The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1908-09-05
CLEANING Up
The CRUISERS
Spotless After the Record
Race to Fill the
BunkerS.


Red flags which had been flying all
day Thursday and yesterday forenoon
at the foremasts of all the cruisers in
the harbor, we're lowered shortly after
noon yesterday when the warships be-
gan to look spiek and span again under
the swabs and housings of water, and
holystone rubbings. By noon all the
big vessels had finished eoaling and the
ships gradually showed the white paint
as the dust was cleaned off. By evening
one could hardly realize that the entire
set of cruisers had been the dirty be-
grimed vessels of a few hours before.
Some of the torpedo boats have recoaled
but others delayed this work until to-
day.
The more landlubber climbs over a
torpedoboat destroyer the more he won
ders just how much real interest in life
its designers have. There ism It a
straight promenade on the surface that
is styled a deck The deck slopes.
Then there is but one real companion
way and that leads down to the officers
quarters. The other entrances to the
interior are hardly more or less than
manholes. Every open manhole reveals
a mass dfxmachinery. Almost the en-
tire interior seems to be taken up with
engines and boilers, and on deck every
thing seems to be rapid fire guns, tor
pedo tubes, steering gear, machine shops
and things to stumble over.
The Destroyers.
ftOh, life on destroyer is all right
after you get used to it, said denim
clad bluejacket ON the destroyer Trux-
tun. We are nearly all fremen on
these boats, and once a torpedoer, al
ways a torpedoer. They don't often
change us to those big boats. And l
don It know but what life is better on
these little fellows. Being mostly at
work on the engines and in the fire.
rooms, we don t have the monkey drill,
and all that sort of thing. We get
more liberty and don t have to do so
much in our Sunday-go-to-meeting
clothes.
t'Stuffy quarters down below? Well,
yes, and it IS pretty hot in these ma
chimes in Hawaiian waters, SO we sleep
out ON deck as much as possible. Some
parts of the ship are not so good as
others, so it is arranged by ratings. The
deck seamen, for instance, they get the
hunks way up there in the bow-the
knife blade section. Then come the fire.
men according to rating and service,
then come the petty officers and the
chief petty officers and so on, until way
in the after part of the boat you come
across the officers in their elegant little
cabins.
s s'You bet these boats can go. Now
the Truxtun, She IS the best, you know
(the boat sailor hangs up his hat in,
is always the best). and she is rated for
% knots. When they are moving along
at 2s-knot clip, the boat trenbles all
over and she cuts the water like a
razor The boats are regular sea-auto-
mobiles and it Is dandy feeling to go
fast. That s the reason we like to ride
in automobiles when we go ashore.
We're used to that millionaire feeling.
Of course, the boats roll considerably,
and a lot of us were sick coming out the
first day, but coast booze helped that
along a bit. I wich they were going
to keep this destroyer down in Homo
lulu. It's dandy town, you bet. +"
Fleet Guard Mount.
People who want to see a very pret- |
" ceremonial and are willing to get
lown to the waterfront at half after |
light in the morning viii have an op- |
,ortunity on Monday, Tuesday and |
Wednesday of next week. On these
hree mornings Major John T. Myer,
he marine officer of the fleet, will have
,uard mount by the combined marine
oree.
This is the ceremonial that takes
lace at all military stations, and when
AIKEN part in by such large number
S the marine forces of the fleet, it is
cry effective and will be well worth
eeing. The ceremonial itself last
bout twenty minutes.
Major Myer won distinction during
he siege of Peking by the Boxers
rhen he commanded the marine guard
t the American legation. He defend
d the compound with signal ability,
nd in a sortie was wounded. Major
Eyer is the kind of marine officer that