The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1893-04-19
MORE SHIPS ARRIVING.
ATALK WITH ADMIRAL GHERARDf
ABOUT THE FLEET.
The Crowd Continues to Increase and Every
Place at Old Point 10 spilIlng Over.
High Prices for Everything.

I'm his best Sunday uniform, with the
brass buttons freshly polished. with a
London crease in the regulation trousers,
and with the spike-tall unbuttoned. as
provided for in paragraph fourteen, page
eleven, of the naval rules. the Admiral
this morning boarded a steam launch and
went off to pay official calls upon the
vessels Of the First American squadron,
the five Engishmen and the Dutchman.
Ordinarily such a round of visits would
have been the occasion for profaning
this beautiful atmosphere with sulphur
Gus smoke. but when he left his own
ship the Admiral ordered that no salute
be fred and of the foreigners he MADE
request that the same lack OF noisy
honor be omitted. This afternoon ne
went TO the six other American SHIPS,
but he was carried around with 81
lence that was more impressive than the
salutes, because of its very novelty. AS
q usual thing water carriages of the ad-
mirals and higher officers Of ship find
their propelling power in the muscular
and tattooed arms of a dozen able sea
men. Even in these practical days or
steam engines and naphtha Launches a
boat pulled by oars is the proper caper
on all occasions OF ceremonial VISITS
So far as the picturesqueness OF tne
thing Is concerned this is much the pct
ter way. for there is nothing prettler than
a natty boat of graceful lines manned
by dozen stalwart tars.
This morning. however, the Adfmral
had allowed his private barge 10 De useu
nv the crack crew of his vessel Tor
Of no
all the visits that he had TO pay there
was no time to waste i'm ceremony, ana
en- no ordered out the steam launch ana
went slurrying across the water In dou-
bIe oiIick time with the spray CASH
ing all over his god-embroidered cape
Tbese official visits by the way, nave
become so numerous that they tax to
the utmost not only the already pusy
moments of Admiral Gherardi, put tne
hardly less leisure moments OF the ol,
cers who are lower in rank From early
noo~rino until late at night the dainty
| and snowy launches OF the Americans
| tho neat little cutters of the Englishmeh'
and the numbering harges of the othef
| foreirners swing like pendnlums from
ore shin to the other. The admlrals Can
unon each other, the commanding oniVeiS
| visit all day long. and the othcers ol
| lower rank keep up brlsK pace WIZ"
| their ward-room calls. win l"en.S
seven ships I'm the harbor, II can EASILY
| ne imagined that there IS htle tlihe iOi
| other duties. to say nothing OF pleasures
| ia the vvav in which the lobby or the
botol has been denuded OF gay uniforms
| bos already developed a loud murmur
| amone the girls which Is aptstoA~rsslut
| In a revolution which nothing can queil'
| Tn Washington an energetic ofhcer can
| make n hundred calls In the aiterHoon'
| and still have time 10 spare lot Cndt %
| a. tho club but here, remember, the snlps
~ ,,i,g Of some distance from each
| cher and II takes time even for steam
| 1aurch 10 navigate over three or lour
| s0,,ara miles However, when night comes
| and the official calling ceases, there - Jos
| a. tho Hvgeia Back flock the oinceIs
! to the hotel like doves TO cote az hish'
| fau and really there Is enough piiilhs ar"
| cooInp TO make the smile quite appIopit
| ate. Even with eleven or more n'o" ~,
| nor IN arrive. the naval rendezvous mas
| ,d,, assuned proportions which en-
| ,itle II 10 rank as one OF the greatest as
| ere,,ations of floating batteries whlch
| tho world has ever witnessed. IL does
| NOT 70 be entirely accurate. cothpaie
| ,,.,th tho naval review OF the Brltlsn
| navy off Spit Head on the occasion VI
| the Jubilee celebration In 1881. wheh over
| n hundred ships were gathered lose,%'o' ~
| since that time. however, tnere hdN
| onouch improvements In the construction
ard armoring of naval fighters TO make
! the exhibition here thoroughly unique
| Admiral Gherardi paused moment az
no stood upon the deck OF the Phliauei-
| mia this afternoon. when your OU,i ,,i
| snondent asked him how many Ih'liIpn
dollars would be represented upon u
water when all the ships were asseii,oiTr
| "Ten. fifteen. twenty, twenty-nFe'
4.I ~ala
| said making a mental caic 49,, s.nd
| fuIlv twenty-five million dollars Anu
| 40 vo,t know" ne added, NOW nidlIy
| MON there will be on board the ships
| "No " ''yVell. there will be sOOo men,
| There are 1000 men upon my own SHIPS,
| "Apa how are they all TO pe leu
Tho Admiral laughed with Baltimore
urdar our lee" he said, unconsciousiy
dropping into a rautical expression anu
with New York and even chicago ho'
very distant, I do not think any u US
will want for anything to eat
VI" We .hara Go one thing which this rem
| dezvous and review is accomplishing more
| than another It Is the bringing together
| tho navy and the great mass OF tne
| ,aonte Admiral Gherardi remarked thls
| IN vour correspondent. He eNpresseu tne
| Laenest appreciation of the puDnclty "hiSh
| is being given to every detah III the
| newspapers, and every night az ne
| leaves shore, carries Will iiiii "
| every newspaper which ne can OBTAIN
and glances through the naval stories III
| all before he lies down and sails INTO
| the port of good old King Morpheus
"Put what interests me- ne salu, sos-
| SHINING on in his pleasant way, is the
| noint of view from which you iooh at
us You Ask questions about things thal
| do not concern me at al-matIers 10
which I would never give moment
| thought For instance. IT was reported
| IN me this morning that salute was
| being fired on board or the Blake, out
really did not take the trouble TO ma out
what II meant. Since then | have been
aslsed a dozen times by newspaper men
10 explain the reason OF the salute
Then YOU ask me how my men are 10
get enough to eat. and how they WASH
their clothes, whether one SET OF onicers
eats with another set OF officers, and the
next thing; / suppose you VIII want 10
know how much money we waste IN hr-
ing salutes."
"Most assuredly," Immediately replied
the correspondent.
The Admiral threw all his dignity to the
four winds and actually chuckled.
| We'll" he said, as matter OF fact'
all the powder we use has been condemn
ed. and IL really isn't good for anything
else"
The crowd here continues to Increase.
IL has long since filled up everything at
old Point, and Is now spilling over into
the boarding houses end Country hotels OF
the vicinity Prices are high In proper
ton. II Is a harvest time for the water
men, the hack drivers and the hotel