The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-03-15
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EXERCISE ON MEN-OF-WAR.
Necessity of Daily Drill for HenIth's
Sake.
From the New York Sun.

From the New York Sun.
The sunlight fading out of the clear cold
sky and flashing, crimson and gold, in
the windows of the tall buildings across
the river engaged the attention of Lieu
tenant Commander Rodgers. executive Of
ficer of the big white battleship Indiana,
one afternoon last week. He was com
menting on the beauty of the picture,
when the officer of the deck, whose red
nose and ears testified to the sharpness
Of the breeze, approached him.
shall we have the setting-up exercises
ashore or on board, sir?' he asked.
Mr.. Rodgers looked over the stretch of
black soil which extended from the wat
ers edge to the Lyceum building in the
navy yard. The ground was frozen hard
and the sharp eye of the executive officer
could detect no mud holes.
Have 1t ashore" he said. The deck Off
GER saluted and went away. Eight bells
sounded. and the ships buglers began TO
blow the call for evening quarters. One
by one the officers struggled up the com
panionways, buckling on their swords and
pulling on their gloves. Mr.. Rodgers stood
in the lee of the after turret and received
reports from the different divisions.
Engineers division all accounted for,
SIR" one messenger would say, and then
scurry away to his quarters. The marine
guard formed on the deck abaft the SUPER
structure. Lieut.. Hatch, their long-limbed
dark-faced, young commander, inspected
them, and then In quick tones ordered
them 90 march. Stiff as a ramrod he
tramped at their head down the broad
gangplank to the dock 1t was the be-
ginning of an exodus. From forward and
aft bluejackets streamed over the ships
side side until nearly 500 men, the entire
ships company, were marching and coun-
termarching in the space between the ship
and the navy yard building. They were
aligned in divisions. First they were put
through the setting-up exercises.
arms right?' and right arms shot out
horizontally. Arms down." The extend
ed arms dropped.
The perfect drill of a man-o'-war show
ed in the regularity and precision of the
movements. Lieutenant Commander Rod
gers stood in front of the first division
and gave orders, which were passed along
from division officer to division officer, so
that in the performance of the motions
each division was a few seconds behind
that Immediately in front of It, The re-
suit was a wavy effect, which was par
ticularly marked in the bending move
ments, when it seemed as if a strong
breeze blowing bent the heads Of each sue
ceeding line as it passed.
Attention." shouted Mr.. Rodgers, and
the men stood motionless lines of blue
making a gridiron of the field. Suddenly
the blare of the bugles rang, a drum was
beaten, and then the notes Of Pop Goes
the Weasel" rolled brlskly out Every di-
vision started to run! 1t was the double
time. The men ran in columns OF two
and the field seemed covered with the long
line of bluejackets, wheeling this way and
that squirming in and out, every man In
step with the others and in time with the
music and the red stripes of the marines
flashing amid the sober and stripeless
wilderness of sailors leg. For fifteen
minutes the exercise was continued, and
the men returned to the ship.
As they did so a bluejacket walked to
the flagstaff and began handling the hal
lizards. The buglers began to play "col-
ors" Every man faced the flag, which
blew out straight and stiff in the strong
wind, and stood at attention. The blue
Jacket pulled at the halliards and the Stars
and Stripes came futtering down. AS
they touched the deck officer and men
lifted their hand in salute. The day was
officially at an end on the battleship In
diana.
This exercise is gone through at even
ing and morning quarters on all the ships
in the navy" said one of the officers when
all the men had gone below. 'Tn the old
ships the men got exercise enough i'm work.
ing the vessel There was rigging TO be
looked after and many other duties had
to be attended TO which have no place in
the life of the modern man-o wars man.
battleship nowadays Is a hive into
which men are crowded. We must have
them for the guns and for the engines, but
there Is little work to be done which gives
them open-air exercise. SO we put them
through the calisthenic exercise and the
double time to timber them up Usually
these exercises are performed on the ship,
but when the ground is dry we send the
men out there on the dock where there is
plenty of room. They get a better chan.,
for the double time, and enjoy II much more
than they DO on shipboard,"