The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1893-04-28
THE PAST AND PRESENT.

/
Maria. Nina aud ptnta-rhe Representa-.
ttscs of the Age of Territorial Discov.
cry Mostly Welcomed by Those 81 the
Era Of Demonstrated Progrcss-A Queer
Contrast B~tween tho Vessels Of Colum-
bus Day aud Those ut Moder" Times.
FoRr MONROE, Va, April -. While
all the fleets lay Mt anchor yesterday
in "A calm and motionless sea there came
moving slowly into barber three war
ships Of the Spanish squadron. BE-
hind each one of them was an odd and
miniature ship. a cross between n Chi.
nese junk and a Queen Ann cottage.
As II with Columbus still at tho
Prov, the fleet sailed on. The caravels
for such they were. were decorated
with as many flags and tiuttering PEN
nants as Christmas tree. From the
foremast hoated the white flag
with the green cross. the ensign which
Columbus flew as admiral OF his dmnu-
tive fleet when he turned his face to-
ward the western sea Underneath
this was white pcnnant with the
same design From the mainmast few
the royal standard OF CASTLE and Ara
gon, the rampant lions on white
ground and the castles OF Aragon on
! deep red field Beneath this was the
pennant of Columbus.
The miniature ships with their flags
and pennants attracted the attention
of the aggregated squadron. The At
lanta and the Australia were the outer
most sentincls already at anchor. Be-
yond them lay a wilderness OF masts
and spars and bristling guns Between
the congregatcd monarchs Of the navies
Of the world the Spanish squadron sped
slowly on. while the guns Of the fort
without waiting for the American
colors. saluted first. and kept up a
noisy booming. On board the men-of-
war the interest was intense The
rigging. the sides. the decks were
crowded with dark blue figures. while
from open PORTFOLIOS pcercd eager faces
81 the seanen along the squadron.
The marines were in line upon the
after deck presenting arms to the flag
of the Spanish admiral The bands on
the flagships played the Spanish ma
tional air.
The Spanish ships passed directly
through the feet and then came around
on the outside. the lnfanta lisa bel talk
ing her position in the back, the Santa
Maria reaching the end of the line. and
spreading her sails to the wind. There
were three square sails, one directly
under the bowsprit. one bearing
huge red cross at her foremost
and another at the ternplecross Of her
main mast From the mast which rose
from her high cabin at the stern there
swung q lateen sail. The canvas, dark
and discolored like ancient parchment,
bellied out with the wind and as she
pushed her way forward. self-relia II I
and independent. every body and every
thing was proud to do her honor.
Having reached the end Of the feet,
the sailors OF the Santa Maria, the
Pinta and the Nina tossed overheard
their anchors
Admiral Gomez breathcd sigh OF re-
lief when his toy boats were at last
safely moored Five days ago, just
after he had left the harbor of la
vana. the barometer began to fall ON
inously, and presently storm of cy-
clonic strength burst upon them. The
water swept in upon the tiny Nina and
more than once the officers OF the Nueva
Espana laid astcrn with keen solicitudc
for the safety. not only Of the craft
that had been entrusted 70 their care,
but Of their fellow-ofiiccrs and seamen
who were aboard of her. took nearly
half an hour for the Spaniard to pay
his compliments all around first TO the
American flag, then to the American.
English. French and Italian admirals,
and finally to all the ships that had
saluted him. As soon as they had been
concluded the round of official visits
began.
Admiral Hopkins, commanding the
British fleet at the naval review visited
Washington to-day. The admiral was
presented to the president. shown
through the departments and taken 70
the navy yard.