New-York tribune., 1901-07-14
TOPICS IN CALIFORNIA.
READY FOR EPWORTH LEAGUE MEET
ING-MARE ISLAND NAVY YARD
FACILITIES DEATH OF PRO
FESSOR LECONTE.
FESSOR LECONTE.
TBr TELEGRAPH TO THE TRIBUNE J


San Francisco, July 13.-The Epworth League
convention VIII open on Monday with large at
tendance Already several thousand delegates
have arrived and # is expected that by the for
NAL opening thirty thousand will be in attend
ance Mechanics Pavilion has been beautifully
decorated and on Tuesday evening a concert
will be given, with two thousand voices to ac-
company the great organ, which Mrs. Stanford
has permitted TO be set up before its transfer
10 Stanford University. The organ is heard
with fine effect in this great pavilion. Nearly
all the counties in the State exhibits at the
pavilion, which will be the headquarters and
meeting place of the convention.
The retirement Of Jerome a. Fillmore. mana
ger Of the Southern Pacific Company which oc-
CURED this week has been expected ever since
President Hays assumed control. 1t was nat
ural that he should want a young. active man
in charge of this important office and the fact
that he brought J. NJ. Herbert, of the Missouri
Southern Railway, out here, was taken as evi-
dence that he had selected Herbert to succeed
Fillmore This inference proved true. At the
same time, E H Fitzhugh who retired from the
presidency Of the Vermont Central. was made
assistant TO the president. Both these men
served as division superintendents of the Grand
Trunk Railway under President Hays, and their
work and their loyalty to him doubtless induced
Hays TO give them these important places. In
consideration of his thirty years service in re-
sponsible positions Fillmore will be retired on a
pension of $4,000 a year. While many friends
of Fillmore regret TO see him leave the company
with which he has been identified so long, they
see that changes are inevitable and for the good
of the service President Hays has already
greatly increased the efficiency of the railroad
service on all the lines of the Southern Pacific,
and the public has been quick TO appreciate the
work Of the new management.
An excursion of leading business men of San
Francisco is planned to inspect the Mare Island
navy yard on July "a The object is TO excite
the interest of commercial bodies here in the
facilities of the navy yard. and to secure their
aid in appeals for increasing the plant at Mare
Island. The large drydock, which will be capa-
bic of accommodating any battleship in the
navy is near completion When this is finished
there will be no excuse for sending vessels TO
Bremerton Wash, for repairs as, in addition
to the dock the Mare Island yard will have
an equipment in the machine shops equal to that
Of any private shipbuilding concern on this
coast Repairs Of cruisers and battleships of
the Pacific and the Asiatic squadrons naturally
belong Mare Island. and as its facilities VIII
be unsurpassed there will be no good reason for
ignoring one Of the finest navy yards in the
country, where work may be done the year
around in the open air. with loss of time
from inclement weather.
The Sierra Club. which includes in it's mem
bership John Muir, William Keith Elliott Mac
Allister and many others who have at heart the