The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1901-05-19
"a SaiIor,s Log. y

"a Sailors Log" by Robley D. Evans
rear admiral u. S. N. d. Appleton 81
Co., New York.
Admiral Evans has all his life long
been known as a man of candors and di-
RICHNESS, and those qualities controlled
the writing Of his "Recollectfons Of Forty
Years of Naval Life It is one of the
most interesting books read in many a
day. The author has a clearness Of style
and spontaneity Of expression that many
more ambitious writer's do not possess.
The admiral was born In Virginia in
1916, the son of a doctor, who owned
slaves. The first chapter of his book
contains some interesting character
sketches of the negroes, including one
Of his black nanny, for whom he
cherished deep affection, caring for her
after the emancipation and making COM
Portable her old age. DR.. Evans died
when the future naval officer was very
young, and the lad was sent to an uncle
in Washington. '@rhe child is father to
the man. is illustrated in the following
story of his school days:
Zone day after a smart rain Storm
he says, 81 was trying to sail toy boat
in the pond in the school yard, when one
of the largerJboys smashed my boat with
stone I Immediately sma shed him with
! another, and he was carried home on a
| board. I was soon at home with my
books and belongings, and thus ended
my public school life
He then entered Gonzaga college pre-
| paratory to Georgetown, but the passion
for the sea. was in his blood and soon
declared itself. In 1859 we find him en-
route to Salt Lake City, where he spent
time enough to make H. elig bic fnr on
appointment to Annapolis, proposed by
the delegate to congress from Utah. In
the journey across the then almost un-
known country heshad some exciting ex-
periences with the Indians, in all OF
which the boy Evans displayed the quail
! tiles which as a man have won for him
TIE resnect of his fellows He entered
the naval academy in 1860, and, while we
Judge he was brim full of mischief ana
often in scrapes, we are chiefly con-
! scious of the resolute devotion with
which he applied himself to business.
He was under the usual age for service
when the war broke out. but he left
school and cast in MS fortunes with the
North in great opposition to his family.
His mother went so far as to write, and
send in without his knowledge, his resig-
nation to the navy department at Wash
ington. His superior officer explained
the matter, however, and Evans was out
OF office only twenty-four hours His
brother fought in the Southern army
and one of the most striking Incidents
In the book is the circumstances under
which the brothers met while under arms
| in the opposing forces Evans was only
eighteen when he first saw active service.
and one of the men under him concluded
he was neither old enough nor big enough
to make anyone work
Il landed on top of him from the deck
above" Fighting Bob says, with a
! heavy brass trumpet, and he was con-
WINGED of his mistake in less than half a
minute. tied him UP securely, bandaged
! his head and I'D ~ he
| coal bunker"
| In spite of his youth, he had a lively
| appreciation of the way commodore
| should carry himself. He had pro-
/ found admiration for Admiral Lardner,
I under whom he shortly served He tells
a deilciously droll story of the adIni-
rails Irish servant Capt. Trenchard.
| pllshed colored servant. who had be-
come so expert in catching flies or the
captains bald head that he was never
! annoyed by them" Capt I.ardner
thrashed at the flies and swore roundly
| as they lighted on his closely cropped
head, while the 'colored man protected
his master with n dexterous movement
Of his right hand
pat watched this until he could stand
1t no longer. Drawing back hs made
vicious swing at fly but instead of
catching 1t he caught the admiral an
awful blow on the back of his head. The
admiral, thinking there was munity
| grabbed carving knife and made af-
ter Patrick, who reached the spar deck
and then there was hurdle race fore
| and aft, the officer of the deck and the
orderly trying to catch the admiral who
was doing his best to put the carving
knife on the back of Pat, who finally
escaped, but never bothered any more
| flies on the admiraPs head
| The admiraPs account of the assault
on Fort Fisher is vivid description of
nard fighting. He was shot in both
legs and suffered horrible torture. A
sailor from the Chicopee tried to carry
him off In coal shovel, but was him
self shot in both arms before they mad
gone far. When at last he was taken
on In boat with his feet hanging over
the STERN coxswain sat down calmly