The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1900-10-22
CRUISE OF THE BUFFALO.
The w.rship Returns After SIX
Months World Circlipx.

| Months World Circling.
| NEW YORK. Oct. 21-The auxiliary
cruiser Buffalo. originally the Morgan
| liner Ell Cid and later the Brazilian dyna-
mite cruiser Nictheroy. has arrived from
Gibraltar after a cruise. chiefly in the
Pacific, covering all told 30174 knots in
exactly six months. She sailed from Nor
folk on April 20 with 435 ambitious young
Americans, mostly from the West, and
she left every mothers son Of them with
our feet in Chinese and Philippine waters.
Sixty Of the young tars were recruited In
this neighborhood and ninety In Philadel-
phia. All the rest were from the district
bordering the Great Lakes. They were
vigorous lot and only few Of them had
been aboard a ship Of any sort. They
were derisively referred to by their ship
mates who formed the working company
OF the Buffalo as farmers" There was
only one Of the lot who was seriously sick
on the voyage to the Orient He is still
under the weather, and came home ON the
Buffalo
The first stop Of the Buffalo after leav-
Ing Norfolk was Fayal. in the Azores.
She was there six days, and her men prac-
tfcally had all the shore liberty they
wanted This is in pursuance Of the idea
tnat the only way you can touch the heart
like his Job is to treat him with liberality.
The next stop Of the training ship was
Gibraltar. Thence she sailed to Graves
end and to Southampton. All hands had
expected to have merry cruise Of six
months and come out of 1t rated at least
as ordinary seamen. But Commander C.
1. Hutchins got word at Southampton to
proceed with all haste to China and put
his young landsmen aboard ships of the
Asiatic squadron that needed them. That
was the first news that the commander
got OF the scrap In China. Thereafter
there was no shore liberty for anybody.
The young fellows thought that they were
going to have chance to take part In
real war. and there was not soul OF
them who did not rejoice in the prospect.
Before leaving Gibraltar the Buffalo put
aboard the English-built cruiser Albany.
which had been ordered to the Eas.,
eighty of the recruits. After leaving
Gibraltar the cruiser averaged IL knots.
and at times. with daily expenditure CT
only sixty tons of coal. she made her lin
1t Of Is knots. despite the foulness CT he-
bottom. Wien she left Norfolk she hal
fine band. made up mostly of Ameri-
cans. When she got to China the Brook
lyE and the Newark demanded the must
clans and got them Inasmuch as TIE
Buffalo had concerts every day,tte officers
and men felt rather lonesome without
hearing the Star Spangled Banner" &C.
casionally. At Nongkong no landsmen
were put aboard tin. Monterey. The rest
OF the youngsters were, as Lieutenant
Commander Hosley expressed it. ped
died" out among the various ships Ct
the fleet. including the Brooklyn, Nash
vile. Helena, Marietta. Yorktown. Yos-
emite and Celtic. About quarter Of
them had acquired the rating CT ordinary
scamen. Forty expressed preferences
for the grimy job of coa1-passer. There
were some who had had experience as
carpenters. painters and coppersmiths.
and when they were turned over to the
ships-of the Asiatic squadron they were
rated accordingly.
Not one of the officers was "shanghaied'
for service in China. Most Of them were
rather glad that they were able to come
back. A few would have liked to have
more active duty than cruising with
landsmen. In all the long voyage there
was not an accident aboard ship. 1t was
not until she was within cables length
Of her berth at the navy yard at Brooklyn
that she got into trouble. There was
strong flood tide running. and as she
tried to head into the dock across stream
the rapid current caught her and sent
her broadside up the river. There were
many craft in her neighborhood. She
dropped her port anchor to help stop her
way and turn her head down stream.
There was good holding ground. The
anchor stuck for a second. Then some
thing gave away and the ship went drift
ing up stream footing her whistle to warn
other vessels out of her course. 1t took
her long time to get her head around
in the strong tide. She was more than
mile from the navy yard then The tug
Nina put out from the yard and helped to
escort the cruiser back. 1t was dark
when she was locked. The something
that gave way was the port anchor. II
broke in the middle shank. and the up
per half was hauled back aboard ship.
When the Brooklyn and the Newark took
he band of the Buffalo they left the band
Master behind. He asked permission to
ecruit a band on the way home. With
he help of the American Consul at Msfl
lie got a lot of Maltese. partly of English
md partly of Italian descent, and they
rade music every day for the rest Of the
ruise. They had a hard time with the
ationaI airs at first, but they play them
low as If they had been brought up to
hem. The Buffalo has a large number
4 monkeys. parrots, and queer birds pick
d up by her crew in the many ports at
rhich she touched. This is the list of her
Ulcers: Commander C. T. Hutchins.
lieutenant Commanders H. Fl. Hosley and
l. o. Dunn. Lieutenants Eaton Dieffen-
ach Long, Stone. and Butler. Surgeon
:. F. Stokes Paymaster John Irwin, ir.,
nd ChapIain W T Helms