The San Francisco call., 1897-05-16
OUR STEAM NAVY.

TN11Ep ir1F STATES NAVY AND OF THE
-.N NAVAL ENGINEER CORPS - By Frank NJ.
Bennett, passed assistant engineer, U. ). n.
Pittsburg: ~ s"lrI Il Co, publishers
Clark Russell has cast almost as bright
halo of romance about the career OF the mer-
chant sailor as Michael Scott did around the
life of the young English naval officer when
he gave 10 the world Tom Cringles Log and
1.-The Cruise OF the Midge." But the novels
has yet TO come who will tinge with idealism
the story OF the lieutenant who walks the
deck or pushes the button on the bridge of the
floating fighting machine of to-day. Ii the
writer of fiction is wanting to heroize the man
who makes his home in the modern IRON
clad, one branch of the naval profession may
well feel proud OF champion who has en-
tered the list in their behalf.
In his History OF the Steam Navy of the
United States" Frank NJ Bennett, passed as
sistant engineer. U. S N, has given US work
as interesting as Il vel and as instructive as
faithful chronicle should be.
II was in this country that the first steam
vessel for war purposes was built and it is
fitting that the story of the development OF
steam engineering should be told by an Ameri-
can engineer. 1t is in our navy that this de-
velopment has been most marked, and although
over three-quarters of a century has elapsed
since the launching of the clumsy Demolgos
10 the completion of the swift-sailing and
powerful Iowa, not decade has gone by that
has not witnessed some step forward.
The popular idea is that the engineer deals
only with material things; that he takes no
part in the glorious possibilities of war. The
engineer, like the British soldier in Napier's
famous comparison, though fighting patiently
and well could look forward to no honors 10
reward his daring; "his life of danger and
hardship was uncheered by hope, his death
unnoticed," while Napoleons troops fought
in bright fields, where every helmet caught
some CLEANS OF glory"
The assertion of Mr.. Bennett cannot be gain
SAID that a much frmer and finer degree of
courage is required in the officer who COM
mands division OF men imprisoned beneath
the battle-hatches of a war steamer than in
him whose followers are in the open air and
in sight of their danger. While Mr.. Bennett
has paid lifting tribute to the courage and
fidelity OF he engineer corps and made evil
dent the justice of its claim for equal rank
with the line, he has done more. He has
given US history OF tAe navy since 1910 that
in some respects is superior to any here tofore
published. OF especial value to those inter-
ested in naval matters is the care with which
the author has traced the careers of the vari-
Gus steam vessels from the day they left the
builders hands until the end-somet times
swallowed up by old ocean, ofrener relegated
to the scrap pile.
Beginning with an account of the planning
and construction OF the Demolgos by Robert
Fulton in 1914, we are given in work of 900
pages what is apparently an exhaustive his
tory of the steam navy of the United States.
Had Fulton's craft been completed in the time
expected there is no doubt but she would have
cleared our seacoast of the British feet and
anticipated in a way the revolution in naval
warfare achieved by the Merrimac-Moni-
tor incident nearly sixty years later. The sud
den death of Fulton and other ntoward events,
however, delayed the completion of the vessel
until peace was declared. The Demolgos vas
afterward named the Fulton. She was taken
TO Brooklyn navy-yard, where she was used as
q receiving ship un.n 1929, when one day in
June her magazine exploded, completely de-
gtroying the vessel, killing twenty-fout
persons and wounding nineteen. This
the inglorious end of the first
steam war vessel ever built. 1t was
not till 1897 that another steamer was
added to our navy. This was also named the
Fulton. She was of 1900 tons displacement
and $50 feet long. She was commanded by
Captain N. c. Perry, afterward the commodore
who opened the ports of Japan to our COM
merce. 1t was owing to Captain Perry's sug-
gestion in regard 10 the offering of the Fulton
that the beginning of the engineer corps in the
navy was made The Fulton was employed in
active service until 1912, when she was laid
up a Brooklyn for ten years. She was then
practically rebuilt and again placed in COM
mission. When the Pensacola navy-yard was
abandoned by the Confederates in 1862 the
Fulton, which was laid up in ordinary there,
was burned with the other craft.
When the Mexican War broke out the ouly
available steam vessels in the navy were the
Mississippi and Princeton, and they were at
once placed on blockade duty in conjunction
with several sailing frigates. Later two side
wheel steamers-the Vixen and Spiteful-of
240 tons each were added to the feet They
rad singularly enough, been built for the
Mexican Government, but on the outbreak OF
hostiliries were purchased by the United
States. subsequently several other steam YES
sells of smaller tonnage were purchased and
sent down to the gulf. In 1850 there was
:. noticeable addition made to the steam vessels
of the navy by the completion OF the frig ates
Susquehanna and Powhatan, which were each
$50 feet long and of nearly 1000 tons dis
placement. These were followed by two
smaller craft-the Saranac and San Jacinto-of
2200 tons displacement.
in 1854 six first-class steam frigates were
authorized by Congress, and the Merrimac,
Wabash, Norfolk, Roanoke, Minnesota and
Niagara were built at the Government yards.
They were full-rigged ships, could steam
eight knots and were exceptionally fast sail
ers Five new screw sioops-of-war were added
to the navy by act of Congress in 1857, and
four of them, Pensacola, Lancaster, Hartford
and Richmond, were built by the Govern
nent, while the fifth, the Brooklyn, was built
by contract in New York. Four more screw
sloops we're also shortly added, the Mohican.
Iroouois, Wyoming and Dakota, soon followed
nv three smaller ones, the Narragansett, Semi
mole and Pawnee. All these vessels took part
in the Civil War.
During the War of the Rebellion the en-
gineers corps did most valua bic service and
made possible the four years blockade OF the
Southern ports At the beginning of hostili-
ties there were 1872 engineers in the service,
and % of them resigned to join the Confeder-
acy After the increase of strife the number
had grown at the end of 1861 to 404 in the
regular service aud 364 acting engineers.
These men were distributed among the numer-
Gus merchant vessels the Government bought
and pressed into service and ON the large
number built in the nayy-yards.
The first ironclads, the Monitor, Galena and
New Ironsides were built during the first year
of the war The result of the great naval duel
IN Hampton Roads having shown the value OF
the monitor type a number OF similar craft
were ordered. OF these six were designed by
Ericsson, the builder of the Monitor. Thye
were named Passaic. Montauk, Catskill, Pa
tapsco' Lehigh and Sangamon, while the Nan
tucket, Wee eehawken and Camanche were built
py dlnerent contractors. Most OF these Ves-
sells are still afoat The Camanche now lying
IN the harbor of San Francisco.
Mr.. Bennett gives a very comprehensive
sketch OF the origin OF 'TeIative rank" that ap-