New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1895-09-15
AFFAIRS AT THE NAVY YARD.
THE FoRNEY COURT MARTIAL AGAIN on
DECK.

CHE SQUADRON COMING TO PORT AND THE
MAINE GOING INTO coMMIssIoN-NoTEs
ON NAVAL MATTERs-cHANGEs
IN ASSIGNMENTS
r,,asr telerraphic orders from Washington. the
-,..,s of the Forney court-martal were started
,,ovng again yesterday afternoon, and by the time
..,sht bells had struck. several objections which
Congressman Bartlett had made to the charges and
,recncations had been disposed OF. After recess
,ss court me, for the afternoons proceedings. and
,,h First Lieutenant Thomas NJ. Wood. OF the
,,.-,ne Corps as the first witness for the prosecu
,,on the hunt for defective fues. missing coal
leans unaccounted-for pots pans and pillow-cases
uos begun in earnest with prospect that the
s.arch will take up great deal OF time and cause
IL, Of trouble before IL r. ended. The first
.hsrge against the Colonel that OF falsehood. APP
norently rests on trouble which over the fear
On the part OF Lieutenant Wood that his life was
Z, danger from defective hue in the Marine bar
AXIS and apparently held the Colonel responsible
"a, the danger although he admitted In his testi-
,onv that the Colonel had given strict orders that
the dangerous chimney should not be used and
,hs, he had no complaint TO make with reference
% the Colonels action in the matter. He also ad-
r,ted that from the time his first complaint TO the
coonel was made no smoke came from the fue
until about ten days later. when a fire. which had
hee
promptly oxtnguished. This fire in stove.
sna not In the chimney. Mr.. Bartlett started TO
show that the charge. so far as 1t related to the
matter al issue, frivolous and unworthy OF
consideration. and before he finished his cross-eX
animation he had the witness in bad FIX. Con-
Trajectory and explanatory statements were the
order OF the day and at times the members of the
oour, had hard work to keep their faces straight
enei out in the solemn fashion supposed to be
Characteristic OF courts handling serious matters.
Counsel the defence finally obtained the admis
sion that there feeling OF plque and
ASPIRATION behind the actions Of the witness. based
on what he considered the negligence Of Colonel
Forney in matter which he believed affected the
lives o. his family and his own personal property,
which was coupled with the admission that far
as his own senses concerned the element of
danger from fire had been removed by the prompt
action OF the accused officer in ordering that the
offending fires be extinguished and not relighted
until repairs had been made 10 the chimney.
Lieutenant Woods testimony and cross-examna-
ton occupied the afternoon session. and the court
adjourned al o'clock until 10 o'clock tomorrow.
According TO dispatch received at the yard yes
teriay from Rear-Admira Bunce. the North At
lantic Squadron now al Fishers Island is due in
this harbor on Tuesday OF this week. The feet at
present consists Of the NewYork Flagship and the
cru. sers Minneapolis. Columbia. Montgomery and
Raleigh. on Wednesday. the day following the ar
rival o, the fee. here. the armored cruiser Maine
will 90 into commission and join the squadron, be-
Ing followed by the Texas soon as her trials are
completed
Captain A 6. Crowninshield Will hoist his flag on
the Maine The executive officer of the ship Will be
Lieutenant Commander Adolph Mark. recently of
the Minnesota. ana the other officers will be Lieu
tenant c. W. Jungen. from the Constellation; Lieu
tenant G F. ". Holman from the torpedo station
Lieutenant Frank F. Fletcher. from the torpedo
station Lieutenant George W. Denied, from
Cramps shipyard, Lieutenant Rogers II. Calf. from
sick leave: Ensign Henry H. Ward. from the Yer
mont; Ensign Friend W. Jenkins. from the proving
grounds; Naval Cadets A. J. Wadhams W. 4.
Gherard! Z. H. Watson. II. V. Butler. jr.. o. S
Knopper and W. G.. Grossbeck. from the Amphitrite
Surgeon John L. Nelson. from the Wabash Passed
Assistant Surgeon Victor c. b. Means. from tho
Naval Hospital. NeH-York; Assistant Surgeon
Theodore w Richards. from the Minnesota; Pay
master Edward y Whitehouse, from the Minnesota;
Chief Engineer A. ". Morley. Passed Assistant
Engineer r {. Bowers. and Assistant Engineers
Andre " Proctor and Maurice h. Peusnei. from
special duty.
The putting Of the Maine into commission will be
a big occasion at the yard. she is home
made" ship and 1t has been announced that dele
CATION OF prominent people from the Pine Tree State
will be present and present to the cruiser fine sill
yer service which has been paid for by popular
scripiion. With the squadron In port there will
doubtless be a large attendance OF officers at the
ceremonies, and the display OF gold lace Will be
worth going far to see.
THE MINNESOTA LAID UP
The Minnesota which was towed around 10 the
yard from her soft resting place in her own mud
in the North River on Thursday. was. in her
day. important factor in the naval policy OF the
country. She was built at the Washington Yard
in 1856. and had displacement OF 400 tons. being
only slightly smaller than the Franklin. which Is
doing duty a receiving-ship at the Norfolk Yard.
She was never celebrated for her speed her limit
being about nine and one-half knots under IA
vorable circumstances but during the she
red a heavy armament. consisting OF eight 9-inch
smoothbore guns. and 60pounder breech-ioad-
ing rife main battery. with two 3-inch howit-
GERS TWO @-pounder rifles. and three l2-pounder
smoothbore howitzers her secondary battery
The ship was one OF the three frigates that
a, anchor of Fortress Monroe March 7. 1862
when the Confederate ironclad Merrlmec she
was and is known among the people Of the North.
but the Virginia as she was enrolled in the Con-
federate Navy Register came down the Elizabeth
River 10 her fate The frigates Congress and
Cumberland at anchor off Newport News,
seven miles above.
As as 1t was known that the Merrimac had
attacked the sailing frigaes Congress and Cumber-
land. the commander of the Minnesota, Captain
20 engage her but after proceeding to within a
mile and half Of Newport News, and within al
most pointblank distance OF the Merrimac. she
grounded upon a shoal in the North Channel As
The tide ebbing she could not be Heated of
and few hours later the Merrmac with her two
consorts, the gunboats Patrick Henry and the
jamestown bore down upon the Minnesota to de-
siroy her The Yankee frigate was In a desperate
condition and the enemy he'd her at bay Being
sba ctpk fortunately
Aerrinac drew TOO much water TO within a
nile OF her
The other two steamers, firing rihed guns did
much damage In killing and wounding men, ana
'ho, from one of the guns Of the Merrimac put
hole through her side. The heavy guns or me
Minnesota finally succeeded in driving the two gun
beats of, and they steamed up the river leaving
he Merrimac alone. The latter soon followed them
The firing OF her broads!de guns had crowded inc
Minnesota still further on the mudbank' ana al
though all hands worked at her during me hight
with tugs and hawsers. IL was found Impossible 70