The Montgomery advertiser., 1908-06-14

voiced many times uuIihS lne Pes few weeks as the so.ooo olue1acKets 1s.ea wide-eyed. the novel sights of Hlo: have developed the little town or Punta Arenas have enjoyed ,snore leave at san Diego and tasted of the hospitality of Los Angeles.
 sWhere does the country get them all7 All these ray recruits nckeo m to shans aboard the vessels 70 wnlcn thev we're assigned. or are they en- listed from the fishing and mercnant fleets. with their apprenticeship Tn ma rfne affairs already finishedT
 Either guess, whenever hazarded. has been wrong. The boys who are doing the hard work of taking the American fleet around the world are seamen be- fore they step aboard commissioned war vessel as members of her crew. and they are seamen in far more liberal meaning of the word than If they had been trained to a life on salt water only on a fishing or merchant vessel They are, in short, the alumni of the country's largest and least known institutions of learning-the naval training stations at Norfolk, Va, San Francisco, Cal, and Newport, R. l.
 About 5000 graduates leave the naval training stations annually. And this great work Is done with so little noise and ostentation that the country as whole is totally ignorant Of the place and manner in which it is &C., com2iished.
 While the annual output of the na- val schools is about 5000. there is never a graduating class of anywhere near that size. The course is only four months long. from the physical examinations. which open it. to the as- signment to a ship. which terminates it; and as the work Is continuous. ev- cry month sees a batch of sailors fin- ished up and ready for active service. And this is the manner of making:
 The training school at Newport consists of a collection of muildings of cream colored brick on Coasters Harbor Island. in Narragansett Bay. port. R. L. from the mainland of which 1t is separated only by creek. which advances the academy grounds to the dignity of an island. This part of the governments naval equipment is valued at $900.000, and so satisfact- ory has the work done in 1t proven, that a school of the same nature iB soon to be opened near Chicago at c cost for buildings of s2,4oo.O00 and the Newport school will have improve ments and additions in the immediate future which will cost S1 100000 more.
 First Smell of the see. Sea coast towns and cities provide
  naval schools. but there are enrolled daily boys and young men from every part of the country. many of them getting their first smell of salt water when they alight from the train which takes them to societv's summer capi- tai. These freshmen, as they may be called are the recruits who, having gazed upon the alluring posters in front of the naval enrolling offices, have taken courage and filed their ap- plications for admission to Uncle Eann's service.
 Applying Is an important step, but it by no means follows that accept ance of the offer of service will ensue. An average of 25 per cent of appli- certifcates, pass the physical examin- atfon and demonstrate that they are generally desirable and promising enough to warrant the government ir spending money to make sailors oi them. It may be seen, therefore. tha the personnel of the United Statei Navy is picked" in a very real sens, of the word.
 The applicant who does get by tn, first gate is transported at govern. ment expense from the enlistment of. flee to the naval school. and the first thing he encounters there Is still more rigid physical examination than the first, following which he is put fin detention house for at least twenty four hours to give any lurking dis ease a chance to manifest itself The detention house. It should be under stood. is not in any sense a prison cell, but simply 8 clean, well ventil- ated, attractive building. to which the recruit is conned for a short period
 Having passed this ordeal the em- bryo sailor has matriculated. His first taste of Federal generosity cannes when he ia measured by tailor. from whom he presently receives com plete outfit of clothing for summer and winter. coupled with an order to dis card his citzen's apparel and don the new clothes. Sixty dollars is allowed for each outfit, each piece is marked with the owners name. and the stu dent receives a lucky bag" in which his clothes are to be kept. He is taught how to fold each piece neatly and keep 1t "stowed" and the manner oi folding ia such that the clothes are always pressed and smooth.
 The remainder of the outfit consists of a hammock-not the usual lawn Implement, but a device fitted with a hair mattress and blankets-very com fortable to sleep in once one becomes accustomed to 1t, although a bit novel and awkward at first
 The First Lesson.
 The initial lesson of the freshman aims to teach that neatness and clean Illness are heavens fundamental law Whether he has ever before formed the habit of bathing frequently or not he does so now. The facilities are am ple, from tubs to a big swimming pool and the orders are strict.
 Tn the course of nolv four month education naturally progresses rapid Iy. For the first twenty-one days oi that time the recruit remains a fresh. man, his state being denoted by hii residence in the detention barraeSn This is, however, not intended to en. phasfse the fact that he is a new. conner, but is a precautionary meas. ure against the spread of disease germ which may have been brought in from the outside world. During this period he is a busy student Whatever ten. dency he may have to homesickness Ii subdued by the fact that from the turn. ing out of his hammock to that ot turning in every minute is filled witt a completeness which excludes othel thoughts than those of the duties a hand.
 Ills physical education begins witl settling up drills. which teach him thu salute and other necessary ceremonies