Evening capital. (Annapolis, Md.) 1884-1910, 1893-03-13
NAYAL NEWS.
Progress of the Navy Under Tracy
Promotions OF Onicers

" the Navy Ouuer Tracy
Promotions OF Onicers
A review of the work done under Sec
rotary TracY's term of Office shows great
progress Of the United States Navy. Nost
OF The additions to the navy were the
outcome Of Secretary Whitney's admin
lstration. whose plans were carried ont
oy Secretary Tracy. During the past
iour years nineteen vessels were compile
tea' ana when those building al present
are commissioned,th the United States navy
will have forty-two. war ships sfioat
Among the battle-ships now being built
are the oregon, Indiana and Massachu-
sets, OF 10 800 tons each, armed with the
heaviest armor. and which when finished
VIII be the most powerful elements of
protection that the country can possess
Besides these are the two triple-screw
heavy-protected cruisers. Columbia and
Minneapolis, of $500 tons each and
capable of speed of TWENTY-FIVE knots
an hour, the battle ships Maine and Tex
as the double-turreted, harbor-defense
vessels Puritan. Amphrite, Monadnock
and Terror; the cruisers Olympia. Gin
cinDati, Raleigh; the ram Ketahdin, the
cruiser Marblehead, gunboat Castine and
torpedo boat eighteen vessels in ali
under way and ready for commission be
lore the end OF the year The vessels
represent total tonnage of %, 497 tons,
mount twelve 10 inch rifles. six 12-inch,
sixten lO-inch, thirty light S-inch, thirty
ty-two finch, thirty-fye 5-inch and thir-
ty four inch
In armor, especially. this country has
excelled both France and Great Britain,
which has been shown by the tests of
the different plates submitted by foreign
steel works, at the proving grounds at
Annapolis and Indian Head.
PROMOTIONS.
There are not many plums to be scat
tered In the way of promotions In the
navy this year, and with the execution
OF some retirements for age there will be
little for aspirants to look for except re
tirements upon application and the pos
sibility of deaths There will be only
one retirement In the line on account Of
age and that will be Commodore James
ellis. who goes on the shelf May 14th
The officer who secures his vacancy has
already been examined ard is waiting TO
step into the Commodore's shoes
In the medical corps the first retire
ment this year was that of Medical Di-
rector VIM. Il. Hood. on March Bird last.
On May 10th SurgeonG General Browne
retires, and already a scramble has be-
gun for the chief of the bureau of medi-
cine and surgery. Medical Director Della
van Bloodgood, in charge of the labora-
tory at the Brooklyn Naval Hospital,
would be candidate. but as be goes out
Of active service August Goth, he is prac
tically out of the race Thos most
prominently named for the vacancy are
Medical Director Dean, who was a candi-
date last year when Surgeon General
Browne was reappointed, and Medical
Director Gibon.
The engineer corps will have num-
Der of retiremeDts In the construction
corps only one officer retires, Naval Con-
structor II. w. Steele, on April 18th
Lieutenant j f. Moser has been de.
tached from the San Francisco and or
dered TO duty in the coast and geodetic
survey.
Secretary of the Navy Herbert said
that he did not favor making changes
among the mechanics of the navy yards
because of politics, and would follow the
practice of his predecessor in this res
pect.
The training-shiD Constellation passed
Fort Monroe for Norfolk yesterday ev-
ing to take on her battery and fit out for
a summer cruise with the naval cadets
Lieutenant Commander Robt f. Car
ter, United States Navy. was in Annapo.
lis during last week seeking home for
his family. who will reside here during
his absence at sea The officer has been
ordered to the Miantonomoh.
Congressman George ID, Wise, who
was chairman of the sub-nayal commit
tee, was at the Naval Academy, with his
appointee, w K. Mayo, of Virginia who
will enter the Naval Academy examina-
ton.
The practical exercises at the Naval
Academy, which begin this week, In
clude For the first class. seamanship,
target practice, great guns,) torpedoes,
steam tactics, infantry and artillery drills
second class, practical ordnance, broad
swords. seamanship. skirmish, general
quarters, target of great guns. small
swords, steam tactics, infantry and artil-
lery; third class, army signals, skirmish,
company drills, seamanship, general
quarters, target of small arms, small
swords, boats, infantry and artillery;
fourth class. company drills, seamanship.
general quarters. boats, infantry and ar
tillerY drills.