The San Francisco call., 1896-02-10
Some of Her Officers Will Join
Other Ships in the Coast
Squadron.
NEW DRYDocK BADLY NEEDED
Junkmen Seeking Bargains-Good Pork
in Condemned Barrels-Relief
for Injured Workmen.

sisting of five sleepers two baggage and
one commissary car, reaches Vallejo juno
ton the steamer Amador will take the
men aboard and they will be brought di-
rectly to the navy-yard and landed. The
men will take up their quarters on board
the receiving-ship Independence, to re-
main until the Goth inst. the date desig-
mated for putting the monitor in commits
sion. The train will proceed to the Oak
land yards, where it will be overhauled,
and return to the junction on the 18th.
ready to return with the men from the
Baltimore to the Norfolk or New York
Navy-yard where they go to receive their
discharge. The men coming this way
were formerly portion of the crew of the
battle-ship Texas recently put out of COM
mission at the Norfolk yard. The draft
consists of some 166 officers and men.
1t is evidently the aim of the officials at
Washington to abandon the time-honored
custom Of sending the men by water and
consuming months time, and hereafter
bring them out or return them by rail.
The Monadnock is nearly ready for
them. She has been greatly improved
since going in dock. Newly painted, yards
up and decks cleared of working tools, she
makes a much better looking appearance
than two weeks ago. So far her officers
have not all been assigned to her, but will
be within short time. She is now out of
dock. lying alongside the wharf, all
painted except the turrets.
The cruiser Baltimore is nearly ready to
go out of commission. A number of her
officers have been distributed to various
ships in the squadron and others will go
East on leave.
The experience of the Baltimore in the
gale on the Japan coast demonstrates
the fact and the necessity that all cruisers
of her type should be fitted with large
freeing posts located in the sponsons and
other parts, so arranged that when large
volumes of water are taken aboard, as was
the case with the Baltimore, it will have
mode o escape SO the upper deck can be
cleared in time for another sea bath. As
now arranged, the only method of escape
is by small scuppers near the deck, which
are entirely inadequate for the purpose.
While at the yard the cruiser will be
given thorough overhauling.
Much satisfactionis expressed at the &C
ton of the department, or the chief of
bureau of construction Commodore Hitch
born, in ordering the boats, outfit, ETC., for
the two gunboats to be built at San Fran
cisco to be constructed at Mare Island.
This means an expenditure of nearly $780,,
600, and will tide over what was feared to
be many idle days and months for mechan-
les in branches of trade pertaining to this
class of work.
Hope is not entirely abandoned for the
appropriation of money for the commence
ment of a new dry dock at Mare Island.
Without doubt the Secretary Of the Navy
knows full well the necessity for the Sec
ond dock at this yard, but on account of
the state of the finances of the Govern
ment he could not consistently advocate
this measure, but the Representatives
from the Pacific Coast with Congressman
Hilborn on the House Naval Committee
and Senator Perkins on the Senate Com
mittee, with their thorough knowledge of
the urgent necessity for the dock, will un-
doubtedly do all in their power to SO i'm
press the subject on their fellow-members
that the money will be secured and the
dock commenced before another year.
The water front having been dredged to
the satisfaction of the yard authorities the
machine men have removed their debris
Q1SLrlDuUlUR pipes dilu, Will tuO ndCAlut,
have returned to the Bay City.
The yard has been fairly overrun during
the past week with tradesmen of all kinds
to look and haul over the quantities of old
Junk to be disposed of under sealed bids
during the coming week. The general
verdict among them is that it is the poor
est lot of condemned stuff they ever saw
But then this is all for effect, and 10 deter
other prospective bidders from running
the price up.
A funny story is going around the street
corners relative to lot of pork recently
inspected, that while the pork passed a
first-class inspection, the barrels in which
it was packed were rejected. The question
is what will become of the swine flesh
which awaits the putting in of brine if the
barrels are to be returned to San Francsco2 ?
However, the storemen may have an op-
portunity to do the repacking, and it will
take some time, as there are many
thousand pounds of the pork.
By the building of the engines for the
Hartford at Mare Island the mechanics
will again have an opportunity of demon
stratlng their fitness as marine engine
builders The engines of the Monadnock
it only requires time to prove what the
monitor will DO at sea.
AS predicted not long since the CO.
manche will soon go to San Francisco, if
the dispatches in the paper of this morn
ing from Washington are correct. She
will be novel sight to the rising genera
ton OF San Franciscans who have never
seen single turreted monitor.
The oiler from the Baltimore who was
run over by one of the small flatcars used
in transporting materials one day last
week is in the hospital slowly improving.
Andrew Ban, who had his leg crushed
off by one of the Monadnock's guns, is as
well as to be expected. He is still in the
hospital. The officers and employees at
the yard succeeded in raising nearly
$1400 for the benefit of his family. On
Tuesday evening the Vallejo Dramatic