The Forrest City times., 1903-10-09
UNCLE SAM'S GUNNERS.
The Training school in the Washing ton Navy Yard and Its Course
 of Instruction.

The old navy yard in this city, where the gunners are trained, is a post with an interesting history, and there have been numerous improvements in it's de- tails of work. Not among the least Of these is the latest-the school Of ln- struction in ordnance, established Tor the purpose of obtaining the perfection of gunnery and a thorough knowledge of artillery for seamen.
 The school is in a building at the south end of the yard, called the sea- mems quarters, where every day young men may be seen engaged in one or another of the duties knowledge of which is necessary to fiji seaman to be a gunner in the United States.
 This training school for gunners is one into which landsmanor men without sea training cannot enter as students. The young man who would enter must serve an apprenticeship in the navy, be qualified to perform the duties of sea- man and be armed with recommends tion from his commanding officer, or he must have completed the course of in- struetion on a training ship for lands men and be qualified to perform the duties of a seaman. which are mere kindergarten to the task now imposed upon him.
 These involve a course of instruction which stretches into about half a years length and embraces everything that can be known about guns and naval artillery in the whole calendar of can non.
 He begins in the coppersmith shop and learns about powder tanks. brazing, soldering, forging, welding and gun con- struetion. He must know where injuries are most likely to occur in gun and, when injuries are discovered, what ac- tion is necessary.
 Then comes everything connected with breech mechanism, gun carriages and hydraulics, how to mount gun and how to dismount and assemble DOT tions of guns. He must know the mo- menclature of all mounts and how guns must be held out in a seaway.
 He must know all about small arms and machine guns and have thorough knowledge of ammunition, how to fill shells, the care and preservation of or dnance material and stores about ships; mixing paints, oils, shellac and score upon score of other matters. When he is found perfect in all this knowledge there is feather in his hat.
 But that is only one course. There is another school. This is the torpedo school at Newport. Here he must show proficiency in steam engineering. in electricity, in the construction and man. agement of torpedoes. Then he must | become diver
 One might think that all this work requiring very hard study and rigid discipline would frighten many of the | embryo gunners, but the young men stand up to the rack and take their medicine like old shellbacks Every | year a number of them reach the goal and are on the road to promotion to line officers in the service. The road to the top of the ladder is free to all. | But before becoming a full-fedged ! as an acting gunner. and this requires 1 that he must have been a seaman gun ner. under 35 years old, who has served seven years on board of cruising vessels of the navy, and at least one year as a chief gunner's mate or gunners mate of the first class, and must be serving as such under continuous service at the time of examination. The average of his marks taken from all records must not be less than S5 per cent. and he must | have letters of recommendation from his commanding officers
 When young man is fortunate enough to reach the pinnacle of acting 1 gunner he goes on probation for year i Then. if the standards of proficiency are l kept up, he recieves d warrant as gum ner signed by the president Then after six years. he is eligible to appoin tment as an ensign in his Uncle Sams naval service
 Thus far there are but three officers in 1 the navy who have stepped from the ranks of the gunners into the grade of ensign. These are Francis Martin, of Pennsylvania. who is serving with the Asiastic fleet. Louis James Connolly. of Virginia, who is aboard the supp'y ship Culgoa, and Henry Bishop Soule. of Ohio, who is on duty aboard the first class battleship Wisconsin. There are others serving as ensigns who hare not received their commissions, as they are subject to examination
 Competent naval ofiicers-of course all naval officers are considered per sonifcations of competency or they would not be graduates of the Naval academy-are in charge of the seamen's gunnery school, and the discipline is equallyas rigid as that enforced aboard ship or at Annapolis. As at the academy a certain number of demerit marks will be fatal to continuance in tn a e.r,.;oa