The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1898-05-15
NAMES OF TORPEDO BOATS.
Heroic Deeds and Men Recalled By
Some of Them.

whats in a name?" Well, it all de-
pends In a rose IL may not be mat
ter of much Importance, but in war
snip, fer example, the inspiring ERECT
of a name enriched by heroic associa-
tions adds a generous percentage to the
efficiency of her crew. The American
navy is coming to have many OF these
inspiring names. Take. for instance,
the boats of the torpedo fleet. They
are likely to afford the greatest oppor-
tunities for the display of heroism and
personal daring, and they present
galaxy of names revered by every
Jackie in the navy.
Could a torpedo boat have more
appropriate name than the Gushing,
which commentaries the gallant union
lieutenant who destroyed the ironclad
Albermarle at the risk of almost certain
death, and whose work was the fore
runner of that which his steel name
sake is expected to dO2 On board the
little craft the name of Gushing is held
up as q. constant source or emulation
to the members of the crew, and pet
ter motto than is furnished by the brave
deed of that gallant sailor II would De
impossible for them to find.
The Porter bears a name that fills the
American tar with pride and recalls the
only sea fight that ever took place De
tween the United States and SPAIN 1t
was in 1906 that Commodore David Por-
ter, then only &c years old, fought IL
Spanish gunboats with the single ship
Enterprise and gave them more than
they wanted. The engagement took
place Just off Gibraltar, and although
the Enterprise made no captures her
plucky commander emerged from the
unequal contest with whole skin and
an uninjured ship. q remarkable record
under the circumstances.
The Foote is named for the brave and
pious old admiral who first taught the
celestials that there was nation on
this side of the world that knew how
to fight. 1t was in 1856, when the Eng
lish and Chinese were at war, that the
Chinese forts fired on Foote'S ships,
which were there to protect American
interests.
The doughty commander demanded
an instant apology. When it was not
he landed his men and led
them against the four forts. Their J.
foot walls of granite were protected by
many guns and contained 5000 Chinese
soldiers, but Foote captured them with
400 Americans and lost but 40 men,
against the enemy's loss of 400
The Dupont is named for tha naval
leader of the Mexican war and the
Winslow for the commander OF the
famous old Kearsarge. The Rodgers
one of the naval heroes !
of 1872. The Ericsson bears a name !
which revolutionized naval warfare
when it's owner built the Monitor ana
sent her against the much feared Mer- !
rimac in Hampton Roads our newest
torpedo boat, the one which was re-
Gently bought in England and which
has not yet been brought to this side
of the Atlantic, is called the Somers.
The name of commander Richard
Scmers is not so familiar as that OF
Gushing, yet it is connected with an
action as glorious in its courage ana
more unfortunate in its outcome tnan
that which made Lieutenant Gushing
famous.
In The year 1904, when the Uaited |
States was fighting the Barbary !
pirates, Somers manned a fire-ship
loaded with gunpowder and combusti-
bles and sailed her into the harbor OF
TripoH at night to destroy the enemy
ships. Before he started on MS
perilous mission he said to his little
crew of volunteers:
Let no man go with me who. does
not prefer death to surrender" Not a
man of the crew drew back
The ship and it's men fioated silently
away in the darkness, and their COM
rades waited long and anxiously for
some sign to tell of their fate AT last
the enemy's batteries on shore began to
fire. and a Pickering light was seen in
the direction which the fire ship had
taken. In an instant it blazed up into
flash that lighted the whole harbor, and
there was an explosion which rocked
the American ship a mile away. Then
the darkness settled down awain.
In the morning one of the enemy's
ships had disappeared. and two others
were disabled, but Somers and his bold
were never seen again 1t
is believed that Somers blew up the
magazine of his ship with his own hand
and persisted in order to accomplish his
object.
rhe battleships of the American navy
are named from different states of the
Union, except the Kearsarge. which
continues a name made famous in the
civil war by the encounter between the
old Kearsarge and the Alabama The
cruisers are named from various cities. |
and the monitors bear Indian or other !
historic names more or less striking in |
sound and significance.