermaster. In the wild storm of
battle, here in the conning-tower the
mind that governs all has its place;
and for veal or woe, for life or death,
for victory or defeat, the thought that
flashes over the wire, even to the utter
most parts of the vessel, is born here
where lie the brains of the ship.-Har.
per's Weekly.