The evening world., 1908-10-20
ENDS $4,000 MILE
TRIP, READY FOR A
FIGHT OR FRO[|C
To Be Sure, Alabama Has a
Cracked Cylinder, but
What's the Odds?
DOES IL KNOTS AN HOUR
Blan1eS Goal Hog" Maine for
Her Being Kept From Visit
ing the JapS.
DOES IL KNOTS AN HOUR

Not so bad for a ship with her star
eh? Been 5000 miles around the world
and did 293 knots yesterday. something
like twelve knots an hour, and yet they
call me a cripple Why, I'm At for
fight or n frolic' this very day, and
still they're sending me to the navy
yard and are going to spend s667, 900 on
me for repairs. That'll give a lot Of
work for men that need 1t. but, honest,
there is no earthly reason why I'm not
in Yokohama Harbor to-day having the
time of my life with the Connecticut
and the Kansas and the rest of the
cracks. But me for the navy-yard.
Isn't that enough to make a frst-class
battleship feel blue?"
1t was the Alabama. 5000 tons, and
seven years in the service, talking.
Any one who has read his Kipllng knows
battleshp can talk. When she an
chored off Tompkinsville yesterday the
old lady was IN a very laxative mood
Blanes Maine for II.
81 blame the Maine for most of It,"
continued tine Alabama. You know.
The Maine is a coal eater She had TO
have more coal than any other ship in
che whole fset. eft Hampton Roads
with Ihe rest of the fleet, and mighty
proud l was. Not ship in the bunch
a&3 thing on me until l had little
accident while rounding Cape Horn.
with heay sea on and pounding
along at pretty good speed cracked
my starboard cylinder. When l felt It
give ! knew 1t was about all up with
.he. because the old man. that's Ad-
niral Evans. you know, won't stand
Tor having any cripples along. And
you can't mend cracked cylinder on
the nigh seas. It's something that
means lot of tinkering in a navy yard
l tried my best TO cover it up and kept
up with the rest of the fiset all that
day.
But MY captain, Ten Eycke De Witt
Needer. and better never trod a quar-
ter deck; mad to report me TO the Ad-
n-ral There was no way out of Il.
lie knew as well as l did that I could
keep up with the rest of the fleet on
one cylinder, but regulations is regula-
tons. and when II was signaled that
my starhoard cylinder was gone / felt
mighty small. Every one of the other
fifteen ships in the fleet saw that signal
and knew My disgrace. But they didn't
see me lag any ! kept right on with
my one good cylinder, and they'll never
say the Alabama flunked
Sent Back Home Again.
We'll, they had a consultation, and
the end of 1t was that they decided TO
send me back from San Francisco. They
mad been wanting TO get rid of the
Maine, anyhow because she needed SO
much coal. and they made US two into
what they called a special service
squadron. There was l, one OF the best
ships in the whole fleet. barring that
cracked cylinder, ordered 10 90 around
me world with tha: Old coal hoe. They
put two of the new battleships in our
places. and when the sixteen steamed
a
r:!ral Sperry in command. We were LET,
behind.
Il felt NIGH bad about II. But what
are you going TO do with a bloomin'
cracked cylinder?
THE Maine and l started out, and
even with cracked cylinder / could
keep ahead of her any day in the Week.
It's positive disgrace to the navy the
way that ship burns coal. Why, she can
only steam $500 miles. ana then she has
TO coal up again
I'VE FIRST conled at Honolulu, then ",
went TO Guam and so on 10 Manila
Didn't have a chance to call On III,
Japs, but went through the Suez and og
into ne Mediterranean and so on nome
LEFT the Maine off Portsmouth oct. ..
Tel New NorEors I'm glad to gc
home, even ls all my sisters are huyiai
q great tine In Japan. Tn z l.tll,
nearer broauVay, and ina; Is some eoa
ISOLATION"