The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1895-08-12
Is VERY HARD TO FIND MEN
MANY VAC4NCIES EXIST AMONG EN-
LISTED MEN TO NAN NEW SHIPS.

LISTED MEN no MAN NEW SHIPS.
One of the Reasons is That Maohinists and
Seamen Can Find More Profitable EN-
ployment ON Land-There Appears to be a
Great Deal of Jealousy Between the Army
and the Navy.
Washington, D. c., Aug. 1.-THE navy
department is finding considerable diff
and to man the new ships that will soon
be ready to go into commission. 1t is
authoritatively stated that neither the
second class battle ship Texas nor the
armored cruiser Maine will be enabled
toparticpateind in drill off fflNewport. Aside
from the delay in procuring crews for
the two ships, there are other embarass-
ments which will render it impossible
for even the Texas, which is in the more
advanced condition to be in commission
for several weeks.
The navy officials say that it is with
difficulty that enlistments of seaman,
machinists and others are made during
the summer season. At this period,
men who combine knowledge of such
matters can always find more remuner-
ative employment on private yachts
and along shore where a greater matter
of freedom is enjoyed and where the
duty is not so exacting as it is in the
navy The business conditions, which
are more satisfactory now than they
have been for several years, make it al
so possible to procure work that is
more satisfactory to them than serving
the government. Late in the autumn,
however, when the scores of private
yachts shall have been laid up in ordin-
ary, the men engaged upon them will
seek other employment and then The
vacancies in the ranks of enlisted men
will be rapidly filled.
Never before has the navy depart
ment been so Jealous of high charac-
ter, intelligence, and the physical con-
dition of the men whom 1t is taking
into it's service. It is asserted that 80
per cent of the applicants are rejected,
for one reason or another. While more
or less latitude is given to recruiting
officers, the rules of the department
require that no seaman, machinfst, or
fireman, shall Rbe enlisted who has
passed the age of thirty-five except
he be a man who has previously served
in the navy The United States gov
ernment pays its enlisted men better
than any other nation. The rate Of
pay, generally, is far in advance of
that which is given to private and
non-commfssioned officers in the army
but the service is more exacting, and
from many points of view, it is not SO
desirable.
IT is said, for example, that the de-
partment finds great difficulty in in
ducing the younger men to re-enlist af-
ter one or two services. After an ex-
perience of this character, the men as
rule, desire to marry and seek en-
ployment on shore. The hope of the
navy rests on the apprentice system,
which was established many years ago.
An average of $50 boys are enlisted
each year for a term of service of four
years. To each an excellent education
is given, in addition to a thorough
knowledge of gunnery, wide familiar
ity with torpedo works and electrical
engineering.
Efforts are made to add to the tech
nical training a fondness for a naval
o. life and respect for the service New
ertheless four-ffths Of the boys with
draw from the service on graduation
and before the department has an op-
portunity of utilizing them in the work
for which they have been trained The
reason Is that the young men find
ready employment in the merchant
service, or in the employ of electrical,
telegraph and telephone companies at a
better compensation than is offered by
the government. Those who remain
in the government service are advanced
as rapidly as conditions will permit.