Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1899-10-16
AN ABLE MAN IN COMMAND
Admiral Farquhar's Flag Raised Over North
Atlantic Squadron.
The New Commander Has Shown
Marked Ability in Every
Former Assignment.
Special Correspondence of The Evening Star.

NORFOLK Va, October IA, 1899.
For the first time since before the OPEN
ing of the Spanish-American war the North
Atlantic squadron has a new commander
in-chief When the fighting ships entered
Hampton Roads for their autumn rendeZ-
vous the flag of Rear Admiral VIM. T.
Sampson fioated from the main truck OF
the flagship New York, over which it has
waved in peace and in war for twenty
months When the squadron departs for
its winter evoutions off the capes of Vir-
ginia, known as the southern drill ground"
Rear Admiral Norman H. Farquhar will
be the commanding officer. The change of
commanders, an exceedingly simple and
bUsiness-like proceeding, took place off Old
Point Comfort, Va, at noon today.
The flag of the new cOmmander-in-chief
was hauled down at the Norfolk navy yard
Saturday, September -. His adminstra-
ton of the affairs Of that important naval
station upon which so much was dependent
just at the opening of the war shows Ad
miral Faruuhar to be a man of action. and
is a favorable commentary upon the Navy
Department wisdom in selecting him for
the high honor of commanding the home
squadron.
When the destruction of the Maine and
succeeding events showed war with Spain
to be unavoidable every vessel of the navy
was at once rushed into commission and
placed on a war footing. The division of
the heavy armored cruisers and battle
ships into the flying squadron and the
blockading squadron left no available ships
for coast defense. The organization -
MOSQUITO fleet was quickly determined upon
and its equipment was begun before the
government had acquired single vessel of
the merchant marine service. which was
supposedly it's principal reliance for auxil-
iary vessels Quickly the Treasury Depart
ment turned over to, the navy its large fleet
of coast survey vessels. lighthouse tenders
and revenue cutters, These harmless craft,
except the cutters, required everything ex-
cept hull and machinery in order to make
them effective for war purposes. The ma
chinery had to be protected from the enc
my's fire; guns had to be mounted and
decks, not intended for such strain, braced
to Withstand the weight and conclusion Of
the cannon In short. everything had to be
DONE and that, too, in the greatest sort Of
hurry.
There was no time for red tape. The At
lantic coast needed protection; scout boats
must be had; the navy could not operate
away from its base Of supplies without col
liers. The government acquired tramp
steamships many of which flew the British
partment's mongrel fleet rushed to the Nor
| folk navy yard, and, one month before
Dewey's victory, the mile and more of
water front there looked like a ship hos
pital; for rusty and uncouth craft of every
description were tied up alongside the sea
wall three deep for its entire length.
When Admiral then Commodore Far
quhars assistants at the navy yard saw
these things they were ere APPALLED,. How
they asked the commandant. With the
same decision that saved the lives of hun
dreds of his men during the great Samoan
hurricane Admiral Farquhar said that the
seemingly impossible must be done "This
work has been sent here" he declared;
sit must be finished. The nation Is relying
] upon this navy yard, from its commandment