Greene County herald. (Leakesville, Miss.) 1898-current, 1898-10-06

fare has, us rule, kept pace with i'm
provements in the arts. With respect
to size and strength. the navles of the
world have generally taken rank &C
cording as their necessities required
and the enforcement of their claims,
meritorious or otherwise, demanded.
England, with territory upon all
of which the sun never sets at one
lime, has the most formidable navy in
/ The world, and the rest of the world
/ agrees that she needs it America,
whose acres are contiguous and whose
/ foreign policy has been preventative
rather than aggressive, has hereto
fore been satisfied with the fifth navy
of the world, trusting to her noninter
| ference and the great bodies of salt
water to her east and west as a de-
Tense. The apparent incompatability
| between the great commercial inter
ests of the United States and the pow
erty of her national defenses has long
been the marvel of Europe, and a great
many thinking people of our own coun-
try have doubted the policy Of trusting
too implicitly in natural resources and
natural defenses.
Comparisons are not always odious,
but they are usually difficult. To COM
pare the navy of colonial times with
the navy Of today Is like comparing
tallow candles with arc lights, stage
coaches with modern railway palaces
and Fanueil hall with the Chicago
| A 16itOrt1p1 nv. IN fe
comparing wood with steel, sailing
tackle with tyyin-screw motors and
primitive gun powder with brown
prismatlc," dynamite and nltroglycerin.
sAips of a Past Century.
II might be noted that In October,
&c, the colonies owned twenty-six yes.
sels, manning 536 guns; that the frigate
OF the revolution was generally forty
feet long, propelled by oars and sails
carrying two small guns and O supply
of small ordnance; that in 1908 the
navy department was formally organ
lied; that in 1900 Congress authorized
The construction of 257 wooden wal
vessels, but finding the scheme zoo ex
pensiye and the first vessels too I'm
wieldly abandoned the enterprise; tina
the Bon Homme Richard, commanded
by Paul Jones, carried twenty-eigh
twelve-pounders on her gun deck, four
teen nine-pounders on her quarter decl
and forecastle and total armament o
forty-two guns, but these facts and fig
ures give little insight into the real sit
uation Of the early days and afford n
criterion whatever for comparison wit
Rear Admiral Simpsons feet In tn
West indies.
A review Of .he early history of th
American navy does not require, there
fore, that the student go back farthe
than the beginning of the present GER
fury, when steam was first applied t
, the propulsion of vessels. Passing b.
the discussion as to whether Fultol
was In fact the first man who apple,
, steam as motor for ships, suffice it t
say that in 1914 he proposed to build
Floating battery" for the defense o
, New York harbor, vessel to be Pre-
, PEELED by steam, with central paddle
wheel, to carry twenty guns, with
speed Of four knots an hour. Accord
Ing to this plan the vessel was to carr
, two submarine guns, one at each bow
, 30 as to strike the enemy below tn
water line. Provision was also mad
for throwing large quantity Of waite
, on the enemy at close quarters.
The ship was launched as proposed
a In November, 1914, and in June of til
a \. 4. - y
q place. She was called the Demologo
and after the death Of her inventor wa
rschristened the Fulton. The Fulto