The National tribune., 1908-10-22
ANSWERS TO
CORRESPONDENTS.

Il. Cdn you give Hle ltlt VI tic
North Magnetic Pole; its latitude and
| longitude? 2. How nearly does it CO.
incide with the geographic pole? 3.
Is its position permanent?
| /. The North Pole, according to the
best authorities, can only be approx
mately given as in latitude 20 degrees
north and longitude sc or 81 degrees
| west. Capt. JAMES Ross, in June, 1881,
found that the dip of the magnetic nee
die at a place in latitude 20 degrees .05
minutes seconds north and longitude
sc degrees As minutes s seconds west
was SO degrees SO minutes 5 seconds,
the dip needle standing hence
! practically vertical. Unfortunately
Ross was unable to carry out more ex-
| teEsive observations, therefore 1t may
easily have happened that the place he
observed at was affected by local attrac-
| ton caused by iron deposits. 2. 1t is
nearly 1.400 miles south of the geo
gra phical North Pole. g. According TO
DIR. l.. A Bauer, of the Carnegie Insti-
tuition, in an article on Hunting the
Magnetic Pole" in Van Norden Maga-
| zine for November, 1907, this question
| is answered as follows: unfortunately
we have no direct observations as yet
on which to base definite statement"
But he adds further: While, however.
we have no direct data in the case OF
either Pole to enable us to say posi-
| lively whether the Magnetic Poles are
moving or are stationary, there are a
number of indirect evidences that the
| Magnetic Poles are in motion. 1t is
quite possible that they even pass thru
certain motions in the course of a day or
suffer displacements during magnetic
storms. 1t would be singular indeed
were the Magnetic Poles not to partake
of the fluctuations known to exist in
every one of the earth's magnetic phe-
nomena which three centuries of OBJ
servations have revealed to u.s."
F. c.. NJ, Pittston, Pa, writes: Can
you furnish me with the names of the
battleships on which explosions have oc-
| Cured during the past 20 years, at
time of firing of the heavy guns, with
| number of killed and wounded on board
of each nan-of-war at each accident?
| The first great explosion on a naval
vessel was the terrible catastrophe of
| Feb. 2S, 1874, on the u. S. steamer
| Princeton, while on an excursion on the
Potomac River. On that occasion the
Secretary of State, Mr.. Abel p. Upshur,
| of Virginia, and the Secretary of the
Navy, Mr. Thos w. Gilmer, of Virginia,
were killed by the bursting of a gun,
and several other persons were seriously
injured. President Tyler had been
standing with those who were killed,
but had just been called aside a short
| distance to speak to one of the guests
and he escaped injury. Information
concerning recent explosions on
| United States war vessels has never
been tabulated by the Navy Depart
an official order from the Secretary OF
| the Navy. For obvious reasons they dc
mot care to publish this information.
e. B. F., Duluth, Mimi, asks: L
| Did Gen. Robert Z. Lee have a man on
1 his staff. before or after the battle OF
! Gettysburg, by the name of Col. Cyrus
L. Murch, or was he ever commander OF
1.-THE 5tha Ca, G.. S. A? 2. Will you
kindly publish the roster of the Kear-
1 sarge crew at the time she sunk the
Alabama; or if not convenient to pub
| lish the roster can you inform me il
there was on board at that time pow
| der-boy by the name of Thomas Brian
i 1. Reference to the office of Confed-
4 crate Records, in the War Department,
results in the statement that they are
unable to find the name referred tC
among the list of Colonels, or indeed as
holding any rank in the Confederate
army. 1t is possible, however, that he
was connected with one of the militia
regiments, and if you can obtain any
i more particulars Gen. Marcus j
1 Wright, of the War Department, will
i gladly prosecute the search further
2. According to the official records oi
4 the Navy Department the officers and
crew of the Kearsarge on June IA, 1864
4 the date of the fight with the Alabama
Winslow;t Lieutenant-Command Jas
rs. Thornton; Surgeon, John NJ
Browne; Paymaster, j. Adams Smith
tChief Engineer, VIM. Fl. Cushmani
Acting Masters, James r. Wheeler
Eben NJ. Stoddard, David Fl. Summer
Ensign, Edward E. Preble; Second AS,
sistant Engineer, VIM. H. Badlam
James C. Walton; Third Assistant En-
gineers, Frederick L. Miller, Henry
| Mcconnell, Sidney L. Smith; Pay
Clerk, Daniel B. Sargent; Cap
tain's Clerk, Seth E. Hartwell; Mid
ishipmen's Mates, Charles H. Danforth
Ezra Bartlett, VIM. II. Yeaton; Sur
geon's Steward, George A. Title; Pay
b. Dewitt; First Glass Firemen, BENZ
II. Blaisdell. Joel B. Blaisdell, VIM. H
| Donnelly, Geo. w. Remick, Joel L. San
born, jeremiah Young, VIM. Smith
I'd, True w. Priest, Jos. Dugan, Hen
Try Jameson, John Dwyer; Second
class Firemen, Geo. e. Smart, John e
Odiorne, Stephen Smith, John T. Stack
ford, James w. Sheffield, Thos. Salmon
Patrick O'Connor; Master-at-Arms, ia,
son N. Watrus; BoatSwain'S Mates
Il Thomas Perry, William Bond; Gun
ner's Mate, Hugh Mcpherson; Carpen-
ter's Mate, Mark G. Ham; Quartermas-
ters, Charles Butts, James Saunders
William Smith. I'd, William b. Poole
Coxswains, James Wilson, John Hayes
John f. Bickford; C. F. c., James Ha
ley. Cooks, Timothy Hurley, Edward
Williams, Charles Fisher, Benz. S. Da
Wis; Armorer, George H. Russell; C. A
Quarter Gunners, John w. Dempsey
ert Strahan, Edward Wilt; Captain
E. Carey; Seamen, Charles Jones, Geo
Levi w. Nye, James II. Lee, James
Bradley, Johan A Linderoth ALA
Charles A. Read, VIM. S. Morgan, VIM
Gurney, Joachim Pease, Charles Moore
Edward Wallace, Augustus Johnson
, jeremiah Horrigan, William O'Hallo
ran, William Turner. George Baker
, Timothy G.. Canty. John Shields, Thos
Alloway, Philip Weeks, Peter Ludy
George English; Coal Heavers, Lyman
P. Spinney, Charles A. Poole, Timoth!
Lynch, S. P. Bracket John w. San
born, Adonirum Littlefield, John w
. Young, William Wainwright, John +
Dugan, Thomas Marsh, Clement A
, Alexander alias Clement Antoine, Benz
, Button, f. K Walden alias John Pope
John Briset; Ordinary Seamen, William
GOWN, John Barrows, John Boyle
| Iohn q WoOdberrY lanes MOrey Mi