The Ohio Democrat. (Logan, O. [Ohio]) 1886-1906, 1893-05-06
LEvIATHANS.
The Navies of the World Before
the Great Metropolis.
The Fleet Welcomed with Loud ---.--.
and the booming OF Cannon From the
Forts-The Great War Ships Float
to Their Places Of Anchorage.

/
| Forts-The Great War ships Float
to Their Places of Anchorage.
QUARANTINE, s. l., April 27.-The
phantom war ships which sailed in out
of the mists Tuesday were bright and
majestic realities in the glorious sun
shine Wednesday morning. The only
element wanting to insure the tri-
unphant spectacular success of the
great naval parade was supplied by the
perfect weather. Not q trace was left
of the steel gray clouds and rain and
fog of Tuesday.
Clear skies, bright sunlight and brac-
ing breezes gave u setting to a pan
oramic scene whose beauty and sug-
gestiveness have never been surpassed.
In the sharp, clear light of the early
morning every distinctive feature of the
great warships stood out in bold relief,
anchored in two great columns,
stretched over the whole surface of the
bay, the vessels of each of the ten ma
tionalitics represented could be distin-
guishcd at n glance.
| The snow white hulks and graceful
outlines of the American fleet were not
more conspicuous than the huge black
hulk of the British flagship, the tower.
ing military 1nasts of the French Jean
Bert, or the sharp lines of the crack
German cruiser Kaiserin Augusta, with
her formidable Krupp guns, offset by
the squat form outlines of the Dutch
Van Speylz, which again contrasted
with the graceful build of the swift
| Argentine Nuevo de Julio, and the
massive armament of the Brazil battle.
ship Aquidaban.
The most striking feature of the
scene was the absolute silence that pre-
vailed during the early hours of the
day. Each of these formidable death.
dealing engines of destruction lay mo-
tionless at anchor, reflected in the
placid waters of the bay by the early
morning rays of the sun like the often
quoted painted ship on painted
ocean," There was grim suggestive
ness of repressed force and stern dis
cipline in this impressive quietude.
But it did not last long. AS the
| morning wore on and the prepara ton
| for breaking another anchor began, the
! scene changed to one of brisk anima-
| tion and life. The bay became alive
with pleasure craft of every descrip-
ton, and the patrol boats had difficult
task to keep the anchorage ground
clear of intr'ders and permit the for
nation of the columns In which, in
stately procession. the vessels We're to
pass through the Narrows into the up
per bay, and to move up the Hudson
river TO their assigned stations, and
there to await Thursdays review.
1t was shortly after 0 o'clock when
Admiral Gherardis flagship gave the
| preliminary signal to break anchor and
| fall into line.
| The starboard, or right-hand-column,
| looking toward the bows of. the vessels
commanded by the British admiral, Sir
John Hopkins, consisted of foreign YES
sells in this order: British-Blalle, Aus
tralian. Magicienne and Tartar: Rus
sian-Dinlitri DonslSoi General Admiral
and Rynda: French-Arethuse ,Huosard
and Jean Bart: Italy-Etna, Bausan
and Dogoli: Spain-Infanta Isabel,
Reina Eegenia and Neuva Espana;
| neutrality-suspicious., Tiradcntes and Re
| publica.
! The port, or left hand column. COM
manded by Admiral Gherardi, consisted
of the American fleet. with some of the
visitors thrown into the balance, in the
following order:
American-philadelp Newark, At
lanta, san Francisco, bancroft, Ben
nington, Baltimore, Chicago, York;
town, Charleston, Vesuvius and Con-
cord; Argentine-Neuvo de Julio: Hol-
land-Nan Speyls; Germany-Kaiserin
Augusta and Seeadler, with the Ameri-
can monitor Miantonomoh bringing up
the rear.
The start was made promptly at 9:45
so that thousands of spectators who
had gathered to witness the spectacle
from the Navesink highlands and
the heights of Fort Wadsworth
and other points of advantage of Staten
Island had hardly taken up position
before the guns of Fort Hamilton
doomed their welcome to the advancing
fleet. steaming neck and neck.
The two admirals and their fagships
led the way 1T rate of between eight
and nine knots an hour. A brisk breeze
curled the waters into white-capped
breakers, the magnificent ships glided
along so smoothly that their motion
scarcely seemed perceptible.
The two schools of naval architecture
(for nearly all the ships in the feet not
American built We're of English con-
struction) were strongly marked and
every patriot felt within glow of
pride that the new navy of the United
States did not suffer by the compare
son.
The time occupied in passing the forts
was exactly half an hour. The naval
ships, after passing the Narrows, en-
tered the upper bay, and the feet of
excursion steamers and yachts and big
boats fell in and became II volunteer
escort
The scene then became one of COM
hined grace, animate and beauty
never to be forgotten. The absence of
cannonading left the air clear and every
outline of the magnificent ships stood
ont in luminous Silhouette against the
cloudless sky. Flags of the different
nations, and even the names of the
ships, were clearly discernible from
either shore.
Strange Story From Russia.
Sr. PETERSBURG, April 27.-Many ru-
mors are current regarding the cause of
the sudden stopping of the imperial
train while en- route to the Crimea and