The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-05-29
DUELIsrs OF THE NAVY.
Some Vivid Accounts of Personal
Adventure.


! American ships called the American oth-
GERS fell in with the officers of the Euro
pean navies. The Yankees had already
shown somewhat of their skill as sea war
riors, but in the minds of the European
officers they were at best mere plebeians.
! They were of the people. In short, in the
mind of the European officer, they We're
not gentlemen. The English officers were
| the chief aggressors in treating the Amer
leans with contumely. Considering the
state of civilization at that day, what was
| an American officer to do?
| On a certain night in the month of Feb
| ruary, 1903, while the Chesapeake, the New
| York the John Adams and the Enterprise
| were lying at Malta, number of the OIL
| GERS went ashore TO spend the evening
| Eventually they gathered at the theater
While a number of them stood in the lobby
| there, the secretary of the governor came
| in with some friends. He was of mature
| years and a noted duelist of that day-had
| killed number of men, in fact, and his
| mission in the theater was to get a fight
with one of the Yankee officers. He had
| openly boasted, it is said, that he would
| 'have a Yankee for breakfast" the next
| day.
Looking over the group, he selected one
| of the youngest Mldshipman Joseph Balm
| DIhBe, LOT MS NlttHil1 dt40 Oti waning past
| the group jostled him. As 1t happened,
| cambridge was at that moment speaking
| to a shipmate and was taken wholly by
| surprise. Having no idea that any one
| would wilfuly seek a deadly quarrel, his
| first impression was that the jostling was
| accidental Nevertheless, when the sec
| rotary walked away with a jaunty air,
| cambridge suspected that an assault had
| been intended, and he was speaking to his
| shipmates about 1t, when Lieut. Stephen
| Decatur happened along. Decatur had
| had experience in such matters and Balm
| bridge at once stated the case to him.
| We'll very soon learn whether II was
| an accident or an insult" said Decatur
| and he was turning away to go in search
| of the offender when the fellow came past
| the group from behind Decatur AS he
arrived beside young cambridge, the
| duelist said, in a voice that all could hear:
Those Yankees VIII never stand the
| smell of gunpowder" Then he jostled the
| youngster again and started on, but be-
| fore he could take second step he re-
ceived a blow from the Yankees fist that
| knocked him spTawling.
| OF course, the duelist challenged as soon
as he could get on his feet. Decatur smil-
| ed and bowed. Turning to cambridge,
| who was. it should be remembered, a boy
| of perhaps 10, Decatur said:
GO aboard ship, sir, and give yourself
| no more concern about this matter will
| attend to everything"
AS soon as cambridge left the theater
| Decatur went aside with the Englishmen
| to arrange for the inevitable duel. AS the
| challenged party the Americans had the
| right to make the terms. Said Decatur
| when the others were ready to hear him:
eve will go TO the beach at sunrise to-
| morrow morning. There we will place our
| men back to back and at the word
| March, they shall each march two steps
and then whirl and fire. There shall be
| only the one word"
| my God, mani said the English sec
| ond, that is clear murder"
| Pardon me-" said Decatur, your man
| is an experienced duelist He has picked
| out for his victim one of our young Off
GERS who has had no experience what
| ever. BY the terms that / propose they
| Will be placed as nearly on an equal foot
| ing as is possible. However, sir, If you
do not wish to fight in that way I will
| take the place of the midshipman and
meet your man on the usual terms at ten
| PAGES"
And the Enslishman chose to fight the
boy on the terms named rather than face
the experienced Decatur.
| SO Decatur went on board ship, and taxi
| in6 Mldshipman cambridge on deck, plac-
ed him with cooked but empty pistol in
! hand, back to back with a shipmate and
| said march, cambridge marched two
| steps, and snapped the empty pistol at his
| shipmate. Again he was placed in posi-
| ton, and again he marched and turned and
| snapped the pistol. And from that time on
| he stood erect and marched and turned
again and again, the whole night through;
he. was drilled in his duty till he did 1t
| as mechanically and with the accuracy Of
q clock that strikes the hour
And as the sun was tinging the morning
sky he was placed back to back with the
professional duel!st. Both marched at the
word and both turned. but because Balm
I,riAa IaI hoa nv ~.
catur he turned more swiftly than the
enemy, and shot him dead.
Let the reader decide for himself wheth-
or that was or was not a fight for the
honor of the flag.
An American lieutenant on going ashore
was publicly insulted by six British Of
ficers, who were all challenged by the
| American and 1t was arranged that ne
should meet one each day at sunrise,
should he survive long enough, until he
had had satisfaction from them all For
| four mornings the American lieutenant
rode away to the dueling ground and
| each day rode back again, leaving the
| Englishman to bring In the dead body Of
their man. But on the next morning, as
he rode out with the nth. there being no
one in the party but the principals, the
seconds, and the surgeons, mob of Brit
| sh partisans, well-armed and disguised as
| highwayme came galloping toward them
As It happened the Englishman was rid
ing thoroughbred animal and the Amer
| lean lieutenant worthless scrub.
| Seeing the mob coming the English
| mans face paled with anger.
They are coming to kill YOU" he said
| to the American lieutenant. You take
my horse and you can escape them, and
we will settle this affair at another time"
Convinced by both the English princIpaI
and his second that the mob was really
bent OH murder. the American accepted
the horse and by hard riding did escape
| But after that he did not have the heart
10 kill the one who had shown himself
| 50 much Of a man. The Englishman was
willing to apologize, and 50 was the re-
l naming one who had beep ehallepged, and