Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1906-03-30
NAMINa on ~ BArrLEsH1P.
City Council Takes Action in Favor oi
Honoring Delaware.

Honoring Delaware
At the meeting of City Council. last
night, the following offered by Mr. Ross,
was unanimously adopted.
Whereas. The House naval committee
at Washington, by unanimous vote. has
recommended the building OF a battleship
of some 1000 tons displacement and
believing the Senate will concur in this
recommendation, and
Whereas, Our State of Delaware has
never been given the honor accorded her
sister States, for not only have the other
II Of the original l3 States been recog-
nlzed, but 42 OF the present States have
already been honored and have ships
named for them; therefore. be it
Resolved, That the City Council Of
Wilmington unanimously request and re-
spectfully petition President Roosevelt
and Secretary of the Navy Bonaparte
to give Delaware "a square deal" and
accord our State the honor Justly due
her
We need but to remind our respected
rulers at Washington that Delaware was
the first State in the Union. having been
the first OF the original l3 to sign the
Constitution, December 9TH. 1877.
1t was on Delaware soil that the "Stars
and Stripes" were first unfurled in battle.
September Sd, 1777. and the historic
Brandywine and Delaware Rivers will
ever be reminders OF the part taken by
our loyal ioreiathers in the Revolutionary
struggles.
In the war with England the "hero of
Lake Champlain, our own Commodore
Macdonough, a Delawarean by birth
annihilated the British fleet in that
memorable engagement, September 1lth,
1914.
During the Civil War no State in -the
Union furnished as many men in pro-
portion to its population as did Della
ware, and Admiral du Pont, Gems, Smyth
and Wilson, and many others valiantly
defended the Union.
/ Yet our State is left unhonored, while
every other one the "Union of States"
has been duly honored, except North
Dakota. admitted to the Union in 1889
and Utah admitted in 1896.
Resolved, That we request the other
cities and towns of our State to unite
with us in supporting our Senator and
| Representative in Congress in urging
| Delaware claim for the honor due her.
so long overlooked and denied our com
monwealth.
| Last evening the washington Star
printed the following:
Delaware has inaugurated a vigorous
campaign to have the proposed 2OOOO-ton
! battleship bear her name. Senator Alice
| and Representative Burton, both of Della
ware. visited the President and Secre-
tary Bonaparte of the Navy Department,
today, and urged that no name be Sc
lected for the new warship until Della
ware has an opportunity to present its
claims very fully.
AS the first State to accept the Con-
stitution of the United States, Delaware
should be given special consideration, in
the opinion of Senator Alice and Repre-
sentative Burton. At present Delaware,
! Utah and North Dakota are the only
States which have no warship named
| after them. Residents of Delaware de-
plore the fact that their State, in spite
Of its age and the important part it
PLAYED in the establishment of the govern
ment, has not been honored, and insist
that it should not lbe sighted again.
Secretary Bonaparte assured the Della
ware representatives that he recognized
| Delaware S claim and feels that it should
be honored in preference to the other
States which are not represented by a
warship in the navy"