Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1899-10-05

copyright. Louis Klopsch 1901
WASHINGTON, Oct 1.-At n time when
the whole nation is stirred with patriotic
emotion at the return of Admiral George
Dewey and his gallant men on the cruiser
Olympia and the magnificent reception
accorded to them. the Rev. Dr. L. DE
Witt Tamagc, in his sermon, preaching
to vast audience, appropriately recalls
for devout and patriotic purposes some of
the great naval deeds of olden and more
recent times. Text, James iii. A, Be
hold also the ships"
If this exclamation was appropriate
about 1872 years ago, when it was writ
ten concerning the crude fishing smacks
that sailed Lake Gallce, how much more
appropriate in an age which has launch
ed from the drydocks for purposes of
peace the Oceanic of the White Star line,
the Lucania of the Cunard line, the st.
Louis of the American line, the Kaiser
Wilhelm der Crosse of the North German
Lloyd line, the Augusta Victoria of the
Hamburg American line, and in an age
which for purposes of war has launched
the screw sloops like the Idaho, the Shen-
andoah, the Ossipee, and our ironclads
like the Kalamazoo, the Roanoke and the
Dunderherg, and those which have al
ready been buried in the deep, like the
Monitor, the Housatonic and the Wee
hawken. the tempests ever since sounding
volley over their watcry sepulchers.
and the Oregon, and the Brooklyn and
the Texas, and the Olympia. the Iowa,
the Massachusetts, the Indiana, the New
York, the Marietta of the last war, and
the SCARED veterans of war shipping,
like the Constitution or the Alliance or
the Constellation, that have swung into
the naval yards to spend their last days,
their decks now all silent of the feet that
trod them, their rigging all silent of the
hands that chung to them, their portfolios
silent of the brazen throats that once
Numbered out of them.
If In the first century, when war YES
sells were dependent on the oars that
padded at the side of them for propul-
sion, my text was suggestive, with how
much more emphasis and meaning and
overwhelming "reminiscences we can cry
out as we see the Kearsarge lay across
the bows of the Alabama and sink 1t,
teaching foreign nations they had better
keep their hands off our American fight,
or rs we see the ram Albemarle Of the
Confedcrates running out and in the Ro-
anoxe and up and down the coast throw
ing everything into confusion as no other
craft ever did, pursued by the Miami.
the Ceres, the Southiield. the Sassacus,
the Mattabesett, the Whitehead, the
Commodore Hull, the Louisiana, the
Minnesota and other armed vessels, all
trying in vain to catch her, until Captain
Gushing, 81 years of age, and his men
blew her up, himself and only one other
escaping, and as | see the flagship Hart
ford, and the Richmond, and the Mo-
nongahea, with other gunboats, sweep
past the batteries of Port Hudson, and
the Mississippi flows forever free to all
northern and southern craft, and under
the fire of Dewey and his men the Span
ish ships at Manila burn or sink, and the
feet rushing out Of Santiago harbor are
demolished by our guns, and the brave
Cervera surrenders, | cry out with a pa
triotc emotion that l cannot suppress if
! would. and would not if / could. "Be-
hold also the ships"
Naval Heroes Deserve Praise.
Full justice has been done to the men
who at different times fought on the land,
but not enough has been said of those
who on ships deck dared and suffered all
things. Lord God Of the rivers and the
sea, help me in this sermon, &c. ye nd
mirals, commanders captains, pilots, gun
ners, boatswains, sailmakers, surgeons,
stokers, messmates and seamen OF all
names, to use your own parlance, we
might as well get under way and stand
out to sea. Let all andubbcrs go ashore.
Full speed now! Four bells.
Never since the sea fight of Lepanto,
where 300 royal galeys, manned by 90
OOO warriors, at sunrise, Sept. 6, 1871,
met 300 royal galeys, manned by 120,-
600 men, and in the four hours of battle
5000 fell on one side and 5000 on the
other; yea, never since the day when at
Actum, 81 years before Christ, Angus
tus with 2GO ships scattered the 300 ships
of Mark Antony and gained universal
dominion as the prize; yea, since the day
when at Sanmis the 1,2OO galleys of the
Persiaus, manned by 100000 men, were
crushed by Greeks with less than a third
of that force; yea, never since the time
of Noah. the first ship captain, has the
world seen such miraculous creation as
that of the american navy in 1861.
There were about 200 available seamen
in all the naval stations and receiving
ships and here and there an old vessel
Yet orders were given to blockade $500
miles of seacoast. greater than the whole
coast of Europe, and, besides that, the
Ohio, Tennessee, Cumberland. Missssip
p and other great rivers covering an ex
tent of 1000 more miles, were to be pa
trollcd. No wonder the whole civilized
world burst into outlaws of laughter a
the seeming impossiblity. But the WORK
was done, done almost Immediately, done
thoroughly and done with speed anc
consummate skill that ecIpsed all the his
tory of naval architecture. What bril-
liant achievements are suggested by thu
mere mention Of the names of the rea
admrals! If all they did should be writ
ten, every one, | suppose that even thu
world itself could not contain the book
that should he written. But these name
have received the honors due. The mos
of them went to their graves under thu
cannonade of all the forts, navy yard
and men-of-war, the flags of all the ship
ping and capitals at half mast.
i recite today the deeds of our nava
heroes, many of whom have not yet re
ceived appropriate recognition. "Behol'
also the ships" AS we will never know
what our national prosperity is wort
until we realize what it costs, | recall tn
unrected fact that the men of the nav,
in all our wars ran especial risks. The,
had not only the human weaponry t
} contend with, but the tides, the fog, tn
storm. Not like other ships could the
run into harbor at the approach of IA
equinox or cyclone or hurricane, be
cause the havbors were hostile. A mis-
! l. .a-l4 a.