Watertown weekly leader. [volume] (Watertown, Jefferson County, Wis.) 1906-1908, 1907-12-20

apart, the engine room indica tors showed
full speed ahead For the purposes
Of this cruise full speed means an easy
pace Of ten knots and it was on this
basis that the ships babe farewell to the
great crowds.
The Presidents yacht was well down
the bay by this time. There was little
time to wait before the wide girthed hull
Of the Connecticut. glin1mering white,
showed off the quarter rail. Coming to-
ward the Mayfower almost bow on. at
the head of the far flung line, great
clouds Of curling black smoke leaping
from her three towering tunnels, her
rails manned with half thousand sail,
ors in their nattiest suits of blue, with
marine guard, full uniformed and stiff
at ''attention' on the quarterback, with
band playing the national anthem. with
Admiral Evans on the after-brldge high
above the main deck, with the union
jack at the stem, the two starred rear
admirals' ensign of blue at the main
truck and a spotless new American flag
1uttering from the flagstaff at the stern.
the Connecticut presented picture
which fairly thrilled those who saw, and
set patriotic pulses beating in quicken
ing rhythm.
The President lifted his hat and the
spontaneous cheer he voiced was quick
ly taken up by others in his party.
Final Boom of Farewell.
The Connecticuts men at the word
of command, raised right hands to caps
and held them there until the Mayt1ower
was cleared. On the forward bridge
Cant. Osterhaus and his staff came to
attention with a flourish of swords
Admiral Evans and the members of his
staff saluted similarly. Drums aboard
! the flagship were ruffling their tokens of
respect when at last came the strains
of The Star Spangled Banner floating
across the waves.
Just beyond the Mayfower the saiut-
ing cannon were brought into play and
with twenty-one guns the flagship voiced
her farewell message.
Following in the wake of the Connec
ticut and saluting in their turn. with
bands playing. drums rutfling and guns
booming, the Kansas, the Vermont and
the Louisiana steamed by the May
flower. These four ships are as nearly
alike as the naval architects and builders
could make them. They constituted the
first division, first squadron of the fleet.
Big Vessels Swing BY.
Four hundred yards astern of the
Louisiana came the Georgia, flying tie
flag of Rear Admiral William H. Emory
and leading the four ships of the second
division, first squadron. After the
Georgia came the New Jersey, the Rhode
Island and the Virginia. The passing of
the Virginia completed the first squadron
| under Evans.
Next came the eight ships of the sec
| ond squadron. The big Minnesota, with
Rear Admiral Thomas, led. The Mime
sofa belongs to the Connecticut class,
| making the fifth and last ship of that
pattern. Following her came the Ohio,
| the Missouri and the Maine. The latter
three being of one type and representing
Th. yrnt of ANA l,.slv,
naval architecture. Their tonnage is
12.5G0 and their speed 1S knots. The
fourth class of battleships. looking back
| ward i'll American naval history. was
found i'll the Alabama and the Illinois
| the two leading ships in the fourth di-
vision, second squadron. Read Admiral
! Sperry's flag few at the main truck Of
| illinois displace only 1852. but they
have a speed of more than II knots.
Off Down the Coast.
The fifth and last class warships rep
| resented III the parade were the Kear-
sarge and the Kentucky, the latter bring
| ing up the rear of the line. The two
| ships were launched in 1898, about the
| time of the Spanish American war; like
| the Alabama and Illinois, they mount
13-inch guns and have armor belts
| reaching a maximum of IS inches III
! thickness or oE3 inches thicker than the
| main protection of the modern Connecti-
| cut.
When the echoes of the saluting can
non OF the Kentucky had died away
| across the waters. the Connecticut at the
| head of the column four miles away
had almost reached the capes and the
| history making journey had begun in
earnest. Gle lring the capes late the
Connecticut showed the way down the
| coast.
Stops to Be Made on Trip.
/ Fleet collieries and provision ships
! have preceded the battleships to TRIM
! dad, where the first stop will be made
| The stay at Trinidad, where the ships
will arrive on Christmas eve, is limited
| to five days. The second stage of the
| journey will take the squadron to Itio
| Janeiro. where they will make ten
days stop from January II. The third
! leg leads to the end of South America
| Punta Arenas, III the straits of MageI-
| lam this port being reached January 81.
| The 9th of February will see the fleet
| again under way picking its course eau
| tiOuSly through the western end of the
| straits and then heading north once
more for Calao. The Callao stop is
| scheduled from February is to %. the
/ fleet sailing on the latter date for the
rented naval station at Magdalena bay.
! southern California. They should reach
there not later than March IA. Their
stay there is indefinite, for the spring
target practice planned on a lavish
| scale must be accomplished before the
| fleet sets out on the final stage of its
! voyage to San Francisco.