The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1896-11-01
OUR NAEA1 NoMENoLArURE.
FrineipIes on which Recent ana Fortaep
Names Have Been Chosen.

| 1rhnOlHle0 on NynNoh IAcccUt and I0rrnNr
Names Have Been Chosen.
WARRINGTON. Oct. 31.-1n selecting Names
for the three new battle ships and the composit,
Runboats, President Cleveland and Secretar,
Herbert have already cleared the list and left
nothing in sight to their successors, unless, in,
decd, It should be decided to give the new
torpedo boats names instead Of numbers.
The practice In this matter has varied, name,
in some cases being chosen soon after the
ships were laid down, while In others they have
been kept back for the selection of the Secre.
tary who mipht be In Office ut the launching.
The former plan has, no doubt, certain ndyan.
tages as the employment of numbers 10 dcsig.
nate vessels through the long process Of build.
ing is more likely, apparently, u lead to mis-.
takes and misapprehensions. Tho plan IN
foreign nRvics, especially for large ships. ID To
give names soon after the vessels are contract
ed for. and even In some cases us soon as au.
thorized. Then they acquire ut ONCE u local
habitation and q name.
In securing his own State as sponsor for one
of tho new battle ships. Secretary Herbert has
done what was generally expected. There is,
of course, no intention of doing honor to
Sommes's Confederate vessel. which had the
same namo. The Confederates named some of
their ships after States. and II that wero. a
~ ObJcCtlOu W Itpcakihk III our navy,
we should bar out many OF the Southern States.
They not only had an Alabama as q
destroyer, but a Clyde-built Georgia. which WAS
originally called the Japan. while the very
hrst Of the English-built Confederate cruisers
was the Florida. which cleared from Liverpool
under the name OF the oreto. Then tho Con-
clad Virginia, forLIerlv the Merrimac; the
rams Arkansas and Tennessee, the Louisiana.
and so on. Very likely we shall want to use
rome Of these names for future battle ships.
but II will be the States % the Union that are
thus honeIed, and not any former bearers Of
ney for onr first two steel-armored ships were
Maine and Texas, and now comes a second
ton made to the rule which gives tho names Of
States only 10 battle ships H. that Of the Rear
sarg,. the gallant vessel which sent the old
execution was made by act Of Congress.
Illinois and Wisconsin came IN properly
Il viii be recalled that the former had 'ib, BEEN
given to the model shin a: the Chicago Fair.
California; was urged as a name for the ship
sylvania for the ono to he built by the Cramps.
willie Delaware, though a little State. has a
Rat there will DO other ships hereafter. Taking
old ships and new, the navy list now shows
shs A,sssm Si,c Illinois I tT'dlsn"; N H.n ~, Mas Mas
shire. Oregon, Texas. Vermont. and Wiscon-
sin. making twelve States whose names ships
20 'de on nt eSe r oHw i SSt times n pa9: and d" ~" do onfa
will be again. The CRUISER New York derives
her name from the city. not from the State.
The choice of names foT the six composite
gunboats furnish. "a comment on 'he system
which Secretary Whitney started. He named
the frst heavy Vunboat Yorktown. after a
Revolutionary battle, and the li:ht Runhoat
Petrol. The Remington an tho Concord rrr-
petuated the former class, and even when the
Machias and Castine folio we'd. It was urged
that thr former at least was selected because
the British schooner Marsa-etta WAS cap
! ,red In Machias harhor In l775. The Revo-
luttonary celebrity of Castine. however. did
not so distinctly, apnear. ani when Secretary
Herbert named abe three Newn"rt News gun
heats Nashville. Helena. and Wilmington. II
became evident that the Revolutionary feature
In the new Cunboats It becomes still further
evident that towns ~ to-day more than those
p pr,n Esy",uti inssrs. f van, ,5 are sc thus Of ho . Hrrd.
lu:ionary battle. and that the possibilities
or continuing S.crctHry "hitnev's system were
no. exhausted: Monmouth. Guiif"rd. and
Taxing the names rs they are, Wheeling.
which has long been q candidate, ut last I.
have been candidates before. Among the
rngs.1ti1,s that must stLl wal, are ch,,ta-
c cS%sH. a ksrsss%i he. AliesS:nT cH S.~ London @,cn.
on ogr navy list: new sna Old. now H"' .nc'nde An.
B nss"ois' R Gcdi,n, c sstir@"r charI ssnn,ns chi,
cago. Cincinneti. Columbia, Concori. De.
troit, Essex. Hartford: Helena, Jamestown.
Minneapolis Monterey. Montcomery. Nahnnt,
Nantucket. Nashville. Newark. Newrort. New
York, OLYMPIA. Omaha. Pensacola. Philadel.
muno. st. Louis. San Francisco Sa rntoga,
NicEshurg. Wheeling. Wilmington. ard York.
town; These, show a wide distribution. and
for the now shtps have come e.fts showing the
nnrreciAtion nj the communities TINS honnred.
This list might also no supplemented by other
towns. were II not that rivers and mountains
source OF the name.