Smyrna times., 1908-02-26
SHORT AND SNAPPY
ITEMS OF INTEREST
CLEANED BY OUR WASH
INGTON CORRESPONDENT
Clever Hits on Big Men and Great
Questions Which are Uppermost
in the Public E ye of theWeek

Criticism of the Navy has become
so much the fashion recently that the
president some time ago deputed
Rear Admiral Converse, now on the
retired list, to go into the question
from the standpoint of an expert and
tell the truth for the benefit of the
public. 1t will be remembered by
those who have followed the naval
discussion that a lot of so-called ex-
perts have made all sorts of charges
against the navy from defective con-
struction and material Ito lack of
speed and gun practice. The two
latter charges are, as almost every
one knows, unfounded. The Ameri-
can navy now holds the record for
target practice with almost all guns
at almost all distances. Ship for
ship, the shooting average is better
than in any nation of the world, and
the speed of the later ships has
proved in each class to be the high
est that could be expected. In fact,
there are only two varieties of
warship where the American navy
has not kept in the first flight, as to
speed. This is in some of the very
powerful destroyers where the speed
record is held just now by the Ger
man navy and in some of the fast
cruising scout ships recently turned
out by the English Admiralty. These
are matters that come within the ken
of the average layman. Admiral Con-
verse, however, goes into the more
technical details of construction. He
says that some of the older ships of
the navy are undoubtedly not up to
the latest models in construction.
They were experiments in their time
as in reality all warships are. But
the practical lessons of the Russo-Jap-
anese war have been taken into con-
sideration in all of the later naval
construction, and as to armOr protec-
tiOn, load line, height of freeboard
and gun position, there is no fault to
be found with any of the American
ships. Squadron for qsuadron, they
would be able to hold their own with
any navy in the world. This is good
hearing coming from a man like Ad-
miral Converse, for he is an officer
and a gentleman and a men who
knows his profession infinitely better
than the professional magazine critic.
--S'lc ce the Jockey Club has declared
that gambling is not the incentive in
racing Governor Hughes seems deter
mined to let them try taking their
racing and their gambling separately.
If Mr.. Taft gets elected the hardest
part of the job will be for him to sit
in the White House for four years
without getting out and travelling
somewhere.
Harry Payne Whitney says that he
never borrowed a cent from Hetty
Green. Well, he is not the only
gilded youth who can boast of his
failure in that direction.
Having taken all the credit for the
recent panic, it is about time for Tom
Lawson to begin a series of magazine
articles on how he brought about the
return of prosperity.
This report of Raisouli going on the
stage is open to suspicion. We
should not think it would tempt a
bandit chief who had handled ran
SONS in real money.
Mr.. Hartman has discovered in
spite OF the fact that money talks the
people who get it have to help out
the conversation little some time.
1t IS almost unnecessary for the
Maryland Legislature to assure the
voters that there is no nigger in the
constitutional amendment woodpile.
Considering the troubles that are
looming up for the next administra-
tion the wonder is that so manv peo-
pie should be hunting for a job.
In spite of the fact that the Lean
Year is pretty we'll advanced, there is
no indication yet who Miss Democracy
is going to propose to.
just as the concert of Europe is
getting nicely tuned up the Sultan
insists on sucking a lemon in front
of the bandstand.
Andrew Carnegie says there is more
IN hard work than in luck Ru+