The San Francisco call., 1908-05-09

PEACE PRESERVFRS
VISITED BY CROWDS
Excursion Fleet Contains Every
Sort of Floating Thing
Found in the Bay
Careful Inspectors Insure the
Safety of Thousands Who
Visit Ships

Visitors were received on board the
battleships yesterday and thousands
took advantage of the open door which
will be kept wide ajar, with certain
| limitations, as long as the fleet re-
mains. From now on visitors Will be
received every day between the hours
OF 10 a. m. and 4 in the afternoon and
they will find the kind OF welcome on
the ships that the city is ready to give
Jack when he comes ashore.
Every man on every ship thinks that
his ship is the best in the feet and IL
you give him the opportunity he will
prove 1t to you and in doing so will
show you more wonderful devices for
preserving peace than the Hague con-
vention ever dreamed OF.
Alongside each ships port gangway
float has been moored as a landing
place for the motley specimens of ma
rine architecture that make up the ex-
cursion feet. Motley they are but
safe enough. The government inspec-
tors have seen TO that. and before any
boat leaves the beach for the ships a
federal official counts the passengers
for assurance that no more are aboard
than the license allows. This official
also makes sure that the man running
the boat holds license and that tho
boat carries the one or more deckhands
as required by the amended laws in
force for the protection OF life during
the feet visiting season.
OFFICER COUNTS NOSES
1t is not only on the beach that pre-
cautions are taken. When a boat along
side a wRrship has discharged its pas
sengers a petty officer examines the
license and reports to the marine at
the gangway the number OF passengers
the boat may take away. AS the re-
turning passengers go down the gang
way this marine counts noses, and
when the number reaches the boats
complement his arm bars the gangway.
the flow OF humanity stops and is kept
damned up until the next boat comes
along. By an arrangement between all
those operating excursion boats return
tickets will be honored on any boat
regardless for what boat tho ticket was
issued.
To a naval constructor or marine
artist the sight OF the excursion fleet is
calculated to be something OF a shock.
AS the ragtag and bobtail of architec-
tural chaos. it takes the cake. but there
Is something of dignity In its total dis
regard for its own appearance. No
organ grinder ever attracted a moro
miscellaneous following than made up
the fleet that choochooed its hating
way through the ships OF the armada
they had tagged the Yorktown on its
tour of review and shared with the sec
retary's yacht the glory of the whole
sale saiutes.. In the afternoon they
went right out and rubbed shoulders
with the big white monsters, in some
cases taking away samples of white
paint as souvenirs.
Some of the boats were rather pic
tureeque before the government inspec-
tors came along.
You can't take this boat out unless
you put q rail around 1t and not then
unless the rail is strong" they told
some OF the boat owners.
To build an artistic rail on a boat
that was not intended to wear any up
per works takes thought 10 design and
time to build. With a mind bent on
harvesting half dollars, that thought
was at a premium. so strength was the
only feature that received any -consid-
GRAFTON. -
FROM CRABS To CROWNS