New-York tribune., 1896-11-29
GOSSIP OF THE CAPITAL.
prAR.ADMIRAL WALKER AND HIS
APPROACHING RETIREMENT.

APPROACHING RETIREMENT.
,rcoRp OF EXCELLENT sERvIcE-oPERAr1oN
or THE RETIREMENT LAVA VALUABLE
PUEBLO INDIAN COLLECTION.
washington. Nov. 2S.-When Admin al Walker.
Sov,nr reached the prescribed age is put on
the retired list next March. the Navy will lose
80 ~ her ablest line officers 1t is surely
unfortunate that the law governing the retire
II.rt Of naval officers Is arbitrary and that the
secretary Of the Navy has no discretionary
.ower or liberty to make exceptions. for 1t
...srs against the best interests Of the service
~ lose an officer Of Admiral Walkers standing,
vhose wisdom and experience have been. and
,,ou,d he of incalculable value. in the very hey
,.u ~ his usefulness because he has reached the
age limit
In speaking Of this of1cer recently and re-
rretting his approaching retirement. one Of his
Colleagues. man noted for the fairness Of his
.,aenent and his deep knowledge Of men, said:
"rrom its beginning until to-day John Walkers
.oreer has been one Of splendid success. He Is
.r,,,v an exceptional man. and in him are COM
,,red all the attributes that go to make great
commander. not the least Of which are the
courage and confidence to act in great moments
us,bout orders, which, when the result is sue
csssful. means glory and promoton when un-
successful degradation. Walker never missed
an opportunity OF this kind. and. although he
uas not much more than a youngster during
the war. he was a great favorite with Farragut
tor the same reason that the boy at the head OF
his class is generally the favorite Of his teacher
The great Admiral recognized and appreciated
the young officers ability, and more than once
sought his advice. l have heard him say that
he never thought Of writing out Walkers orders.
hut merely outlined them. leaving the details 20
the discretion Of the Lieutenant"
Admiral Walker Is Yankee, i'm
nediatey observes from certain popularity Of
accent never met with outside Of NewE England.
and was born in Millsborough. n. H.. In 1888
He was graduated from Annapolis in the year he
reached his majority. ard was promoted to a
Mutenancy two years after his graduation.
During the Civil War his first service was with
the Atlantic coast blockade. and with the West
ern Gulf Blockading Squadron. In the passage
Of Forts Jackson and st. Philip he was in COM
mand Of the Winona Of Farragut's squadron.
and he participated In the engagements that
ended In the capture Of New-Oreans In the
subsequent operations against Vicksburg. where
he co-operated with General Sherman and the
army. he commanded the ironclad Baron de
Kalb. Walker led the expedition against the
Yazoo River in this ship. which, while engaging
the batteries. struck a torpedo. causing her TO
sink almost instantly second torpedo ex-
ploded under her stern as she went down.
Lieutenant Walkers brilliant work at this
period gained him rapid promotion. and he was
advanced over others who were less competent,
or who had less opportunity 70 show their mettle
In 1866 he had already reached the grade Of
lie, nd thirty
one years old His bravery and signal ability
gained him the admiration of his superior off,
GERS. and the enmty. unfortunately. Of some of
his jealous and less fortunate colleagues which
has followed him during his entire career.
From 1866 until 1869 Admiral Walker was on
duty at the Naval Academy, from which he was
relieved to assume the command of the special
cruise Of the Sabine. In 1881 he was made Chief
OF the Bureau of Navigation and Officer OF De-
TAIL where he served with distinction for two
terms. and part Of third. relnqushing this
position to take command of the Squadron Of
Evolution. composed of the Chicago the flagship;
the Boston, the Atlanta. the Yorktown and the
Enterprise a modern third ship of 1910
tons displacement. which Joined the squadron
on the other side. and which at this time was
the sole American representative in European
waters The departure Of the Squadron Of Evo-
the coming in of the new. and no matter how
seriously his brother officers have differed with
Admiral Walker they credit him with having
commanded this squadron with briliancy and
distinction
BY all unprejudiced men in the service. and
certainly by all laynen competent to judge. II is
conceded that the Bureau Of Navigation. one OF
the most important In the Government. has
never had a more effective head than Admiral
Walker and while his selection 10 command the
Squadron Of Evolution was high tribute to his
character as officer. 10 remove him was an
unquestioned misfortune for the Bureau he
knows the Navy. its personnel and Its needs bet
ter than any man in IT. and his administration
OF the Navigation Bureau was wise ana just
one Among the many impr ovements during his
regime was the increase Of ships Libraries for
enlisted men from some half dozen volumes. the
Bible a prayerbook. an almanac. dictionary,
and one or two books on navigation. to a thou
sand or fifteen hundred volumes, containing
popular novels and miscellaneous books calcu-
lated to interest and amuse the jolly tar
In appearance Admiral Walker is a striking
man, over six feet TALL with broad shoulders.
which are carried in military style. His is
real Yankee face marked by shrewdness ana
what, In the locality he halls fNom. is called
smartness, and adorned by long SIDE wnlsKeis'
much after the style Of those made celebrated by
Sothern in Lord Dundreary. His manners are
frank and cordial. and. although he has been
called by envious colleagues wirepuller, there
are few men so honest in their dealings. so open
and aooveboard in all the affairs OF life ana no
man IN the Navy Is more devoted to 1t. or has
put his devotion to such practical use Taken
altogether. Admiral Walker can i'll be spared.
md hio t,in thnr TiTlf g.
unite In regretting the inexorable law that
makes 1t necessary for him to retire from active
service in the spring.