The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1896-01-26
NAMES OF OUR SHIPS.
How Christening Honors Are Scattered
Among the States and Towns.

How Christening Honors Are Scattered
Among the States and Towns.
The selection of the name Kentucky by
Secretary Herbert for the Kearsarges
mate is admitted to be admirable, even by
those whose States were candidates for the
honor of this naval christening. 1t has
double value, indeed, for it also secures
the explanatory ALTERATION which is some
times aimed at in other navies for sister
ships, as for example, in the British ''M'
class. But its chief merit is that it awards
the honor to State that did not have any
representation in the nomenclature of our
new feet.
Maine and Texas, under the happy
choice of Secretary Whitney of the two
outermost States on our Atlantic coast
line. led off with the new battle-ships;
Indiana, Massachusetts, Oregon and Iowa
followed. New Hampshire, Vermont and
Minnesota are still represented by receiv-
ing or naval reserve ships. and the Mich
igan is on the lakes, while Tennessee and
Ohio were only few years ago on the list.
Again, many States are to some extent
favored by having the names of noted
cities chosen for cruisers and gurboats.
Thus the Empire S tate has the New York
and the Brooklyn, California the San Fran
cisco and the Monterey. Massachusetts the
Boston, the Marblehead and the Concord,
besides the old monitors Nahant and Nam
tucket; Vermont the Bennington, Georgia
the Atlanta, Illinois the Chicago, New
Jersey the Newark, Connecticut the Hart
ford, MARYLAND the Baltimore, Washing
ton the Olympia, North Carolina the Ra-
leigh, South Carolina the Charleston,
Pennsylvania the Philadelphia, Ohio the
q no Man. errNy
Minnesota the Minneapolis, Michigan the
Detroit Virginia the Yorktown, Tennessee
the Nashville, Maine the Machias and the
Castine, Montana the Helena, Delaware
the Wilmington. From this point of view
it becomes still clearer why Kentucky,
which has no town of hers thus honored,
should give her name to battle-ship.
There is no doubt that the statute. dat
ing back many years, which prescribed
that first rates In the navy should be
named after States and smaller ones after
rivers, cities and towns and so on, was
sound in principle. 1t originated as far
back as 1919, and when it was amended in
1858 its essential basis was maintained.
Only few weeks ago an English service
paper, noting the interest shown by Amer
lean cities in vessels named after them,
suggested that the practice might we'll be
adopted in that country in order to stImu-
late naval interest in the great inland
towns.
The fidelity with which our rule has
been followed in respect to the States
throws into the broadcast relief the special
honor done to the famous old Kearsarge
by perpetuating her name on battle-ship
through the special action of Congress.
Probably this is the only exception, too,
that will be made, since the only other YES
sells that would be likely to share such
honors, the Hartford and the Constitution,
are still in existence, and the sad fate of
the Kearsarge will probably cause the
greatest care to be taken that any practi-
cal use of them may be subordlnated to
safety. For this reason the project of fit
ting up the Constitution for sea service,
with a modern battery, at an expense
which would furnish tirst-class new steel
gunboat, may never be carried out.
Very soon other States and towns will
be candidates again for naming vessels.
There are six gunboats now building, and
Congress is likely to authorize two, if not
three or four, new battle-ships at the pres
ent session. The battle-ships, at least, are