The daily morning journal and courier., 1904-03-19
JAPANESE wARsHIPs.
Significance of Their Names Set Forth
 by Sir Edwin Arnold.


 by Sir Edwin Arnold.
 Curiosity must often be felt among those unfamiliar with Japanese words and customs about the names given to the ships of war and of commerce sail ing under the flag of Japan. nor would such curiosity be trivial or unintelligent, writes Sir Edwin Arnold in The London Telegraph. There is a very great deal in titles and appellations, and by no means least of all as regards ships. The directors of naval policy in every maritime country ought to be more careful than they sometimes show themselves to be in the christening of their squadrons. The commercial com munity takes care of itself in this re- spect, and merchant vessels are for the most part usefully and significantly baptized, But it is a foolish loss of q fine opportunity to bestow upon yes sel, os war a cognomen like too many which might be mentioned in more than one navy, absurdly lengthy, or stupidly unsuitable, or entirely out of harmony with the destiny of a battleship. "Jack," especially in our own fleet, likes a name which rolls easily off the tongue, short, handy. and open to famil- far alteration. The Howe, of the Admiral class, which he has dubbed "Anyhow;" the Aeolus, known as the "Alehouse;;' the Resolution, nick named. the Rolling Rezzy;;" the Bar ham. which bluejacket know chiefly as 'Baa-lamb''; and the "Old Immortality or "Immortalight by which he is wont to identify the handsome cruiser lately in Eastern waters, bearing a famous record-all have handles that suit and please him, as do those which recall some great sea fight or some glor- ious figure in our ocean chronicles. A good many ships in our royal navy are very properly called after renowned predecessors whose valor has rendered the mere mentionof them veritable brew cts of honor; while, as for the rest, there has been general good sense among the godfathers and godmothers of the Ad- miralty in selecting disengaged titles. Countries like Germany and Japan, not possessing naval traditions, have had a clean logbook to write on, and their choice of names for warships becomes for this reason interesting. Japan, es- 1 pecialiy, which does nothing without aiming at correctness and utility, was sure, one would say beforehand, to have | named her fighting squadrons with sa- ! gacious recognition of how very much may lie in a name; nor will this gen. eral opinion be gainsaid if we run over | the list of the line of battleships and cruisers sailing under the standard ot l the Mikado. and notice how and why their various appellations have beer chosen.
 l First of all,it should be borne in minc that a ship of war and a ship of com Imerce have their own special words ii the Japanese tongue. The latter class from the big ocean liner of the Nippon
 Yuseff Kaisha to the little trader O roofed in junk going around the islands
 bears the appellation of Maru" Thi
 word. which is also used for a swort and for the white and red flag of tn
 empire. properly meaning a "circle," i
 always lacked on to passenger or trad i ing crafts. and so distinguishes them I The word for 8 rf4ai-of-w5sr, from tlii superb Mikasa or Fuji up to the tw snew cruisers now about to enter Japan
 ese waters. after their long and swif run from Genoa, Is Gum Kan. 7 But tn
 Japanese drop the epithet, not saying o
 writing 'Mikasa-Gun-Kan, but onl
 "Mikasa.s What does this signify
 Simply. 1t is the name of lofty an
 famous mountain near Nara, in the Jap
 anese province of Yamato. and mean
 "the Ridge of the Three Hats" it's sum
 init wearing the shape of the umbrella
 like headpiece which pilgrims carry