The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-12-08

lDen.
The Monterey is mostly under water
Down there under the sea she has some
nice little rooms for her officers, and they
have some things like fans to make the
ventilation.
The air didn't seem very fresh though.
and we were told that when the ship was
down in South America it was hot in those
pretty rooms-so hot that the officers grew
thin and their livers grew big.
When the Monterey goes to sea the
waves sweep and swirl all over her deck
That doesn't matter at all, for the deck is
made on purpose for that and it is seven
inches thick-three inches OF wood and
four of steel.
The turret rises high above the deck,
and in the turret are the guns-terrible
guns that could tear a city to pieces pretty
quick.
The turret can be turned around when
the ship is under steam, and the guns
pointed any way you please.
The big steel guns are polished till you
can see your face in Them and Phyllis
looked into the mouth of one and shouted |
to hear the sharp echo.
That was all very we'll at Mare Island. !
But when they are going to fire those guns
they put more than $500 worth of ammuni- !
ton into each one. The ship is so stanch
she doesn't culver much, but boxes and
things that don't happen to be part of
the ship just 90 dancing around like mad.
And what do you suppose happens to
anything that has the bad luck to be in
front of those guns anywhere within
few miles?
Rudyard Kipling explains something
about that when he writes:
For, of course you al love the screw-guns-the
screwguns they all love you!
So when we take tea with a few guns o. course you
VIII know what to do-hooi hooi
Just send in your chief and surrendert's worse if
M fight nr y-nrI rI1rS
You may hide in the caves they'll be only your
graves, but you can't get away from the guns
Worse than the big guns are some wicked
looking slim black ones that shoot some
small shells that explode and blaze up,
setting things on fire in every direction.
Those guns have been tried in a real war,
and when they got to exploding on the
deck of ship the battle didn't last very
long.
When they have their swords and their
white gloves on in the morning, the Off
GERS over there don't look as if they would
be apt to have wives and children.
But they have.
When you go ashore you walk through
sort of park. There are some fine old
trees, and there are two stupid-iooking big
black guns that have an inscription on
them that says something about these
being the gun. that blew up the Alpemarle
| am going to find out all a bout that
when have time.
AS you go on up the path you are pretty
sure to meet some babies in their carriages
and some little bits Of boys and girls with
out any swords or brass buttons on them.
There are plenty of roses everywhere,
too, and especially around the old brick
houses that Admiral Farragut designed in
the early tifties.
The houses are built in pairs and the
people who live in them think that Adj
miral Farragut could fight better than he
could plan houses. He said if the halls of
the two houses were near together the
people would be fighting on the steps.
And so their houses were carefully planned
to keep the sunshine at bay-with no win
dows in their sides.
They must have been dreary old holes in
the old times if they did cost $4,000
apiece. But the young ieutenants have
told you about have remedied all that.
They've got steam heaters everywhere.
the steam coming from the machine-shops.
Then they've got plenty of electric lights,
and vince! but you ought to see what
pretty things they have in those houses.
They we been out to Japan, those lieu
tenants, and they've been to India and
Europe and the South Seas.
They've got mats and baskets from
Alaska; they've got rugs from CONSTANT
nople and cracked teapots from Japan.
Phyllis had chance to try on some en-
broidered silk kimonos that the Emperor
of Japan used to wear, and got present
of a knife that would do first rate to COM
NIT the thing they call harakiri with.
The bricks and things to build Admiral
Farragut's houses had to be brought
around Cape Horn In sailing vessels. That
is one reason they cost so much. They
built some new ones just like them few
years ago, and they only cost about Sic, 600
pair.
l wonder whether people being more
honest nowadays than they were once had
anything to do with that difference in ex-
pense.
The man-of-war Boston is in the big
stone drydock at the island, and so we had
q chance to examine the part of the ship
that belongs under water.
l was very much pleased to find flaring
pieces of steel fastened along the sides to
keep the ship from rolling. Somebody
was pretty smart to think of that.
We saw the Ranger, too, and found out
that she has got to go back to South
America, where the people will not know
just what bad ship she is.
Her equipment was being inspected. and
l thought it was sort of funny to see those
spick and span officers with their white
gloves on looking over the awning TO see
If there were any holes, and inspecting the
wornout stewpans to see if they were really
rusty enough to be thrown away.
OF course the officers didn't touch the
frying-pans and things at all. They only
looked at them when the men held them
up.
Ifyou are in the navy you have to go
away to sea on three years cruise. And
you can't take your mother nor your chill
oren along, not even If you are an officer.
A Turtle Circus.
"Rock Creek isn't far from Philadelphia
now" says the colonel, 'but when / was
boy 1t was just full of swapping turtles.