The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1896-09-21

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! ship has been made an honored one by a
I brave, generous and intelligent people, Ii
| true to this name we shall have no fear
| for the future of the battleship Indiana
beautiful and majestic in peace, terrible
| in war, bravely defending and jealously
| guarding the safety, the honor and the
dignity of our country.
| Before closing it is just and proper that
/ he who was the inspiration of the senti-
ment which Is now fulfilled today in the
presentation of this SILVER service should
| have that credit due,Mr. Charles r. Will
Jams, of the Indianapolis News . He
gave unsparingly and untiringly of his
| time and labor. We all in the name of the
| State rejoice in the success which has
crowned his earnest efforts
| In conclusion, Captain Evans, no small
| qualification comes to us on this occasion
| that this presentation may be made to
| this ship while in command of one who
| has at all times and on all occasions
shown courageous devotion to his coun-
| try and lofty fidelity to duty. I beg you,
in behalf of the peopie of Indiana, to ac-
cept this silver service as an expression
of the appreciation of the honor bestowed
upon their State.
! Previous to making his presentation
! speech Governor Matthews handed Cap
/ tain Evans the following formal letter of
| gift
Indianapolis, Sept. 81 1895.
| Captain Robley D. Evans, Commanding
| U. S. Battleship Indiana:
Dear Sir-In the name of the COM
| mittee selected to represent the sub
| scribers to the purchase fund, have the
honor herewith formally to present
| through you to the battleship Indiana the
silver service and the collection of books
by Indiana authors, which are now placed
in your possession.
'The silver service is gift to the ship
for the use of all the commissioned Off
GERS who shall serve in her, and it is
the desire of the committee that when
any mess of commissioned officers of the
Indiana shall give an entertainment it
shall be entitled all na art
of the service for such occasion.
Il have the honor to be, very truly
yours,
CLAUSE MATTHEW'S
purpose of presenting a silver service and
library to the battleship Indiana is one
that reflects great credit on the people of
the commonwealth in whose honor the
ship was named 1t is seldom that sub
scriptions have been SO entirely spon-
taneous, so varied in character so thor
oughly representative of a people in all
the various relations of society. The
first announcement of the purpose was
made by the Indianapolis News, in
1890, Immediately after the publication of
this ship, the first battleship of the new
navy, was to be called the Indiana 1t
was renewed at the time the ship was
launched, in 1892. The subscription was
begun by the paper mentioned in June
1894. In an editorial, on the 2Sth of that
month, that paper said
"The News will undertake the sub
scription. 1t will collect and account for
all sums committed to it in this behalf;
will speak for public feeling on the sub
Ject; VIII IN due time suggest the ap-
pointment of committee to select de-
sign for this token.
I'VE believe We shall need only to bring
the matter fully to the attention of In
dianians to secure easily the sum that
handsome silver service We should
also have a suitable library. These two
things can be secured for about S8, 000-
not less. If it should be more all the
better. But that sum at least the willing
spirit of the good people of the State of
Indiana should undertake to make up.
Every town in Indiana should be rep
| resented in this. The News will start
the subscription with $780,. 1t appeals to
every citizen of Indiana
The response was as gratifying as it
scribe were Governor Matthews, ex-Gov-
ernor Porter and Attorney General A. G.
Smith, each of whom contributed $780,
In four days SS25 in all was subscribed
of the subscription by the News the
papers in various other cities and towns
throughout the State entered into the
movement with a laudable zest and a
friendly rivalry ensued as to which To-
cality should claim the honor of having
subscribed the largest amount toward the
fund Current affairs drew popular at
tention in other, directions constantly
and, Notwithstanding the efforts of the
newspapers, the subscriptions grew slow
ly In Nosyember, 1894. only sl.o5o had been
papers continued to publish from time
persistent was the News" A number of
prominent citizens finally took up the
matter and subscriptions began to flow in
with comparative uniformity, and the
sum began to grow with more rapidity
Collections taken up In schools, by various
societies, clubs, G. A. r. posts trades
firm af0 ha1r rrn1T
the fund and finally the Legislature in
1895 adopted a resolution appropriating
$1,000 which remained unexpended of the
appropriation made by. the Legislature
Columbian Exposition, to be paid to
Charles R. Williams. editor of the In
dianapolis News, whenever that sum
would be sufficient together with the
amount otherwise collected by said Mr..
Williams, was sufficient to complete the
purchase price of the proposed silver ser
On May IA, ex-President Harrison added
a hundred dollars to the sum, sent in a
letter to the editor of the indianapolis
News" in which he said:-
Il hope the amount yet necessary will
be speedily contributed by our citizens
''The ship is a noble one; no better
fighting ship is afioat; and our people
their appreciation of the fact that she
bears the name of our State"
The indianapolis Board Of Trade COM
pieleu the luiiu oy cOllecLl0n OF a little
over a thousand dollars made in the
city of indianapolis. Subscribers held a
meeting in the Governors parlors in the
State House on October IS, 1896 and the
Governor was empowered to appoint a
committee to be entrusted with the ex-
penditure of the fund, the selection of a
library and design for the silver service
The committee was appointed and at a
meeting in the State House ten DAYS after
1t was decided that the proposed library
should be limited to a selection of books
by representative Indiana authors and of
books relating to Indiana This decision
was determined by the fact that the
Government places an admirable general
library on every man-of-war
A subcommittee was appointed to in
yite designs and bids for a silver service
The winning design was submitted by
Tiffany & Co., of New York
The silver service consists of a full din
ner service and tea set Altogether
there are thirty-eight pieces. The key
note of the artistic and graceful deeora-
tions is the beautiful centerpiece It is
a large flower or fruit dish Of elaborate
Workmanship and delicate finish. It is
ten inches high and twenty-eight inches
long. Its weight is nearly twenty-five
a medallion; on. one the seal of the State
of Indiana is borne in high relief while
on the other, also in high relief is a
fac smiie in miniature of the Soldiers
and Sailors Monument at INDIANAPOLIS
Similar medallions appear on all theA
pieces.
The large salver is another piece. In
Ihe large open centre space there is
fine etching Of the Soldiers and Sailors,
Monument. Beneath the monument ap-
pears the seal of the State of Indiana.
and also the words -. Presented to the