Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1899-10-05

salute, and the concert that followed
was soul maddening, a mad fantastic,
Notwithstanding roar that continued
for almost ten minutes. The parade
at this point became disorganized,
many pleasure craft leaving the line
below and crowding so fiercely about
the Olympia that she was manouyered
with great difficulty. 1t was not until
all the warships had passed in review
that an incident occurred which
showed that with all his geniality, the
hero Of Manila could also be a very
stern sailor. In less than
minute after the Chicago had passed
the Olympia by the admiral's order the
stream signal flag ordered the vessels
Of the fleet to dress ship, and the
crews Of the men-of-war ran up the
ralnboWs OF signal flags from stem to
stern over their topmasts. The order
was beautifully executed except aboard
the flagship where the fouling of line
in the top Of one Of the stacks caused
delay. Dewey instantly roared out the
Command for some one to ease the line.
1t fouled again and nimble sailor was
sent aloft to clear il. 1t was perhaps
two minutes before the flags were in
their proper places. The admiral was
plainly displeased. He sent for the
officer under whose direction the order
was acknowledged and called him upon
the bridge. Il am ashamed of this he
n of criy q
command in roaring gale.
Several times when the excursion
boats chered as they passed close to
the Olympia, the admiral called upon
the crew to stand by and cheer. Each
time the sailors leaped upon the steel
bulwarks and with swinging caps, re-
sponded to the command with a thrill
When the crowds Of vessels about the
flagship became so dense that the pa
rade was impeded the admiral ordered
police patrol boats to clear the way
of the ships that had left the line and
had sperad themselves about the Olym-
pia like a flock Of wild fowl. He did
not leave the bridge until approach
ing darkness.
The naval parade from points of
Warshlps was an immense marine pic
ture, water pageant with so little OF
incident compared with it's great size
that it appealed to the eye as a paint
ing rather than a drama. The vast
gathering of water craft maintained an
average speed of eight knots, but so
magnificent was its area that the i'm
preston was one Of exceedingly slow
stately movement. The night had
been busy one in the fleet of warships
off Tompkinsville. The last details of
the days ceremony were hardly settled
before day itself broke on the scene of
greater activity than this classic
anchorage had ever witnessed before
vessels of the white squadron swung
at thir anchorage as for the past two
days but the crowd of neighboring
craft had been sWelled past counting
1t was magnificent shifting picture Of
tugs, police boats, ireboats, torpedo
boats, yachts, launches, tramp steam
ers, ocean liners, sailing craft of every
rig, with big ferry and excursion boats
poughing their way through the ruck
in mysterious paths that opened before
them and closed behind them like ice
of an arctic foe.
Noon was ushered in with a scream
of whistles that sounded like ten thou
sand craft. The serenade lasted five
minutes during which enough steam
was wasted to have run an ocean liner
to the Azores. The last far away echo
had hardly drifted back from the
Staten Island hills when sudden
impulse seemed to seize the far-reach-
ing mass of tugs and other craft. The
brilliant code of flags blossomed like
flowers on the Olympia from bridge
to main top. 1t was the order to form
in column. The Brooklyn's pennant
snapped AYE, aye" from it's signal
yard and a duplicate set of flags passed
the order to the Indiana whence it was
flung from ship to ship down the
squadron. The evolution began at 1
o'clock and in fifteen minutes the fight
ing line was Strengthened out up the
harbor. Admiral Dewey was going to
his own at the head of the squadron
that would have won, at need, three
battles of Manila bay without stopping
for breakfast The head of the column
was broad arrow. Six torpedo boats
spread out as barbs, three on each
side, from the Olympia's quarter Out
side of them, the flying wedge of po-
lice patrol boats formed the letter V
whose apex was the Olympia. Flank
ing them, ahead and astern were har-
Dor fireboats, spouting great columns
of water that turned threateningly
toward the excursion boats on either
side when they attempted to crowd the
line Of march. But the pageant back
of this powerful vanguard was a sinu-
Gus marine monster half a mile wide
whose vertebra were ships of the
white squadron and whose ribs were
rows upon rows of every sort of float
ing thing that had ever run by steam
in New York harbor. Thousands
viewed the spectacle as it moved up
past Staten Island; thousands more
watched it from the anchored sailing
craft that crowded Erie Basin. But
they were forgotten in the mass of hui
ananity that crowded the water front
of Manhattan Island and filled every
point Of vantage along the
Jersey shore. Every foot of the city
water front was a mass of humanity.
Wharves, the ferry slips, roofs of every
warehouse, rose one above the other in
solid blocks of people above the lower