The new dominion. [volume] (Morgantown, W. Va.) 1876-1904, 1897-10-27
BACK TO FRISCO.
Frank Lazier Tells of Life in
the Navy.
A Private letter written to DR.. A. NJ.
Lazier not Intended for Publication
but his Young Friends Here viii
Read 1t With Interest.
U. S. S. PHILADELPHIA, /
AT SEA,
October 10, 1897. }

u. .. .. PHILADELPHIA.
AT SKA,
October 10, 1897.
DEAR COUSIN:
We are now on our way home from
Honolulu. We left much sooner than /
expected, for did not think we would
leave fer several months to come. The
e. S. S. Wheeling arrived in Honolulu
on Saturday, the End of October, and
brought our good news, and you may
know how happy we were after laying
there for nearly six months, to have such
good news come suddenly and not ex-
pecting it. We left on the 9Th OF October
three days after the Wheeling arrived.
The Wheeling is a small gun boat for
river use and Is named after Wheeling,
w. Va. She has just been put in COM
mission and this is her first trip. We
are now five days out at this writing and
have yet four days run 10 make before
we reach San Francisco. 1t takes nine
days for us to make the run from Homo
lulu to Frisco, the distance being 2,1S0
miles. The mail steamers make it in
six days. We have been making on an
average OF 0 $40 knots an hour, where
the mail steamers make Is knots. We
passed the City of Picking on her way to
l..
sea sick this trip, but it did not last long.
We have quite number OF marines who
get very sick every time we go to sea,
and some of them stay sick all the trip.
Now / will tell you why we were ordered
home so soon. The Baltimore is ready
to go in commission and they have not
enough men to put her in, SO we were
ordered home with orders to put the
nh At,f n ...I
transfer all the men including the whole
ships company over on the Baltimore,
and then we will 90 back to Honolulu,
for we left the Admiral and staff there to
await our return. The Admirals flag
was transferred to the gun boat Ben
nington, which is now in Honolulu Har-
Dor The Baltimore has been out Of
commission for ever eighteen months
and is practically new, having under
gone extensive repairs, and is now ready
for pleasant cruise. BY the time this
letter reaches you | will be on my Sec
ond year. | am in one year the 18th of
October. | cannot mail this letter un-
til we reach Frisco. So when we get
there will write some more about what
we are going to do 1t is a decided fact
that we will go to the Baltimore, except
a few short timers. ! did not get my
face taken in Honolulu but will soon !;
we left long before any one expected to.
expect some mail waiting in Frisco
when | get there so will wait and see
before / finish this letter SO will close
for few days.
U. S. s. Philadelphia,
Mare Island, Cal.
Oct 18th, 1897.
Dear Cousin:
We are now tied up to the dock at
Mare Island navy yard and all prepare
tons are made for the transfer to the
Baltimore, everything is upside down,
all the officers have left the ship except
a few to see to work and all men are
busy taking all of their own belongings
to the Baltimore which is only few
yards down the dock. / tell you she is
a beaut ; she looks just like a new ship.
We only stopped in Frisco for few
hours to be inspected by the customs
and health officers. We will leave for
Honolulu within two weeks from now,
on the Baltimore to get the Admiral and
staff and stay there until the question OF
annexation is settled and after that to
take in the whole Of the Pacific station,
for it is always the custom for new
Admiral to go over his whole station in
the beginning and ending of his time
on that station. | always wanted to get
on the Baltimore for it is peach. You
will remember the time the Baltimore
had the trouble in VALPARAISO, Chill,
where several of the men were killed /;
well we are going there before we come
back to Frisco. The Baltimore has not
been there since the trouble which was
seven years ago. The Philadelphia was
there and one of the marines told me
that the natives thought she was the
Baltimore and they could not make
them believe any better. They said it
was lie that we just changed the name.
By the time this letter reaches you
will be on the Baltimore and as we will
stay here for few days before we go
south | want to hear from you in the
meantime. Yours, as ever,
FRANK.