East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current, 1907-05-13

Washington, May 13.-An import
ant change in naval circles takes
place this week. when Rear Admiral
Willard II. Brownsop. recently In
command Of the Asiatic station. as
sumes his new duties as chief of the
bureau of navigation. Rear Admiral
Brownson succeeds Rear Admiral
George a. Converse, who was retir-
ed for age nearly a year ago. Rear
Admiral Converse asked to be re-
Iieved If his official duties, as 1t was
deemed inadvsable then to with
draw Rear Admiral Brownson from
the command of the Asiatic station.
Rear Admiral Rrownson. the new
chief of the bureau of navigation,
has high reputation in the navy
for efficiency. He was born in New
York, and graduated from the naval
aoaiamy in 1865. Since then he has
seen all kinds of service. He has
done scientific work for the coast
survey, was in the photographic Of
flee for four years, was commandant
of cadets at the naval academy for
four years and superintendent of
that institution from 1902 to 1906,
when he was assigned to the conf
mand of the division of armored
cruisers, and took them around to
the other side of the world, where
he succeeded the late Admiral Train
in command of the Asiatic fleet.
Few officers now in the navy have
had more stirring adventures than
has Pear Admiral Brcwnson. When
he was a midshipman in the old Mo-
hegan, on the Pacific station, he had
brush with a gang of pirates that
was quite as exciting and sensational
as an chapter in yellow fiction.
Tho Mohegan was cruising near Ma
zatlan, Mexico, when the citizens of
that port appealed to Captain Lowe,
her commander. for protection
against a freebooter, who was killing
innocent citizens. locting unprotect-
ed towns ana committing depreda-
tions all along the coast.
Lowe promised to look after the
pirates and soon located them some
where in an almost inaccessible clus-
ter Of lagoons. When Captain Lowe
discovered the snug harbor of the
pirttes he detailed Midshipman
Brownson, with boats crew, to hunt
them down. When Brownson reach.
ed their refuge the pirate schooner
appeared to be deserted. She look
ed as " she had been abandoned. but
the moment the Yankee sailors
clambered over the side of the YES
L., Rr4
the limbs of trees and other denss
vegetation along the banks. The pi
rates, finding that they were pur'
sued. had arranged an ambush anC
climbed the trees, where they coulC
command the deck of their schooner
Realizing he could not capture tn,
culprits under such a disadvantage
Rrownson conceived a plan that wa
equally effective and much safer. H,
ordered his men below decks to es
cape the CALLING fire that was pour
ing down upon them, and in a few
) moments started a dozen. or NOR
fires in the hold of the vessel. A
} soon as they were fairly ablaze h
gathered up his dead and wounded
hurried them into his boat and go
away from the scene as rapidly a
possible. Before he was out OF hear
ing the vessel was mass of flame
land the pirates were marooned in tn
swamp without ammunition or food
All their supplies and the booty the
J had brought away frotn their lootin
expeditions were consumed with tn
, chip and the local authorities wer
, able to capture or kill all of then
The people of Mazatlan expresse
their gratitude by presenting Brown
son with a silver service bearing q
arbs0rriate inscription.