The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1906-04-29
FRENCH CRUISERS ON A VISIT.
NAVAL POLITENESS BARKS IN
10th RIVERS.
One Point In which the Frenchmcn Differ
From Our boats Is In Having Only One
Gun TO a Turret Then They Are Black
10 Our white Hound Of Dinners.

Gun TO a Turret -Thcn They Are Black
10 Our white Hound OF Dinners.
The French cruisers Marseillaise, Conde
and Admiral Aube, under command OF
Rear Admiral Campion, arrived here yes
terday noon from Annapolis and the John
Paul Jones ceremonies and will remain
in the North River until Thursday, when
they sail for Marseilies.
As the three Frenchmen came up the
harbor they were saluted by various craft
and Governors Island fred thirteen guns
in answer to the salute.
Awaiting the arrival Of the visitors were
four ships of the United states cruiser
division OF the North Atlantic squadron,
Admiral Brownson's flagship West Vir-
ginia, which lies of Eightieth street; the
Maryland, the Pennsylvania and the Colo
RADIO, which are lying in the order named 800
yards apart north of the flagship.
When the flagship of the French squadron
had dropped anchor off Seventy-ninth
street the Admirals exchanged thirteen gun
salutes, the visitors taking the lead. Rear
Admiral Campion and his chief of staff
Capt. Guepratte, went in a launch to ray
an official visit to Rear Admiral Coghlan
at the navy yard and there was more
bdluulDB,
At o'clock yesterday afternoon the
French Admiral in his launch came along
side the cruiser West Virginia. Rear
Admiral Brownson was aw aiting him on
the quarter deck, and as he set foot on deck
the marines of the flagship presented arms
and the band PLAYED the "Marseillaise." The
two Admirals shook hands, walked about
q few minutes and then vent below, where
the bree2es were not blowing. Rear Ad-
miral Brownson speaks French and they
oonversed in that tongue for a quarter OF
an hour.
As the French Admiral went over the
side and lay of the West Virginia star
board quarter the small guns OF the West
Virginia's secondary battery saluted him.
len minutes later Rear Admiral Brown
sons barge manned by twelve sailors was
at the gangway of the Marseillaise and the
American Admiral was welcomed aboard
the French ship, the band playing the Star
Spangled Banner" When the American
Admiral came away he got his salute from
the foremost of the Marseillaise, the only
military mast on any Of the French ships.
On Monday Admiral Campion will call on
Mayor Mcclellan and Admiral Coghlan will
return the call OF yesterday. In the after
noon there will be a reception for the French
officers at the navy yard and in the evening
Admiral Brownson will compliment Adj
miral Campion with a dinner aboard the
West Virginia. At this dinner Gen. Fred
d. Grant, Gen. Horace Porter, NJ. Ebnay,
the French Consul-General. and Mayor
Mcclellan will be present.
On Tuesday the French officers and
officers from the United States ships will
attend a dinner on board the new French
liner La Provence, and on Wednesday the
French Consul General will give a dinner
to Admiral Campion at Delmonico's.
The French cruisers left Annapolis at
IA. NJ. Friday and steamed here at fourteen
l---l ..l-- a-N a 4 Hrlt ~ n Il
being of the same class. They are each
400 feet long, So pet beam, and draw 2613
feet. Their displacement is $3.50 tons and
their engines develop 20,5O0 horsepower.
The ships have only one gun in each turret
forward and aft, instead Of two like ours.
These guns are 7.6 inches. Besides, they
carry each eight Ga guns, six 4-inch and
eighteen 3~-pounders. They are protected
by a belt of arlnor So inches in thickness.
The turret armor is s inches. Each ship
has a crew Of 615 officers and men.
The Marseillaise was completed in 1903
and the other two in 1904. They cost about
S4,975, 900 each.
The French ships show considerable
freeboard and their topsides are painted
a dull black. The superstructures and
tunnels are cream colored and as they lay
In the North Rive they offer a striking
contrast to the white Americans. A pc
c~uliarity of the French ships is that they
have on board 40 refrigerating plants.
How do we get the fresh meat on a long
voyage?" said a French officer in the Mar
~seillaise yesterday. Garry it with us. The
crew Of each ship eats two oxen and ten
sheep each day. When we leave a port we
carry some ten or twelve oxen and 100
or more sheep"
There are no marines, by the way, on
the French ships, the bluejackets doing the
duties of a marine, The French officer
said the meat story was not of the kind to
be "told to the marines Perhaps we
differ from other navies in that respect"
continued he, but we do get fresh meat"