Fort Wrangel news., 1898-08-24

ou tile wlu- af rarl- tagts are af iaHl pInraflS aHH,uafuz t.#l Hu iH qu.ry k ra ls. lslI raar.rmae g.. afa pas..d usw ra-,rta.r Il Cs4reaa, sln ateprlanrr 0ira resal as .rse oassl Auz 2a lsa5" The d.cee t.as iaaar py Luuf- I1lippa lu fbr early plrt at h.s rrisu aH1 aftrr lyihl lu sheyaae' lar uafe th#a f'f.'~ear' s#4rs. i- aa# lhaut ta loo eNrcufeI sIuceI II v=a> iH4 4lr France hs,- le,u Il hta-lual. la eNn.fr and twice republic aud ls= passed through twu revolutions Mi q ea1p d'efat. Yct thr ald decr,e j- tauate, aua held to he Ia force hy t41 fest z5s- rrHHent that has cNIifl the ftaut pt the klrz wha malr |. fns=s eaui' scarcely he I mefe @.r.k!ns ,,as#.'l, at ouee of .he fyruanruea aa1 t..e iaGls- hility of government.
 The first slrausAu cuaztrgetr. for use I War u-a~ tae raltoi. a,~ sH.rl h Robert Fulton tol tAe Un!ud Statr- navy: and her obstruction lt tAe Nphr sion of her u5ga1.ac .s brought m.l hy thr Maine disaster. Tae dssi-u h. clua,d all engine tu tAroW Aat water over an enrmy'S deck anu iato the bort holes. The scheme WI, ueVyr brought into practical Use. Accounts oi tar yrssrl crossed the ocean and grew oa the way. Oue description. published in Scotland. said that h. Fulton. "hy mechanism. hrandishes threr hdndred cutlaSsss with the utmost rs.sllHr.tE over her guiWalas: works also ..H ,4tGal number ot heavy iron suiEs~ ei -9eat length. darting thr,g tlusa let ~iaes with prodiziaus force. ail WItaira e- Ing them every quarter ut q rIinute.' All that was pure invention ut eou~s'; but lt was not morr luere ltale than would have been truthful description of th, devices for kiilin.; with which modern War-ships are equipped.
 IL seems almost like going back n ante-ttlegraph aud aute-te.e4a7 7nt timer, to read of the efforts ot tAe gaE- prumrut k making D usr homin- pts- cons for coaycyiag information iu times ot WAT. The experiments bow ever. that have be,.n made prove t'at these h.r!s can deliver message fro4 d point 2pO miles out at sea tp the .,h5ce Soiap five or six hours sooner t!3an tAc ne..teSt dispatch boat in the service roull bring it. These birds are tn b, used on the swift picket boats Jaat will watch the coast. and on sighting a hos tile fleet details of its size aad direc- tion will be >eltt 10 the shore hy these pigeons. For this puriVs,e hundreds ot these birds are kept in cages oa board the vessels composing tAe Atlantic picket fleet. Attached to each hlrd k q lab"l showing the cote from whir.l if has been taken. So that the officer can select one for carrying the message that is from the plaee at which Ae wishes II to hc delivered. Whcn ho>- tile fleet k sighted q mr>oaGe giving necessary particulars will he attachel to pigeon that will fly te tho ce.a- mandunt of thc naval station the otii- crr desires 10 notify. or to several such if the fleet k q large one. When the blrd arrives the orders are tAat the ill- formation 1t brings shall be II once autographed To the navy department, which can at once give the proper di- rections for meeting the approaching enemy. So much dependence has been put upon this means of tranS.uttting .,I- formation quickly that q naval homns pigeon service has been orGanz,l. which has trained the government birds to a degree of perfection aS m"s- seuser> that k little less than marvel ous. for .hVy have shown Il rapility of flight that k more than twice the speed of the Swittest torpedo or dis- patch boat In training the hr,is are flown siugly for distances varying from ten to ninety niles at a time. and it has been found that the best results are obtained by using single birds, aS where several are started al q time they are apt 10 become confused. Tess have been made for a distance of loo miles. which the birds have covered at the rate of from tMrty-SiX to forty seven miles an hour. The ocean liners carry pigeons to be used in giving no- tice of accident or mishap. In recent case the notice of Il rescue at sea was sent by one of these birds. The pigeon did no, reach the land. as 1t lighted on another vessel but the message reach ] ed its destination in time to pre- vent much anxiety. It was to the effect that the vessel from which the bird had been sent had assisted a foreign ship, which had met with q disaster, and that it would