The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1907-07-04
10 NAVAL OFFICERS RETIRED
FIVE CAPTAINS AND FOCyw COM-
MANDERS IN THE LIST.

WAsHNdroN. July S.-Ffve Csptains.
four Commanders. four Iieutensnt-Co Com
manders and two L~isutenants OF the line
Of the navy were placed on the retired list
by direction Of President Roosevelt to-day
These retirements are known as COM
pulsory, the officers retired having been
selected by a board Of flag officers ap-
pointed for that purpose. with Rear admiral
Robley ID. Evans as president aU-
thority for compelling the retirement Of the
officers chosen 10 found in Section o Of the
naval personnel net Of March 3. 1892. which
provided that II a sufficient numNe of
vacancies In the Hne OF the navy did not
occur in any year a board Of Rear Admirsls
should select additional officers for retire
ment TO create a specified number Of vscan-
cies. The object OF this provision was TO
prevent stagnatiOn in the line and 10 cause
a steady aow Of promotion. Under the law
the officers retired will receive the rank ami
three-fourths pay Of the next higher grade,
The liss OF compulsory retiremS nts follows
Captains retired with rank Of Commodore.
q grade which does not exist on the active
list). Albion v. Wadhsms. captain Of the
Norfolk Navy Yard: James u. buli. COM
msndant Of the naval training station al
San Francisco and commander OF the re-
celving ship Pensacola, Richard g.. Duven-
port. commanding the battleshlp Georgia;
Rodgers H.. Gait, on court-martial duty az
the Norfolk Navy Yard. Frank 4. Sawyer.
commanding the training ship Constellation
and commandment Of the naval training
station at Newport.
Commanders (retired with rank OF Cap
tsin,. John F.. Colwell, now at the Naval
War College. Newport. for instruction: Will
lam G.. Cutler. equipment officer OF the hos
ton navy yard: John r. Parker. at Naval
War College for instruction: William Winder.
on court -martisi duty at the Boston, navy
yard.
Lieut. enant-Commanders retired with
the rank OF Commander. Lewis !. Clark.
commanding the gnDboat Annapolis at
Tutuila naval 81 alton. Samoa; George MALI
son. assist ant TO the inspector OF equipment
at the works Of the Newport News Ship
building Company william ~. Mcoirann,
in charge Of the naval recruiting station
nt Memphis. Tenn. Charles :. Stanworth,
recently assigned IN executive officer Of the
armOred cruiser California.
Iirutrnauts retired with the rank OF Lieu
tea t-COmmander.l Charles Webster. -x-
ecutive oficer Of the Prairie Newton
Mansfield. under medical treat ment AT the
ARMY General Hospital, Fort Bayard. y. NJ.
This il the largest number Of retirenents
by ~compulsion that has taken place since
the naval personnel law bscame effective.
Heretofore the naval administration has
declined TO construe the retirement feature
literally and for several years the COM
pulsory retirementa were limited TO two
I~.ieutenants each year. The general board
Of the navy determined recently that in
order 10 have "A steady fow Of promotion
this year IL was niece ssary to retire twenty
three officers bet ween and including the
grades Of Captain and Lieutenant. Seven
Captains and Commanders we're retired
on their own application after forty years
service. leaving the fifteen additional re-
tirements which were carried out by the
Presidents action to-day. The retire
ments date from July 1.
Under the personnel law only Captains
and Commanders are permitted to retire
on their own application. Most Of the
Lieutenan commanders and LieutenantS
retired bv compulsion had applied for
retirement, but the law gave no authority
to the President TO grant their requests.
II IL an injustice. therefore. to regard these
as having been selected for retirement be-
cause they were believed to he unworthy
of retention on the active list. In the case
of Li%eutenant-C Commander Madison, he had
been disabled on the cruiser Olympia when
an Ensign and IL was necessary TO ampntate
one of his legs. On account of this dis
ability Commander Madison
voluntarily asked for retirement. but the
request was refused on the ground that no
authority existed for granting IL.
The cases of Lieuts. Webster and Mans
field are practically similar. Lieut.. Web
ster has been in poor health for years, the
result Of severe duty in the Philippines, but
has managed in the face OF this TO perform
his duties as a naval officer. He asked
voluntarily for retirement, but was refused
for the same reason given in the case OF
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Madison. Lieut..
Mansfield, who applied for retirement also
on the ground Of III health, is very i'll at Fort
Tns Retiring Board. or the "plucking
board. as il is called in the service, is not
obliged to give any reason for recommend
ing the retirement OF an officer, and for
that reason. and that ifs proceedings and
records are confidential. II is impossible
10 get an official explanation OF the causes
which led TO the retirements announced
to-day.
Capt. Davenport became involved in a
controversy through his reported action in
leaving his ship in time Of danger in the
Samoan hurricane in 1889. in which three
American and three German warships
were lost. He was executive officer of the
Nipsic, and il was alleged that he jumped
overheard and swan ashore when an at
temrt wa being made 10 ave the vessel.
Much criticism of Capt. Davenport was
heard throughout the naval service. After
his return TO the l nited states Capt. Daven-
port applied for admission TO me- membership
in the New York Yacht Club. hut was re-
jccted on account 81 the allegations con-
serDing his conduct in Samoa. He there
upon applied to the Navy Department for
q court of honor. whose report tended To
exonerato him. His application for adj
mission to the yacht club was then renewed
and he was admitted.
Recently Capt. Davenport got into
a controversy with the chaplain of his
present command. the battleship Georgia
The chaplain complained that Capt.
Davenport would not permit him to hold
religious services. The Navy Depart
ment called Capt. Davenport TO account
and directed that the chaplain be allowed
10 have his way. Capt. Davenport was
born IN the District of Columbia. and was
appointed to the Naval Academy from
Georgia in 1854.
Capt. Bulls retirement was due to severe
injuries received by him while he was on
duty at the P~an-American Exposition
in Buffalo in 1901. He fell from the top
Of a building and broke both legs. He
never fully recovered from the injury.
Capt. Bull was born in Pennsylvania and
was appointed to the Naval Academy from