The St. Louis Republic., 1902-08-20

pedo-boat fiotiIla were involved. the torpedo
craft making d sudden midnight onslaught
on the anchored fleet.
diately preceded the declaration of war"
between the blue fleet and the white squad
ron. For the ensuing five days these two
will now engage in maneuver technically
known as the search problem" This is to
be naval operation pure and simple, and
in working out .ts conclusions one fleet OF
ships will be opposed to another. To dis
tinguish them one fleet will be designated
as the White. the other as the Blue.
The three vessels of the White. command
ed by Commando John E. Pillsbury. will
endeavor to strike the coast somewhere
between Boston aud New York. The mis-
sion of the Blue is to prevent such attack
by interposing defending vessels between the
hostile squadron and the shore.
Discovery Means Defeat.
IF you are discovered. you are lost"
might be the watchwOrd of the attacking
ships. For discovery means losing of the
game so far the White IS concerned. II,
on the other hand, the White can slip past
the Gordon without being observed, that
Will mean that the Blue has undergone de-
feat and that the enemy has struck home.
Although ''hostiliiies in this search prob
lem began at midnight tonight, they may
be ended Immediately they are begun, or
they may last until noon August 25. If. dur
ing that period, the commander of the
White Squadron has Tot effected a land
ing, he must retire beaten from the contest
If, on the other hand, he manages to place
his squadron between the battle line and
the shore. that also will end the game, with
victory on his standard.
Likewise. If he falls to elude the vigilance
of the patrol fleet that tee. will con clude
the problem. no matter when it takes place.
The working out of the second problem,
which contemDlates an attack upon the
batteries defending the eastern approaches
the conclusion of the first problem. There
is to be an armstice of twO-daYs-a period
of final preparation in which both sides will
grid up their loins for the encounter.
This period of preparation begins at mid
night on August %. and expires at mid
night, August 81. Then war is on between
which will last throughout six battleracked
but bloodless days. At noon September g.
peace will dawn again and last until the
umpires get together at the War College
and begin to talk 1t over.
Grading on Target Practice.
Target practice with every gun in the fort
ifications in the maneuver district is now
in progress. Every shot at the canvas tar
get is shot directed at the North Atlantic
fleet. because upon the scores made in tar
get practice depends the efficiency by which
the umpires Will Judge the fire directed
against the fleet. This will be the most i'm
portant method of calculate that will he
Careful records are kept. If battery of
three 1O-inch guns is fired twenty times in
target practice and scores 80 per cent OF
hits, or ten in that number. that battery
viii be credited with having struck a hos
tile ship in action ten times out of twenty.
This system of scoring will be maintained
even with rapid-fire guns.
Eight vessels of Rear Admiral Higginson's
fleet. including his flagship, the Kearsarge,
the battleships Alabama and Massachu-
sets and the armOred cruiser Brooklyn.
were at Rockport, Mass. tonight. During
the day twelve midshipmen were detached
and dispatched TO various points along the
coast. to keep watch for the attacking
forces.