Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1898-09-06

| the main deck, which is covered by
| stretching tarpaulins, making a cool
J broad piazza, and so we went down and
down, peering into dark holes leading 20
I the coal-bunkers, not forgetting the TO-
| castle, peeping into the officers quar-
tiers, looking into the galley. at the cooks
multitudinOus pots and pans and
skewers and pipkins. The cooks and Off
! GERS servants on the oregon are most
/ ly Japs and Chinese.
/ 81 asked a heather Chinee' II he came
| all the way round the Horn. and If il was
/ cold, and how II was round by Callao,
| and If he minded crossing the line, 10 all
OF which he replied as calmly as the ia
nous An Sin, and with the same wonder
fu mixture of assumed simplicity and
, heather cunning. the same bland, gentle
way-in fact All Sin all over. / eX-
changed my flag stickpin with a big negro
sailor (whose ebon face was all pearls and
powder at the sight Of iD for a button
which he cut from his trousers. Many
officers rooms are filed with relies and
treasures
AT 4:30 O'Clock all visitors were ordered
off ship AS we were leaving the New
York steamed in majestcally, fired a
salute To the cCmmodores flag on the re-
ceiving ship, to which a reply was made.
1t was a pretty sight and the flagship Is
a gallant cruiser. She anchored near the
torpedo-boat Cushing and the Foote and
the famous Winslow, upon which, you
remember. the first casualty Of the war
occurred. Nearby Jay the Nictheroy now
the Buffalo, and the Chicago was not far
off. The latter. I believe. was the first
cruiser we built. The Wampatuck was
also in the yard.
ION leaving the oregon we went up the
dock a short distance TO the Iowa. She
is much roomier ship, having the great
est freeboard Of any, and the fnlshings
seem more elaborate. We inspected her
white enamelled torpedo tubes below, saw
the torpedoes slung I'm wire cages, little
winged nautiluses glanced into the Sc
cond officers state-room, the chart-roOm,
walked the steel-sheathed deck, breathed
the very atmosphere OF war, peeped az
the pinnacle forward looked at the
small boats taken from the CristObal
Colen, even the anchors. anchor-blts, and
enormous steel hawsers. each link
heavy weight-all this, and more, we saw.
Again came the order TO 'repel boarders.'
and the pretty girls, smiling fareweils to
their MILDLY sweethearts, followed us
down the gang-plank, and we passed
under the bronze eagle at the entrance
to the yard looking back at the gray
leviathans. till only The golden figure
heads upon their prows, cleaning In the
setting sun, was a mark 10 guide the eye
TO the greatest battleships OF the proud
est nation on the earth.
Il am getting TO be such a patriotic
citizen and so much enthused with the
subject that / have not stopped to count
space or 10 take any consideration OF your
good nature in reading so long and dry
a dissertation upon a subject that would |
tax even your powers OF description 90 |
properly make due amends 10 so grand |
a theme. However. as | have gotten Il |
writ down after a fashion and In a way |
all my own, shall send il. in the hope |
that your Imagination can furnish detail |
In the course OF the forenoon I have |
had few moments leisure at odd times |
md have taken advantage OF the |
opportunity. so 1t Is patchwork of the
worst kind"