The daily morning journal and courier., 1904-02-26

Moses GrinnelL Tn March. 1868. Gren-
 nell was commissioned an ensign in the
 regular service, but his commission did
 not reach him till ate in May. He then declined to accept it. and asked
 for an honorable discharge, that he
 might accept an offer of the Japanese
 government of a commission as admiral
 at salary of forty-two thousand itza- boos (about fourteen thousand dollars United States money) a year. His re- quest was granted. and he accepted the appointment of Japan and remainted for about three years.
 At the same time the American con- sul at Hiogo, a German, whose name has passed from me, was appointed chief instructor. and to me was offered the appointment of chief engineer For specific reasons I declined the office.
 but did offer to accept service tempora- rily. and for two or three months gave a group of young Japanese engi- neer assistants such instruction as my time would permit in marine engineer ing, and gave demonstrations on the
 Stonewall, ex plaining to them the me- chanism of the engineers department and the operation of boilers, engines,
 etc, on a warship, and the use of tools. cannot claim to have done very much in this small way toward creating the Inavy. of Japan, but .Grinnell and the Hi- ogo ex-consul gave most valuable ser vices. They deserve the most credit for their work in Japan and in other coun- tries, taking with them a number of bright young Japanese to study con- struction, armament and navigation and the general operation of a warship. It may be said, therefore, that the
 Japanese navy had it's beginning in 1866 and under American instructors, and they have gone on steadily fncreas- ing their arInored fleet, in addition to
 building up an armored fleet, all armed with the best rifed guns. The first ar
 mored ship constructed for Japan was
 built on the Thames and was launched
 in 1877, about six years before our new
 navy was begun. She was the Foo-So,
 and had displacement of 3,71S tons.
 About the same time contracts were made in England for the two composite armor-belted corvettes, the Kon-Go and the Hi-Yei. Then in 1885 the Naniwa and the Takachiho, built by the Arm strongs in England were launched. They were protected cruisers of thirty seven hundred tons displacement and eighteen knots speed, and were conspic- uous in the Japan China war.
 To-dap Japan is seventh in the list of naval powers, with six battleships, three coast defense vessels, eight ar mored cruisers, fifteen protected cruis- CTS and eleven small cruisers and gun boats, with a total tonnage of 237, ,S99 tons. In addition there are ninety-three torpedo boat destroyers and torpedo
 boats. The battleship Mikasa, comple- ted in 1902, is the largest battleship in commission in the world, having dis placement of 15,200 tons, and a speed of eighteen and one-half knots.
 Japan's dockyards are credited with equipments equal to any in the world for construction and repairs. In 1902 Japans Diet passed bill providing for the establishment of a steel foundry at the Kura arsenal for the manufacture of armor plate.
 We are inclined often to speak of the rapid advance of modern Japan, but the development of the military and naval forces of the empire has hardly been appreciated by foreigners. Aspiring to play an important part in the politics of eastern Asia, she has spared no effort and shrunk from no sacrifice to place herself in the matter of armed equip- ment on level with her possible conn petitors, so extensive and vulnerable a seaboard could in no case afford to neg lect it's maritime commerce. The ad-s ministration of her naval department has been the subject of acrimonious par ty conflict at times, but there has been no disagreement on the broad imperial policy of a largely increased navalout- lay. A ship building programme was agreed on few months ago to begin this year the construction of four bat tleships of fifteen thousand tons each two armored cruisers of ninety-nine hundred tons each. four second-class five thousand ton cruisers, fifteen tor pedo boat destroyers and fifty torpedo boats.-New York Tribune.